FOR SPAWN-WEARY BASS driven by the need for rest and caloric intake, boat docks are nature’s spa resort. Postspawners may use a variety of staging areas, but when the menu includes docks, that’s always a popular choice.
“A dock suits everything that they need, and it’s so accessible,” Greg Hackney said. “It also offers protection. Not that postspawners are in horrible shape, but they’re beaten up after the spawn, and it’s a good place for them to linger.
“And it’s easy — a dock is not something they have to travel [far] to get to. You’ll never go to a dock lake where the fish do not use them. Even when we go up North and docks are not in the water year-round because the lakes freeze over, postspawn fish still utilize them.”
THE APPEAL
Think of the postspawn like maternity leave — a break from the daily grind that’s best spent in cozy, temperature-moderated spaces. Easy meal access ranks high on the priority list, and lacking Uber Eats or DoorDash, bass choose spots where the food naturally comes to them.
“For one thing, docks are a good place for fish to recover after the spawn, kind of a resting area,” Matt Arey said. “Also, in a lot of the threadfin lakes, the shad will spawn on the docks close to deep water. The bluegill will also use docks, so there’s a lot of forage options.
“Bluegill like the flat pockets where they’ll spawn in the lanes between docks, but they’ll use the dock structure to move in and out.”
Elite Series rookie John
