There’s no doubt a big Texas-rigged worm is the way to fish the numerous brush piles in Caney Lake during the summer because they work more often than not.
However, what is one to do if bass thumb their noses at the giant soft plastics?
According to frequent Caney Lake angler and Simsboro angler Sid Havard, there are at least three things he does if they don’t want a big worm and one thing he does if they suddenly surface somewhere within casting distance of his boat.
“I learned last year that sometimes big isn’t big enough,” said Havard. “So if you’re not getting bit on a 10-inch worm, go to a 12- or even a 14-inch worm. One of the ones that worked for me last year was the 12-inch Mann’s Jelly Worm.”
Moving to the other extreme, Havard says he has also caught a lot of bass from the brush piles by switching to a finesse worm rigged on a shaky head. He also uses a shaky head to work a brush pile before leaving even if he has caught fish, just to see if there’s one left that wasn’t in the mood to eat a big worm.
“And you can also drag a football jig along the edges of those piles,” Havard said. “It’s kind of hard to fish in the middle of the pile, but once you figure out how the brush lies on bottom, you can drag it the same way and not get hung up as much.”
Havard’s last recommendation for fishing the piles was to keep a big Zara Spook tied on and ready to cast into any schooling action.
“You can throw that thing a country mile in case they come up far away, and a lot of times the fish that eat the Spook will be over the slot,” he said.