Wacky rigging soft bait
In a
never-ending quest to catch more and bigger fish, anglers have learned to
embrace a multitude of baits and techniques. We’ve learned to flip and pitch,
cast monstrous swimbaits and even rig a drop shot. And though these fishing
techniques began as foreign to most of us, eventually they found their way into
the bass fishing vernacular.
While
most anglers already have been introduced to wacky rigging as a concept, it
seems that some of the finer points of making this finesse presentation work
(as well as some of the terminal tackle) haven’t yet reached the masses. The
wacky rig system isn’t complicated, but knowing when, where and how to use it
can provide you with one of the most effective fishing techniques for spawn,
postspawn and even deep-structure fishing.
I would
say first and foremost the wacky presentation is probably at its best during
spawn and postspawn when fish move up shallow. That’s because the wacky system
allows you to keep the bait in the strike zone longer and it creates a lot more
action with the bait. Outside grasslines, pockets in reeds, docks, rock walls,
wherever fish are spawning or have moved to in a postspawn situation are great
places for a wacky rigged soft plastic. Especially in the postspawn, when bass
get really lethargic and they don’t want to chase bait, scaling down with a
wacky worm will produce strikes for you. If you can’t get bit on a 10-inch
Berkley PowerBait Power Worm because the fish are shallow, you can assure
yourself that if you put on a Berkley PowerBait Fat Dover Crawler and just
start fishing it you are going to catch fish.
The
clearer the water the better the wacky system seems to work. Obviously, with
dirtier water you’re going to want something bigger, like a Texas rig. The
wacky rig, when not fishing thick grass or trying to get it up in the middle of
a tree, is more efficient than a Texas rig.
My wacky
rigging equipment consists of a 7-foot spinning rod with 8- or 10-pound Berkley
Trilene® 100% Fluorocarbon line. As far as hooks go, I use a wacky rig hook: a
short-shank, wide-gap hook with round bends. Just stick the hook point through
the egg sac (or thickest portion) of the bait. The Fat Dover Crawler is the
best worm I can think of for the wacky system because it has the most movement
and displaces the most water.
For
weights, I use short tungsten nail weights that they insert into the nose of
the baits for rigging wacky style. Without a doubt this is the next generation
for fishing open-water, deep structure fish. For spotted bass it’s probably one
of the best worm techniques that you can use when they are deep. You can fish
4- to 6-inch worms wacky rigged but you put a 3/16-ounce tungsten nail weight
in it and you can fish that bait really well in 20 to 30 feet of water. The
fall of the bait is so different and it wants to plane and glide and you can
hop it and shake it throughout the water column. Out West, these nail weights
aren’t hard to find, but for the rest of the country I would suggest using the
Internet if you can’t find them in your region. I base the weight size on the
depth of the water I want to fish. Most of the baits I use are 4-6 inches so
there’s not too big a difference. The depth of the water and the speed of the
fall you want will determine what size nail weight you want to use. For a super
slow fall, use 1/32 ounce. To get deep, 3/16 or 1/4 ounce and heavier line will
help you get the bait down there faster.
The wacky
rig catches fish. It takes some experimentation and some specialized terminal
tackle, but it is so effective at catching both shallow and deep fish from the
spawn through fall that it is destined to be the next hot technique that makes
its way to your home lake.
Skeet
Reese is the 2007 BASS Elite Series Angler of the Year and an 8-time Bassmaster
Classic qualifier. Reese lives in Auburn, Calif.