Cold Water Pond Bass Fishing

[bass2bluegill]

can someone help me with some cold water bass fishing tips.  I live in ga and ive had some crazy cold weather. its January 28th right now. so please give me some tips based on those details. thanks and tightlines!

[Bluebasser86]

I catch probably 80-90% of my cold water pond bass on suspending jerkbaits fished very slowly. Other than that, dragging a jig if there isn't too much junk on the bottom or slow rolling a light spinnerbait with a single colorado blade will also catch fish. 

[bonzai22]

I catch a lot of fish on a shakyhead with a wacky worm. If you find some good cover drag it up to it then shake it on it for a minute or 2.

[Hyrule Bass]

i have no luck with soft plastics when cold water pond fishing. like bluebasser said, most of my luck has come on a suspending jerk bait fished real slow. also have had some luck on shallow diving cranks fished slowly, like a manns 1-minus. the best color for me has been silver with a little bit of orange on the belly at the front of the lure...

[Jay Ell Gee]

I have a lot of luck on soft plastics in the winter time.

 

If I only had to bring a handful of setups, they would include:

 

Split shot rig (never leave home without it!) with small 4 inch plastics

Shaky head

Bulky beaver/creature style (I like the megastrike megabug in the winter) to drag bottom with

Jig n' pig

Flat sided crankbaits

Suspending jerkbaits

[tommiller76]

I would suggest using light weight hair jigs in very natural colors, browns, blacks, greens, and the like. Next I would try using the jig and pig method mentioned above Uncle Josh's pork frog works wonders and these too should be in natural colors. Other baits to try should be suspending rouges or any other model of suspending jerkbait. I have had success throwing senko style baits and essentially leaving them motionless on the bottom for upwards of three to five minutes at a time and then just barely moving the bait an few inches, if nothing happens then reel in and recast. Perhaps the most important thing to pack when fishing cold water is your patience, you have got to be able to be able to fish slow. Obviously there are exceptions to every rule and I've caught fish on spinner baits in 40-45 degree water but more often than not slow is going to give you the best chance to catch fish in cold water. I believe it was Bill Dance who once said that if you think you're fishing slow, then slow down. That statement was true for me and I usually have to remind myself of that. Oh one last tip I would give is this, try not to impart to much movement or action to your bait. It's not only the bass that are cold and slow but all that lives in the water so the slower and more lifelike the presentation the better your success. Good luck and be safe out there...

[Joe Schmuckatelli]

I also live in GA I've caught a bass earlier this month in a small pond on a drop shot setup using a cheap 97 cent pack of crappie tubes from wal-mart. Ive also caught one in the river off a suspending jerk bait, as you've noticed its been very cold this month and both fish were caught on very cold afternoons.

[livetofish28]

Stroking a baitfish colored hair jig of the bottom finesse jigs and shaky heads

Tight lines

Andrew

[st041986]

I've caught several of my biggest pond bass during February for whatever reason. My favorite pond bait is a Trigged green pump or watermelon brush hog or a pumpkin lizard with chartreuse trail. The fish in my avatar was right at 8 pounds and caught in late Feb on that pumpkin/chartreuse lizard pitched next to a big log. A few days later I caught another one that was 5-6lbs on a brush hog in another pond.

[tubedude]

I fished a pond in December last year right after a snow and had surprising results. Best luck was using a drop shot rig with a small pumpkin colored curly tail grub about 16 in off the bottom. I was in a float tube so I found the deepest section of the pond and slowly crawled it along the bottom, stopping to let it sink/jig it every few feet. The float tube helped me move super slow and I caught three 14 to 18 in largemouth in a half hour. Best of luck!

[Darren.]

First off, welcome to the forums!

 

Assume you've fished this pond often in warmer weather?

 

I will sometimes go to a pond in a local community. I don't often change techniques since it is a relatively shallow pond, and I've caught on soft plastics year-round.

 

But I do have one cold-weather technique there that always works (98% of the time) and that's a tiny Lunkercity Fin-S minnow-head jig at 1/16oz. I'll add panfish killer minnows on it and catch bass, sunfish, yellow perch, etc. Makes for a fun outing as it's a multi-species setup!

[Mainebass1984]

Cold water bass fishing to me means water colder then 45 degrees. It is my favorite time to fish and I have caught some of my biggest bass when the water is cold. I usually have 4 rods rigged up.

 

A square bill crankbait deflected off of stumps or rocks.

