Idaho Bass Fishing, Locations, Wakeside Lake

Bass Fishing Rexburg Idaho – Wakeside Lake

I found a fun place to go bass fishing in Rexburg Idaho called Wakeside Lake. It was a perfect place for me and everyone in my family to catch fish. We caught 20+ bass in only a few hours of fishing. We didn’t catch any giants, but it was fun to get the line stretched. Here are the logistics of my trip out bass fishing Rexburg Idaho’s Wakeside Lake including what we used, where we went, and how we “Kraked” some bass!

Bass Fishing Rexburg Idaho – Wakeside Lake

I have visited Rexburg several times for different family events, but never knew where to go “Krak” a bass. I did a quick google search before our trip, and with a little digging around stumbled upon Wakeside Lake. Upon further investigation I found out Wakeside is a private lake, and to fish the lake it costs $10.00 for a half day and $20.00 for a full day. I thought I’d give it a try since I only had a half day to fish, and $10.00 is cheaper than buying a non-resident Idaho one day fishing license.

The fishing turned out awesomely. I was surprised by how many bass we were able to catch, and we only fished from the shore. We caught a lot of fish in a short time. It was really fun for my family. My brother in-law said when we left Wakeside, “that was the funnest day of fishing I’ve had in a long, long, time.”

Here are the baits we used, the conditions, a map of the shorelines we fished, and a rundown of how everything went down. The goal of this report is to help you catch some bass if you decide to make a stop at Wakeside Lake in Rexburg, Idaho. These are the things that worked for me.

Conditions:

We fished Wakeside Lake Friday evening, and Saturday morning on May 1st, and 2nd. Here are what the conditions where like for us.

Water Temprature:

59 Degrees.

Wind:

0 – 5 mph. It was a little breezy Friday evening, but dead calm Saturday morning.

Water Clarity:

Clear. Visibility 8 – 10 ft.

Weather:

Clear Skies. Air Temperature 72 degrees.

What Baits We Used:

This is a list of the top 3 baits we used bass fishing Wakeside Lake and how we fished them. We caught bass on some other things, but these baits were by far the most consistent.

1. Jackall Crosstail Shad:

The baby bass color cross tail shad placed on a drop shot rig “kraked” a lot of bass. The cross tail shad worked well because it was small and drew a lot of strikes. Plus, the smaller sized hooks on the drop shot provided a better hook up ratio. On the drop shot rig we used an 1/8 oz drop shot weight, and a size 1 drop shot hook. This set up is perfect for minimizing hang ups, and catching bass from the shore.

One word of caution with drop shotting a cross tail shad; watch out for the occasional brush pile with this bait. You might hang up in it. Just cast along the edges of the brush piles with the cross tail shad, and let the bait fall to the bottom. Subtly walk it back to you, and occasionally let it set. You had to watch your line close, because those bass would grab it without us noticing.

2. Yamamoto Senko:

A 4″ green pumpkin senko set up on a wacky rig crushed the bass at Wakeside Lake. We rigged it up with no weight, and used a size 1 finesse wide gap hook with a wacky ring right in the middle of the bait. The wacky ring helps keep the bait on the hook, so they wouldn’t take your senko when you hooked up. The key for us was to cast it out parallel to the bank and let it fall to the bottom. Then you hop the senko up, and let it fall back down again. The bass at wakeside seemed to go crazy for the wacky rig senko.

3. Jackall Crankbait:

First thing in the morning we caught some better sized bass banging a Jackall super crawfish square-bill crankbait along the bottom. It was essential to cast the bait parallel with the shore, and retrieve it so it was banging the rocks against the bottom. Once the sun came up though, the square-bill went silent. The water was clear, so It worked as a great search bait for drawing up bass. Then we would follow up with the finesse baits, and catch them when they showed themselves.

Spots We Fished:

Here is a map of the shorelines we walked and caught fish. We didn’t venture far, because it was really consistent where we were at.
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How Things Went:

This was a fun little family spot for bass fishing. Friday night I took my family to test the water for only an hour and we caught 7. The next morning with my brother in-law we caught 20+ in only a few hours. It was a good time hauling in bass, but we didn’t catch anything over 2 pounds. It was exciting for me to get my family in on the action of “Kraken” bass. I felt like it was worth the stop.

The first night we walked down to the water, and on my first cast with a green pumpkin tube I saw a small smallmouth bass swipe at my bait. I quickly re-tied to a drop shot rig, and put on a small roboworm. I had my wife make the next several casts, and she wound up catching the best largemouth bass of the trip. She was excited. We fished the robowormm on a drop shot all night, and caught 6 more bass before we left for dinner. Here’s a couple pictures of the bass we caught. They weren’t giants, but it was fun.

The next morning I brought my brother in-law out with me, and tied a wacky rig senko up on his pole. I started pounding the banks with the squarebill crankbait. On my first and second cast I caught two decent fish. Then the senko, started lighting up and caught several. What was fun is we could see a lot of the strikes. I’d cast the crankbait, and watch a decent one follow it up. Then my brother in-law would cast the senko behind me, and catch them. It’s always so exciting when you see the strikes. Once the sun got up the crankbait wasn’t getting bit, so I tied on the cross tail shad on a drop shot. It started hammering them. We also caught a nice trout that morning as well on a senko right before we left. Here’s a picture of my brother in-law with his best largemouth bass of the trip at Wakeside Lake.

Wakeside Lake was a lot of fun. I will definitely be stopping here again next time I go to a family gathering in Rexburg. It’s a great place to get your family out “Kraken” bass! I hope this post was helpful. Don’t forget to subscribe to the blog for more great trip reports, and leave a comment about your thoughts or experiences with bass fishing Rexburg Idaho – Wakeside Lake.

As Always,

Stay Stoked!