Mark Daniels Jr. competes on the Major League Fishing professional bass tour, so he knows how to catch ‘em. That said, one reason I enjoy his online content is it’s not all focused on tournament fishing from a massive bass boat that costs more than some people’s houses. In the 15-minute YouTube video below, Mark does a deep dive into what he packs to “walk the creek” for spotted bass.
Important note: I can tell you from experience that the advice Mark gives here works equally well for walking the shoreline of a bass pond or lake, or even bass fishing from a small kayak.
Mark carries one fishing rod and a backpack holding a small box of hooks and weights, a few bass jigs, and some soft plastics. He likes the super-durable Elaztech baits from Z-Man as well as Rapala CrushCity offerings; both feature TPE, Thermoplastic Elastomer. Choosing TPE means he can catch dozens or more bass on a single plastic body and not have to mess constantly with re-rigging traditional soft plastics.
Mark prefers a single medium- or medium-heavy-power spinning rod for walkin’ the creek for spotted bass. When I’m fishing in my tiny kayak for largemouth bass in my home state of Minnesota, or wading a pond or lake for bass, I pack very similar to Mark in terms of lures and other gear, but I often choose a baitcasting rod instead of a spinning rod.
Be sure to watch until the end of the video where Mark describes how far he and his buddies will hike when walking a creek for spotted bass. Crazy!
The heat of summer is the perfect time to walk a creek or wade in a pond or lake. Of course, be careful not to step off into deep water when wading a pond or lake.
P.S.: Click here to watch a 26-minute video from Mark where he catches a bunch of spotted bass in a tiny creek. Fun and refreshing on a hot summer day!
