Two Interesting Days on Boulder Colorado Pond

[Paul Roberts]

Finally got out to bass fish two days this past week the 11th and 14th Each very different days weather-wise, and very interesting days to test an idea I've held dear for a long time about fish activity and their response to lures.

Both days were spent on a public pond that has a good population of bass of various sizes.

The 11th was a nice fairly rapid heating day, sunny and high in mid 60's. I watched water temps go from 47F to 55.5F in 3 hours. When I first arrived, and temp'd 47, I thought, Ooooh, still cold. So I started fishing slow: a slow-rolled SB, a jig, and a tube. Nada! At one point as I picked up my tube to make another cast a small bass chased it up quickly. Not too fast for you! I thought. Ok, you want speed, you got it!

I switched to a hard jerkbait and began an aggressive retrieve and started getting hit. Ended up with 9 in an hour-and-a-half from 12 to 14.5, and 10 of 8 to 9 (bodes well for the future). I then quit this pond about 1PM.

Contrast this day with the 14th: Same pond 3 days later during a cold spell, and a descending front. In general, I target heating days and tend to avoid the cold days. This time I purposely chose a cold day that wouldn't heat the water, to see if my avoidance is only due to my own ideas, not the fish's. As a long time trout angler I'd long ago convinced myself of the importance of temperature trends in fishing quality, and this has carried over into my bass fishing. Fish are fish I figure, although their engines run at different temperatures. But I don't want my pre-conceived ideas getting in the way of the truth, so I decided to return to this pond and fish the same way, but on a cold, non-heating day.

The 14th ended up a great day for this, ending up at a miserable 38F with rain and sleet by late afternoon. The pond was 49.5F when I started, warmed to 51F in three hours, until the front descended and it fell back to 49 and 47 (at different shoreline locations).

I went through exactly as I had on the 11th, using the same aggressive jerkbait retrieve. Nada! I followed up with a jig fished in slow pulls and got bit. I then went through again with the jerkbait, this time fished very slowly and subtly, and got bit as well. Ended up with 6 from 12 to 18 and 7 from 8" to 9". Two best were a 16 and 18, on the jerk and jig, respectively. (The 16 was fat yea!)

The two days were very different in bass' response. The fishing was tougher on the cold day (in terms of catch per hour), but both days would have been a skunking if I'd not adjusted. I believe the difference between the two days had to do with the bass' willingness/ability to chase -not to be confused with the given temperature at the moment.  

16" -nice condition

18" -a tad thin for pre-spawn

14.5" -Glorious condition! Look at that beautiful fish!

[juggerxx]

thanks for the insightful experiment.  I too have tried switching lures and methods on certain days with very little luck. I must not have hit the right one for that I instant in time. This is most definitely true as a few of those days other people were able to find how to catch the fish when I was catching nothing. All the fishing shows iv ever watched also described as you how to switch up techniques.

The one thing has been true for me since I started fishing in Co for Bass is I never catch bass when the water is cold. I have no idea whymaybe just one of those confidence things.  

[iceintheveins]

Nice job Paul. Sometimes aggressive tactics work when subtle doesn't, even for turned off fish.

[JP-Tacklefreak]

Nice Pictures, and a fine experiment

[Paul Roberts]

Juggerxx,

There are two parts to it. The first is recognizing the conditions. The second is knowing what to throw when. Both are predictable enough to get you in the ballpark. Then you fine tune to the current day, or better, the current hour.

I have some advice for your coldwater fishing. Learn a couple lures for those conditions. I'd suggest the suspending jerkbait, and a crayfishy jig or soft plastic creature, or a slow-rolled single-spin. You probably already have the last two. Don't worry about colors. Pick one of each and get to know them.

Spend a little time with the jerkbait, how it looks and feels as you retrieve. The key to jerks, and any other lure, really, in terms of speed control, is that it has to trigger hits, yet the bass must know they can catch it. That's the rub in cold water they won't commit to something unless they know they can catch it. Part of the trigger besides the obvious size and flash and baitfish shape is making the bait look erratic, and then CATCHABLE! Then you make it so.

Essentially, you are trying to keep a lure in any one area as long as possible. In other words avoid too much horizontal movement. Horizontal movement is the attraction, something that can escape (exciting!), but it must be deemed catchable by the bass. And this depends on your knowing, or divining, the general metabolic speed, and the eagerness, of the fish in front of you at the moment.

Jerkbaits are made to order in colder water because they suspend. The erratic darts and flashes attract and trigger, the pauses allow the interested bass to catch it. An example of fine-tuning might be: You are in the ballpark and have bass chasing up, but they miss a lot. So you respond by lengthening the pause.

Metabolic Speed (from my experience with CO and NY bass):

At 45, it's very slow a crawl. Simply takes patience.

At 50 options increase, and fish are much more willing, or at least able to meet you part way.

At 55 I start picking up the pace. The bass can chase well by then. I may speed test small fish when I start. A thermometer is faster though. Topwaters are a possibility.

Above 60 bass can really chase and at 65 or better you physically cannot reel too fast if a bass really wants that bait. Not that that's the best tact, but if the fish are willing you can sure cover water and catch a lot of bass.

Eagerness:

Actively feeding bass, with prey in front of them, and their target screen set, are more willing to chase at any temperature. As are bass in high competition with their cohorts, usually smaller bass in our waters (<15).

There are many other lures that can work in cold water of course. You can add them as time permits. But get to know them first in practice, tinkering, sessions.

[jrhennecke]

Nice fish!

[iceintheveins]

Colorado bass usually wake up a couple weeks earlier than NY bass, but it's fairly close.

I will probably hit the local lakes next week, our water is still in the high 40s. I will stick to big old trout in the river (since trout are more aggressive than bass, especially in clear water) till the bass are pretty hungry, especially since I'm such a topwater addict.

[Paul Roberts]

Ice,

CO (where I'm at) is ahead of NY, by about 3 weeks. But the bass response to temperatures (their metabolic engines) seem to be the same -it just happens earlier here.

Hey, I do the trout too. But less so the last few years; Really enjoying the bass fishing.

Nice thing about understanding activity patterns of fish well enough to predict them is you can pick your days, and your quarry. On the dreary cold front days in March, when the bass fishing is like pulling teeth, the Baetis (olives) are popping and the trout streams are the place to be.

Colorado has great fishing. But that seems to be the case everywhere I've been -if you adjust your expectations a bit.

[iceintheveins]

Ice,

CO (where I'm at) is ahead of NY, by about 3 weeks. But the bass response to temperatures (their metabolic engines) seem to be the same -it just happens earlier here.

Hey, I do the trout too. But less so the last few years; Really enjoying the bass fishing.

Nice thing about understanding activity patterns of fish well enough to predict them is you can pick your days, and your quarry. On the dreary cold front days in March, when the bass fishing is like pulling teeth, the Baetis (olives) are popping and the trout streams are the place to be.

Colorado has great fishing. But that seems to be the case everywhere I've been -if you adjust your expectations a bit.

I live in Grand Junction and we warm up a bit more gradual than the Front Range. But Colorado has a longer growing season and warmer conditions than NY, you are right.

The bass should be starting to get hungry soon where I'm at. I can hardly wait to set the hook into that first hog.