Bass are the most popular freshwater fish species in America, maybe even in the world. From professional tournaments to a couple of guys hanging out on a local dock, thousands of anglers spend their weekends chasing large and smallmouth bass. But this much attention means more than long lines at the boat ramp or getting up early to claim your favorite spot. It also means that bass see a lot of activity and by mid-summer, almost every lure has been tossed their way. Come July, you need to change your game to land lunkers.

Regardless of how many anglers are casting under the docks, along the steep banks, or sitting off the ledges, the bass have not all been caught. They are still hanging out, looking for potential food. They have just become more cautious. Although some will still be in their post-spawn locations, others will flee the more heavily pressured area, choosing deeper water and thicker cover for increased safety. Places most boaters are afraid to go.

Target flood timber, thick prop stopping weeds, and deep pools close to the banks, points, and docks where you were hooking up a month ago. Next, target any sunken structure. This can be a rock pile, a weed bed, or even an old roadway — anything that breaks up the bottom contour and offers cover for protection and ambush opportunities. Finally, do not forget small feeder streams, hidden coves, and channels.

Once you know where the bass are, it is time to catch them. In the spring, you were probably using heavy, stout bass rods capable of hard hook sets. You were tossing big, noisy buzz baits, bright-colored crankbaits, and Texas-rigged plastics. You used these because they worked, but now, there is something that works better.

Finicky bass need more finesse. Finicky bass are cautious but can still be fooled, provided they see something different. This is when you think trout. Ditch the heavy rod and go with a 7- to 9-foot medium-light rod and 8-to-10-pound test. You can get away with the lighter setup because the longer rod will help absorb some of the shock when a striker occurs, and you will be pairing it with much smaller lures.

Pack your tackle bag with small spinners, classic stick baits, and, of course, some of your favorite plastics. Instead of bright, flashy colors so popular in spring choose patterns that are more natural, such as green, gold, and red. These are the ones that will most closely resemble natural prey. Fishing a stick bait in a pause-and-twitch manner is perfect for imitating wounded baitfish. A small gold spinner fished around a dock, over a rock pile, or under the shade of a tree will pull out bass you didn’t even know were there. Plastics on a Ned rig can be slowly dragged across the bottom, and a Wacky rig dropped into impossible cover can often land the biggest fish of the day.