Seasons
Spring
Spring is usually spawning season for the freshwater drum fish in slow-moving pools located next to fast water. Look for curl backs of slow-moving water close to faster-moving channels or rock outcropping. The sandy or gravel beds in these areas of slow-moving water will attract spawning baitfish that the freshwater drum fish follow to spawn while feeding on the baitfish.
When spring fishing, live bait fishing with worms, crawdads, and shiners is effective. Cast your bait at the edge of fast-moving water in the pool or eddy. If opting to use lures, go with highly reflective gold or silver spinners, jerk baits, and crankbaits. Throw your lure upstream and crank evening with the water instead of casting against the current, keeping your line tight by keeping the rod tip raised.
Summer
June and July usually provide anglers with the most outstanding drum fishing success. During this time, freshwater drum find deeper areas of rivers and lakes, but you can still find some in the faster-moving water in shallow rivers. They generally won’t be found in the slow-moving sections of the water any longer. Drum tend to be more interested in deep-dwelling crustaceans and baitfish during the summer.
Live bait works best during the summer generally. For example, dropping minnows, freshwater shrimp, shiners, or nightcrawlers into deep river channels or near the edge of deep rock outcroppings. If an angler is drum fishing from a boat, the summer is the best time of year to use a fish finder to locate the depths the drum fish are found. However, nothing beats trial and error of dropping baits at different depths to test out the local fish’s habits.
Fall
Fall requires similar techniques as the spring, except the freshwater drum isn’t spawning. The fish usually migrate from large lakes up to tributaries in the fall. The slow-moving pools, backwater, circling eddies, and still water near fast-moving channels are the hot spots again.
Drum feeding behavior in the fall is similar to hibernating animals. They eat a lot anticipating the lean winter months under the ice where insects are prevented from hatching. Fishing with spinners, crankbaits, chrome or golden spoons, and jigs will often entice an aggressive strike. Cast against the current and reel in with the current when using lures, which is the same technique as in the spring.
Live bait will always be a more promising method using minnows, crawdads, nightcrawlers, and freshwater shrimp. When fishing with bait, remember to look for the fast-moving current that’s inches from slower water, where the drum will usually find your bait easier.
Winter
Usually, the surface is too cold during the winter for freshwater drum. If the lake ices over, anglers can find drum fish in the lake’s deeper areas, up to 60 feet deep, since the water temperature is constant there. The winter is the time to go with live bait, using shiners, nightcrawlers, or freshwater shrimp. The drum won’t be anywhere near the surface, so anglers should adjust their rigging accordingly to reach good depths.