Looking to get out on the water this fall? KVD has five baits he won't leave home without in the cool weather. Make sure to pack these baits that will provide a ton of action and match the forage in your lake.
Fall is a great time of the year to fish in Michigan. The fish are feeding up towards winter and are really focused on bait. I have five baits that I won't leave home without having tied on in the fall.
First and foremost, a KVD Squarebill 1.5. This is my go-to shallow crankbait. We make different colors to match the various types of forage, such as perch, bluegill, shad or whatever bait is in the ecosystem. This is a great bait to fish shallow cover in the back of a creek or to crank over grass on a main lake flat. This is a go-to bait for me in the four-to-seven-foot range.
Anywhere I go in the country this square bill is just a great fish catcher.
Another bait that is a great fish catcher is the Thunder Cricket vibrating jig. I usually put a Blade Minnow on it as a trailer. It is a tremendous big bass catcher. I use it in clear water and it's a great smallmouth bass bait. This is another tool that is very different than a square bill and gives off a lot of vibration. The bass are really drawn to it.
Another great Fall bait is a jerk bait. I use a jerk bait around schooling fish and around any edge. This is a high percentage bait that I can get a ton of reaction strikes out of. If the water is clear, I'm going to be throwing a jerk bait in the fall.
The next bait is a spinner bait. What better lure is there to imitate bait fish? It is super versatile because it can be fished shallow. I burn it right underneath the surface in clear water, I slow roll it around lay downs and logs, and I fish it around boat docks and bushes. This is a top to bottom bait that I can really control the depth zone of. Be sure to pick a color that matches the forage in the ecosystem that is being fished.
I'm always thinking about a spinner bait, it's just a go-to bait day in and day out. I usually use a double willow blade in the fall. Which willow blade combination to use to imitate the bait fish depends on the water clarity. For instance, if a large amount of rain or a hurricane occurs the lakes rise and the backs of the creeks get dirty. A Colorado blade spinner bait is a really good option during these situations.
Last but not least, the fifth fall bait is a Rage Swimmer. It is necessary to have several sizes of Rage Swimmers. A swim bait is a great baitfish imitator, depending on what size head is put on it. I can fish it top to bottom and it is going to catch fish. This bait imitates the bait anywhere that I go. I match the color and the size, whether it's a 2.75” or all the way up to a really big 5.75". I choose the right size swim bait to match the forage in the ecosystem that I am fishing.
To reiterate, the fall is all about bait. I really want to match the type of forage they're feeding on, whether it is bluegill, shad, perch, shiners, or blue back herring. These five baits I can do that with, so do not leave home without them in the fall.
