Using electronics to locate fish is a lot easier now with the modern technology that’s available. I like the Lowrance HDS-10, and the DownScan and StructureScan features are equally useful.

When you fish a lake that you’re unfamiliar with, you can eliminate a lot of water by just idling around and watching your electronics. Before I get on the water, I do my homework and consider where the fish are likely to be at that time of year, given the lake’s location, and then I start there.

To me, the most important thing to locate first is the forage that the bass are going after at that particular time. Find the predominant bait, and you’ll find the fish. In the fall, if you find bait at, say, 22 feet deep, you should be able to find them at about that depth throughout that lake, all else being equal. If there’s a structure change or some kind of cover at the depth where the bait is holding, so much the better.

Scouting with electronics will give you some good starting points.

— Evinrude pro Cody Meyer of Grass Valley, Calif.