Winter bass

[Mr. Aquarium]

I live in Massachusetts near the cape. Luckily the winters haven’t been to cold, been able to open water fish all winter.  I got some go to winter ponds I figured out where they live. I’m much better at fishing deeper ponds in the cold. I need advice for shallow water.  Where are you finding them? I’ve heard different things. That the north side of the pond is the best area. Gets the most sunlight, protected from the winds. Also heard find the deeper weeds. 

[TheSwearingAngler]

It sounds like we’re neighbors, I’ll be watching for answers because I struggle in the winter too. Last year I just leaned into pickerel fishing, which I plan to do again this year. 

[GetFishorDieTryin]

Generally they're going to be close to some kind of cover or structure that has easy/fast access to shallow water(realative to avg depth) where the feed.  Points, channel swings, ledges, bridges, are ideal.  You just have to figure out when that bite window is, as it can be very short.  Exposure to sun is another variable to the equation.  Ideally you want to find a spot that has all 3 elements, shallow cover, in close proximity to deeper structure, that gets a decent amount of sun exposure.  It can be tough to figure them out, but provided steady conditions the pattern is generally very consistent.  

[Mr. Aquarium]

48 minutes ago, TheSwearingAngler said:

It sounds like we’re neighbors, I’ll be watching for answers because I struggle in the winter too. Last year I just leaned into pickerel fishing, which I plan to do again this year. 

I need to find better places. I’ve done well at 2 places. One shallow one deep. But that’s it. I’ve caught topwater bass all winter! But they are small fish. Especially the shallow pond. All 2lbers with an occasional 3 if I’m lucky! I’d love to figure out more places. Have a rotation of spots to hit that I know I’ll probably get bit! 

And hopefully catch some bigger fish. The deep spot. Has better healthier fish average is about 3lbs. But if I get a 4 I’m lucky 

[Team9nine]

A lot of variables, but I’ve fished a ton of small ponds over the years, most ranging from 1/2 acre up to about 3 acres, typically with max depths of 6-10 feet, and can throw a few ideas out of where to start.

 

Any green weed growth left - in winter, this is a big positive. Some species like coontail and Chara/sandgrass will be the last to die back. If you can find it, fish it.

 

Deep water - obviously, this is all relative, but the deep end or the deepest hole if there is one is always a good area to start. Some ponds are just bowls, but many have a shallow side/end and then transition to a deeper side/end. 
 

Inlets/drains - any place incoming water enters the pond can be a good area regardless of depth, though having a quick drop or hole of a few feet is best. This could be a tiny creek, a drain pipe, or even someones sump pump discharge (really had this on one pond). Any time during or right after a batch of incoming water enters can be good.

 

Rain - a good  warm rain, especially one that clouds the water a bit, can make for great fishing up shallow and close to the bank. The more active fish will pull right in, so it’s not a specific location, per se.

 

The windblown side - again, not a specific location, but whatever warm water there might be in a pond will get blown around easily with the wind, so I always focus a lot of attention on the side that is catching the wind, especially corners and pockets. Kind of goes against the grain of avoiding current in winter, and finding sunny/calm banks, but I’d rank wind and fishing the windy side as probably my #2 most critical factor year round in small ponds.

[Mr. Aquarium]

2 hours ago, Team9nine said:

A lot of variables, but I’ve fished a ton of small ponds over the years, most ranging from 1/2 acre up to about 3 acres, typically with max depths of 6-10 feet, and can throw a few ideas out of where to start.

 

Any green weed growth left - in winter, this is a big positive. Some species like coontail and Chara/sandgrass will be the last to die back. If you can find it, fish it.

 

Deep water - obviously, this is all relative, but the deep end or the deepest hole if there is one is always a good area to start. Some ponds are just bowls, but many have a shallow side/end and then transition to a deeper side/end. 
 

Inlets/drains - any place incoming water enters the pond can be a good area regardless of depth, though having a quick drop or hole of a few feet is best. This could be a tiny creek, a drain pipe, or even someones sump pump discharge (really had this on one pond). Any time during or right after a batch of incoming water enters can be good.

 

Rain - a good  warm rain, especially one that clouds the water a bit, can make for great fishing up shallow and close to the bank. The more active fish will pull right in, so it’s not a specific location, per se.

 

The windblown side - again, not a specific location, but whatever warm water there might be in a pond will get blown around easily with the wind, so I always focus a lot of attention on the side that is catching the wind, especially corners and pockets. Kind of goes against the grain of avoiding current in winter, and finding sunny/calm banks, but I’d rank wind and fishing the windy side as probably my #2 most critical factor year round in small ponds.

Awesome info! Got a pond I really want to check out! If I hit it right I feel like it’s going to be lights out. Problem is finding them. Lots of stumps and it’s a shallow pond. But I have an idea where they should be just hope I’m right. Also gotta pick the right day to get out there 

[33oldtimer]

On 11/21/2023 at 1:36 PM, Mr. Aquarium said:

I live in Massachusetts near the cape. Luckily the winters haven’t been to cold, been able to open water fish all winter.  I got some go to winter ponds I figured out where they live. I’m much better at fishing deeper ponds in the cold. I need advice for shallow water.  Where are you finding them? I’ve heard different things. That the north side of the pond is the best area. Gets the most sunlight, protected from the winds. Also heard find the deeper weeds. 

One pond I fish, usually in the afternoon, the sun hits the east side of the pond more. It has several deadfalls and I caught a 14" bass on a spinnerbait there this afternoon. He was under a deadfall about 6' from the bank. A few days ago I caught a 17" bass in the middle of the pond. He was busting on some shad and I tossed my jig into the middle of it and he slammed the jig. Maybe look for cover on the sunny side of the pond? Wood and rocks heat up in the sun.

[Mr. Aquarium]

1 hour ago, 33oldtimer said:

One pond I fish, usually in the afternoon, the sun hits the east side of the pond more. It has several deadfalls and I caught a 14" bass on a spinnerbait there this afternoon. He was under a deadfall about 6' from the bank. A few days ago I caught a 17" bass in the middle of the pond. He was busting on some shad and I tossed my jig into the middle of it and he slammed the jig. Maybe look for cover on the sunny side of the pond? Wood and rocks heat up in the sun.

Tons of stumps. It’s a cranberry bog reservoir.