As the calendar pages flip from late summer into early fall, many lakes and rivers are drawn down for winter, and their once-endless amounts of lush, green vegetation are now thinning out and dying.

Most bass anglers are used to fishing vegetation during the summer months, but sometimes leave it in fall when it becomes scarce, or at least harder to find healthy, green vegetation. Look for certain things to help increase your odds when fishing vegetation in the fall. And rely on key lures that both help you cover water when looking for quality vegetation and then load the boat once you find that sweet spot.

For locating healthy vegetation in fall, reaction-style baits allow me to cover water; they allow me to search for active bass, keeping my eyes open for green, healthy-looking weeds that are putting oxygen into the water.

On river systems, and in lakes where bass live in shallower water, I like using buzzbaits and hollow-bodied frogs. Both lures allow me to keep my foot on the Minn Kota Ultrex Quest at a constant speed and casting a Buckeye Lures G-Buzz with a Yamamoto Baits Swimming Senko as my trailer along the edge of vegetation and over top submerged grass.

When I find some of the last vegetation of the season, and it is matted, I work a Northland Fishing Tackle Reed Runner Frog over that matted cover, along with walking the frog back to the boat over open water. Some matted vegetation is very thick, and I want to make long casts. Using a braided line is an absolute must, so I spool my reel with 65-pound Seaguar Smackdown Braid in Stealth Grey.

When fishing shallow water, look for are depth changes and isolated cover. Even subtle changes can attract bass: Like when a bank goes from 2 to 2 1/2 feet. Chances are that the slight depth change may attract bass.

An isolated piece of cover, such as a laydown or a small group of lily pads, is a perfect place for bass to feed. In fall, when you find fish on an isolated piece of cover, you may catch several bass there because they will all be holding on that one piece of cover.

When in search mode for late-vegetation bass, and healthy vegetation in deeper water, I often use a crankbait, as I can control the depth that bait runs, so it is ticking the top of the vegetation. When it gets hung up, I can rip it out, which often generates a reaction strike.

I like using a smaller-profile crankbait as it can cast farther and pull through vegetation easier. The Northland Fishing Tackle Elite Sunny B features premium balsa construction, runs true and retains an erratic action even when retrieved at slower speeds. To achieve optimal diving depth, and to rip the crankbait out of the weeds, I use 12- or 15-pound Seaguar TATSU Fluorocarbon line.

Once you find an active pod of bass, slow down and pick that clump of coontail or milfoil apart; Or it may be a key section of lily pads. Either way, boat control is extremely important as the margin for error is small, meaning that you need to put your bait in an exact spot time and time again. I deploy my dual Raptors in shallow water, or engage Spot-Lock on my Ultrex if I’m offshore, enabling me to focus on making a precise cast or flip.

I pinpoint where bass are located by looking for isolated clumps of vegetation, or open spots in the weeds, while keeping an eye on my Humminbird MEGA360. I slow down my presentation and flip a bait to individual targets. Each angler has their favorite bait to flip, such as a Texas-rigged soft plastic or jig.

I will flip both; my choice depends on the depth of water I’m fishing, the type of vegetation, and overall, what the bass want on that given day. If the vegetation is more matted, I’ll use a Texas-rig, as I think it slides through the mat better. If I’m fishing an open-water pocket in the middle of dense coontail or milfoil, I like to use a jig, as I like the hookup ratio and rate of fall better.

My usual bait choices for a Texas-rig are a Yamamoto Baits Flappin’ Hog rigged on an Eagle Claw Lazer TroKar TK133 Pro V Bend Flippin’ hook. The weight I use depends on the depth and density of the vegetation: For punching through thick cover, I’ll use a 1/2- or 3/4-ounce tungsten weight, whereas fishing the edge, I may only need a 3/8-ounce weight.

When fishing a jig, I’ll use either a 1/2- or 3/4-ounce jig. The 3/4-ounce is used for deeper-water weed lines or thick milfoil patches, while the 1/2-ounce is the day-in-day-out jig I use to fish edges or open-water pockets.

My line selection for flipping vegetation comes down to two choices: 22-pound Seaguar TATSU for thicker sections of vegetation, or 17-pound TATSU for fishing edges or open-water pockets. TATSU is a double-structured Fluorocarbon (DSF), so the line is extremely castable while remaining very abrasion resistant.

When you are picking apart visible vegetation, pay attention to where your bites are coming from—and when. Are they coming up in the middle of the vegetation, more on the edge, or in open-water pockets? Is the bite occurring on the initial fall, or are bass biting after you work the bait a few times? All these variables are key, and picking up on them allows you to quickly break down the water in front of you.

The fall fishing season is upon us. Be on the lookout—using both your eyes and electronics—for key areas of vegetation with hungry largemouths in it.