Thread: What is the best way to find bedded red ears ?

Nothing is absolute but if you are beating the banks make a cast toward middle for every cast you make toward the bank . Go to lake points .(peninsulas if you will ) and fan cast to all angles then work back to the bank .You can also follow creek beds looking for bends that are close to bank depths .the quick access to deep water will come into play with all fishing .(jmo)bluegill beds sometimes will tip them off as well . fish the deeper water just out from the bluegill beds .

If you have electronics on your boat with the sidescan feature you can set the sidescan at 30 feet and idle down banks keeping your boat in about 6 feet of water. The bluegill and redear beds will show up very clearly.

If the lakes you fish are clear, you can also see the beds with a decent pair of sunglasses. I find bedding redears in my area every year by looking. As noted though, some beds are too deep to see, so that's where the sidescan can come into play.

I'm pretty good at getting redear but eagle 1's info is spot on. There is not much I could really add.


Regards

have a fishing partner with a good nose.
Some people can smell a location where the fish are bedding.

Originally Posted by flycaster

have a fishing partner with a good nose.
Some people can smell a location where the fish are bedding.

Smells like ripe watermelon

Start looking for them earlier than you you do those blue bream. Here in Eastern NC, the Shells typically hit the banks or be very close when the water temps approach the upper 60s, to low 70s. Blue bream low to mid 70's . As mentioned, you can smell, and or see the beds if the water isn't murky, and if you had a good side or down imaging finder.

The bonnets and pads with a hard sandy bottom are a favorite spot, along with the base of the Cypress trees around here. Good luck.

Man I thought I knew how to find them. Found them yesterday with the wife and me and my fishing partner went back to put the hammer down. They were gone. 4 BG in 4 hours. Then found them in 2 FOW caught 15 Shell Cracker in 1 hour. Left them biting. I was pulling a fish in as my partner was pulling the TM in. Varsity softball is important also.