1/2 oz jigs fished slower then slow

Suspending jerkbaits  with super long pauses up to one minute long

A silver buddy hopped back to the boat with long pauses inbetween hops

 

When the water is cold I like to fish off shore and water deeper then 15 feet.

[LApanic]

So here's my run-down for today's lethargic bass pond fishing...currently 54deg and overcast...front coming in tonight

• Suspending Jerkbait, I like a Lucky-e-strike RC-STX (Rick Clunn's version of the Megabass ITO Vision 110 but $15-20 cheaper)
  Also, sometimes I will add Suspendots to the front, sometime the back, of the belly or both to get the depth and suspension just right
• Red Lipless Crankbait, especially in a veg pond, ripped or yo-yo'd in deeper water.I like the Xcalibur XR50 or the Xcalibur one knocker, rayburn red.
• B&B creature bait with lower profile for fall fish. I like a 5/16oz - 1/2oz  tungesten on a Gambler Cricket around shoreline vegetation
• 1/2oz White spinnerbait, silver willow on bottom, gold colorado up top.  I like Terminator spinnerbaits with BPS, rubber stopper, trailer hooks...always! The SK Trailer hooks with the the heat shrink eyes cause a TON of missed short strikes and horrible bait tracking!
• Medium diving, flat sided crank bait. I like the Spro Little Jon MD in chartreuse/black this time of year with stained/muddy water from ice melt.
• Zoom Trick Worm on a Shaky Head.  Personally like a spinning rod/reel 20# powerpro with 4' 12# flour leader....3/16oz to 1/4oz Owner Shaky Ultrahead, normally Grn Pumpkin (spiked tail), Black or Black/Grape SALT-FREE Trick work.
• 1/2oz B&B Football or Arkie head Jig. I like a Jewel Flop Top Football Jig, again with a Gabler cricket)

 

Good Luck!  The high is 60deg today in LA (lower Alabama) . Post front conditions with light/moderate showers tonight bringing the temp back down tomorrow, so, gonna give em a whack while I can, and thats what I'm about to start rigging up when i ever get done typing

[primetime]

I Love Cold Water Bass Fishing here in Florida as I find I get the Lakes and Ponds to myself, which is an advantage since the Fish are not pressured, or under any stress from Anglers walking the Banks loudly, Shouting or talking loud, or Casting giant Baits that Spook fish...Pond Fishing is my favorite and Don't let the Cold or even Ice get you discouraged....Some of my best Largemouth from up North (NY) Came through the Ice on Small Hair Jigs in White, Brown, or (Pink for some reason),

 

I like to Downsize here in Florida when fishing Bigger Lakes in the Cold, but if I am in a Pond under say 5-10 acres, and I am familiar with the bottom and depths, I like to focus on finding sheltered water, warmer water, often moving water, and they are often suspended when the water is really cold.....

 

In the Mornings, I will usually start out with a small hair Jig 1/32-1/8 oz maybe with a small twister tail grub, small darter head jig 1/16 with a 2" Tube, Grub, Crawbug, or any panfish swimbait under 2.5"...

 

If the warmer starts to warm, I will start looking for the warmer water and start fishing the pond with the same methods I always do, only I may need to use lighter line due to clear water, slower retrieves, suspending Jerkbaits so they stay in front of the fish longer....(I have used the :30 pause and it has worked but it is tought to do....I like to tap my rod while letting it sit so I feel like I am doing something and it works for me) and believe it or not.......A BUZZBAIT WHEN THERE IS A CHOP ON THE WATER, WILL CATCH BASS ALL YEAR LONG, AT LEAST HERE IN FLORIDA..... I was a non beleiver until I witnessed a kid putting a clinic on me burning a chartruese buzzbait in December after a Cold Front while I was Split Shotting a 4" zoom trick worm in Junebug chart tail.......I now love to carry some buzzbaits, Devils Horse topwaters, Skitter Props, Torpedos, and Woodchoppers if really windy....

 

If you like throwing a spinnerbait, I would maybe start out with a smaller 3/16 model or maybe even an inline Mepps #1 aglia, or simply use what you use and fish it slower, or mabye you just need to make more casts in the same spots to entice strikes....I also love a 2.5" Sassy Shad on a light jig head or Slider worm, or tube rigged on a Gitzit jig head as they will crush it if suspended if the jerkbait or horizontal approach is not working...Some use spoons, I use Tubes and I work em like a Rip Bait, or Cranbait or Punch bait....Tubes flat out work. Motor Oil in clear water is tough to beat with a touch of chart or red flake.