Fishing tip of the week

Fishing Tip of the Week

Friday, 06 September 2024 09:16

Fall A-rig Fishing
by Mike Gerry

A bait that has proven very effective in the fall over the past several years is commonly known as the Alabama Rig (A-Rig.) As the baitfish schools up and chasing becomes more the norm in the fall the A-Rig has become a very effective fall bait.
Although there are lots of floating grass and thick grass as the bait moves to the mouths of the creeks the A-rig has become extremely effective. It’s also a bait that has changed over time as many versions of the A-Rig are now on the market allowing you to purchase lighter versions so you’re not sinking directly into the grass, allowing it to be fished over and around grass!
Even though for me the A-rig has not been as common on my boat as other baits, this has been my own choosing not to fish it as much because of the danger of all the hooks in the boat with customers.

I also think that the different manufacturers of the A-rig are starting to create different versions of it so the bait can be fished at different depths with more flash and for a variety of fish species. Many of the manufacturers have taken weight out of the bait and reduced the size of the wire and added willow leaf blades for flash, to improve presentation.
The other change is that the A-rig is being fished in more types of cover and at different depths than the original use presented.
Anglers have found that the bass have not moved to the bridges as they did in past years. I believe this is a by-product of the rig beating up the fish and changing some of their normal migration paths. Allowing anglers to move to creeks, shallow water, points and river ledge areas to find the fish that will hit it.

The good news is that as the migration path changed the A-rig manufacturers were ahead of the curve and did many of the things stated above to allow the bait to take on more water other than the 20 to 30 ft. drops we all fished in past years.
The thing that hasn’t changed on the A-rig is it is a bulky bait and most average and older fisherman are physically challenged to fish with it!
Captain Mike