NE PA early spring bass

[dman]

This will be my first year bass fishing this early, usually waited for the warm weather but this year i will be out early (right after iceout). What are the best tactics at this point? I heard rattle traps and jerkbatis? any other ideas? Softplastics? Jigs?

[Guest muddy]

BEST ICE LURES FOR ME ON LAKES:

Rapala Original Floater #11 Silver

Fluke type baits

[Zel]

It's been my experience that if you go fishing right after ice-out here in NE PA, using live minnows is your best bet at catching bass. Unless I'm taking my kids out, I do not use live bait, but I do understand my chances of catching bass that early are reduced. With that said, if I'm out this early in NE PA (which involves beating the bank as I don't get the boat out till April), my choices of lures (I only take a small lure pack with me and one rod) include: LC Live Pointers, Original Floating Rapalas with suspend-dots, 4 straight worms fished on Slider Jigs, 3 grubs, and 1.5 slider grubs. Personally, I have not had much luck with tubes or jigs that early fishing from the bank. My plastics colors will be black, smoke, pumpkinseed and watermelon w/red flake. When I'm fishing from the bank this early, I'm looking for areas in which the bottom is predominately represented by chunk rock, with some larger rocks in the mix, and should be near spawning areas. Also, I want to be able to cast to breaklines or areas that drop to a little deeper water, so I'm using a 7' spinning rod with 8lb line. This experience is based on 20+ years fishing in March at Beltzville Lake and Mauch Chunk Lake. Just be advised, your experiences might be dratimaticly different, and only use this information as one soucre of advice/opinion in your overall early season tactic.

[Triton20XSD]

I usually have pretty good luck with hair jigs right after ice out.  They key is to fish them slow.

[skip]

Just thought I would post here for my first one and say hi.

I don't have any tips for fishing here (Lehigh valley pa) after a thaw, but I'll be keeping my eye out for any more responses.

cya,

skip

[Crestliner2008]

Water <42* use a slow horizontal presentations like the X-Raps or Pointers and don't leave home without a few blade baits; >42* to <55* would be the time for the drop shot, Senkos and other slow, verticle presentations, including the blades. These temp breaks are just what I know about around here - other areas could be different? JMO.

[Zel]

Welcome Skip

[Guest muddy]

Yo Skip :WELCOME. My favorite spring time lure used to be the only Rebel Product I used, THE MYSTIC MINNOW, which was discontinued, I lost the last one I had, last April on the Leigh High River! The last place that had em was The 4 Seasons Sporting  Godds Store in Jim Thorpe. It was the only situation I prefered anything over a #11 Original Floating Rapala (silver) in the spring