I think the biggest misconception amongst fisherman is how fish feed. As the only predator on earth who can eat without actually having to kill anything per see, we don't use the instincts that we evolved for catching said prey. But, if you want to catch fish, you should hone those skills. Hunters are often some of the best fisherman also, because they operate as predators. They are trained to find ambush points for their quarry; they bring this over to fishing, and its does wonders. Ambush points are the most consistent of fishing spots, because fish position themselves where they can use their surroundings to trap their prey.
Bass fisherman know this of course. Bump the stump, along the dock, over the bush, anybody who has watched bass shows will see this and exclaim "duh, bass like to ambush". But, lets face it, fishing in California is often the anti-thesis of the water you see in bass shows. No weeds, lily pads, docks, brush, or logs in sight boss. So what do you do?
Well fish are going to use whatever structure is available to setup ambush points. Watch a group of stripers or bass work a shad school, or better yet, a trout school. They will hold in areas on the tapering edges and ledges of points and steep banks, waiting for the bait to move in. Once the baitfish make the mistake of moving into the ambush, the bass will begin pushing them towards the bank, or maybe to a shallow hump if the are in deep water. The point of pushing the bait up, of corralling it into tightly packed and confused schools, is to force the prey to play to the predator's terms. When bait schools are broken up into small units, they become much harder to catch. Trapping the bait is essential to making a successful food run for predators. Accordingly, they will position where doing so is easily facilitated.
Points, bars, bluffs, humps, islands, deep coves, and ledges are all ambush points. In order to consistently catch fish when they tune into baitfish, its critical to analyze beforehand. Figure out how the fish will be positioned in relation to the structure available. For example, bass positioned on a ledge at the end of a relatively shallow flat won't likely respond to an uphill retrieve very well, as chasing bait uphill into shallow, relatively featureless water poses an inherent safety risk to the predator from their own predators. But, bring that bait down hill, and they'll often slam it, because the point of positioning of the ledge is to ambush bait leaving the relative safety of the flats.
Another example: I was fishing the other day on a steep main lake point for bass. I had been doing so-so on plastics without much of a bite, when I noticed surface commotion. At my feet in the shallows were shad schools, and right behind them the bass pushing them right up into a foot of water. I changed baits to a proper imitation, yet nothing occurred after several casts parallel to the shoreline. Next cast went straight out perpendicular to my position. Halfway in, the bait skittered over a small hump. As first contact with the hump, the bait gets hammered. I repeat this 3 times over in short order. Why the change in success? My first 3 casts went shallow where I had witnessed boils. But the fish werent there. They were using the little hump as an ambush point. The shad would scatter after an attack, moving back and forth along the shore and surrounding areas. Eventually, the school would come back over the hump, and the fish would attack again. Using the hump to back the the prey into a tight spot, the bass could quickly take out a few members of the confused school of shad without much effort. As soon the shad scattered, the chase would end and the fish would lay down again.
This is also the key in hunting big fish. Big fish, particularly trout eating striper and bass, are ideal ambush predators. These larger fish are what known as highway feeders. Take a look at some of the places huge bass or stripers are caught. What you'll notice is they eat at designated ambush points where the prey can be quickly trapped in shallow water. Nearby this point will be an escape route; a ledge, long tapering point, roadbed, creek channel, etc. where the big fish can quickly evade potential danger. Watch Butch Brown explain how he fishes the Hudd and where in his videos. More often then not, the big fish are predictably found in the "highway" zones where an ambush point and deep water "highway" access come together.
You can apply this to any fish really. Trout will trap minnows against an undercut or shallow riffle ledge. Crappie will push the bait into the edges of cover, where their buddies sit in wait. Tuna and dorado panic the bait until they can trap it under or alongside the boat. Rockfish push bait school up the shoal edges. Calicos trap macks and sauries right up against the boilers. If there are fish to be caught, chances are the ambush zones will be your best bet to find them.
