As an experienced angler and the "work smarter, not harder" mantra driving us for easy solutions, naturally, I love my electronics. Forward-facing sonar, mapping, the whole nine yards — when I'm chasing fish on big water, that technology earns its keep. But this may surprise you: some of my most consistent summer...
As an angler with years of experience, trying new things, and the "work smarter, not harder" mentality luring us to the future, naturally, I love my electronics. Forward-facing sonar, mapping, the whole nine yards — when I'm chasing fish on big water, that technology earns its keep.
But here's something that might surprise you: some of my most consistent summer fishing doesn't require a single screen.
Maybe you're fishing out of a resort boat on vacation. Maybe you just bought your first tin boat and the budget went to the boat, not the graph. Maybe you're kayak angling. Or maybe you're fishing a new lake with zero information and a dead trolling motor battery. It doesn't matter. Fish still follow the same rules they always have, and one of those rules works in your favor almost everywhere: in the summer, weeds hold fish.
Find the weeds and you most definitely can find some fish.
I'm going to break down one of the simplest, most reliable patterns in freshwater fishing — trolling over the tops of weeds with a basic presentation. It catches walleyes, pike, bass, and even big panfish, and you can do it on virtually any lake in the country.
Think of healthy green weeds as the grocery store of a lake. They produce oxygen, hold baitfish, shade the water, and give predators ambush cover. Once summer water temps climb, weeds become the center of activity on most natural lakes — especially that magic zone where the weeds top out a few feet below the surface.
Here's the part that matters if you don't have electronics: you can find weeds with your eyes. Polarized sunglasses will show you weeds and dark patches in 4–10 feet of water. Floating fragments on the surface tell you there's a weedbed nearby. And if all else fails, a few exploratory passes with your bait will "find" the weeds for you the moment you tick one.
You don't need a map chip to fish this pattern. You need to slowly cover water until your lure starts grazing greenery — then pay attention.
My go-to for this pattern is about as basic as fishing gets, and that's exactly why it works:
A light jig and a plastic. Your bait doesn’t need to get deep to pickup the fish in this pattern. Rather you simply need to graze the top of the weeds. The key to this entire strategy is to work the top of the weeds, not the edge. Therefore a lightweight lure really is key.
I use a 1/16 or smaller spinner jig and most of the time a simple soft plastic. This is key due to its durability. It’s also a surefire way to catch sunfish, crappie, bass, pike and the occasional walleye!
A spinner rig and crawler. On a REALLY tough pattern - think post cold front - a lake without such obvious weed beds - try a classic spinner rig. A simple harness with a leech or crawler behind a split shot is deadly over weed flats. Keep the weight light enough that the rig rides above the vegetation.
That's it. No lead core, no boards, no spread of six rods. No electronics… One or two lines out the back of the boat. Go slow and troll.
When it comes to this setup - a few factors do matter. A few details separate "dragging a lure around" from actually catching fish:
SPEED:
Start around 1 to 1.5 mph with either rig. Too fast and you won’t get quite deep enough and too slow and your bait won’t have any action AND you’ll be stuck pulling weeds off all day. No GPS? No problem — a slow idle on most small outboards puts you right in the zone. If you're ticking weeds constantly, speed up slightly or shorten your line to raise the bait. Watch your bait to see if it surfaces - that means slow down.
THE "TICK AND RIP":
Your lure brushing the occasional weed top is a good thing — it means you're in the strike zone. When you feel that grab, give the rod a sharp snap to clear the bait. That erratic ripping action triggers a shocking number of strikes. Some days, the rip IS the presentation.
VARIATION IS GOOD:
Weave over the weeds - trying slightly different depths and locations. Your inside lure slows and drops on turns, the outside lure speeds up and rises — and the fish will tell you which one they want.
MARK YOUR BITES THE OLD-SCHOOL WAY:
No waypoints? Line up landmarks on shore — a dock, a tall pine, a cabin roof. Two reference points give you a surprisingly precise line to repeat your productive pass. Anglers caught fish for generations this way, and it still works.
STAY GREEN:
If you pull up brown, slimy, dying weeds, move. Healthy green vegetation holds oxygen and bait. Dying weeds hold nothing.
That's the beauty of this pattern — everything eats over the weeds. On a typical summer evening pass in northern Minnesota, I might boat a couple of eater walleyes, a few pike, a largemouth or two, and almost always a pile of crappie and sunfish. If you're introducing kids or new anglers to fishing, I genuinely can't think of a better way to keep rods bending.
Here's the reality of this pattern: it's a sun-exposure game. You're making long, slow passes in the middle of summer, often during the brightest part of the day, with light bouncing off the water from every angle. The fishing is easy — staying comfortable and protected from the sun is the actual challenge.
This is exactly why I live in my DSG Outerwear sun protection pieces all summer:
What I love about DSG is that everything is designed by women, for women, in true women's sizing (XXS–5XL). After years of swimming in men's "smalls," gear that actually fits while I'm leaning over the gunnel netting a fish is not a small thing.
Electronics are amazing tools, but they're not a requirement for catching fish — especially in summer. Find green weeds, run a simple bait just over their tops at a steady clip, rip it free when it grabs, and repeat your productive passes. This pattern has put fish in my boat on lakes I'd never seen before, with nothing more than polarized glasses and a rod.
So if a screen (or the lack of one) has ever kept you off the water — don't let it. The fish are up in the weeds waiting. Go find them.
~ Written By Nicole Stone, DSG Outerwear Fish Team Ambassador
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