Silt and muck bottoms are poor habitat for spawning, but bass in some lakes will fan out beds in areas where the silt is not too thick. In lakes and reservoirs where hard bottom is not available, bass adapt by spawning on stumps, logs, angled tree trunks, the roots of aquatic plants and submerged debris like discarded tires. After the spawn, Thliveros has found that bass relate to soft bottoms like red clay in lakes throughout the South. He theorizes that bass are drawn to these bottoms because they are a preferred spawning habitat for shad. In the summertime, Fritts points out that bass utilize a variety of bottom types, especially red mud and clay areas.
Most experts target firm bottom areas in the fall and winter.
However, other bottom characteristics are helpful to know. Alabama guide Tim Horton, who mainly fishes Pickwick, Wilson and Wheeler reservoirs, emphasizes that smallmouth bass prefer sandy pea-gravel banks for spawning. The gravel banks are at their best if they have some other type of cover to help hold the fish. On gravel banks, the bass love the bottom makeup, but they also like the security of some type of cover. Boat ramps provide the ultimate hard, clean bottom, yet they rarely are fished, according to legendary angler Bill Dance.