Winter Strategy

[dumb_dog11]

what, where, how, when will you be fishing this winter?

for me, deep with soft plastics. but i could totally be off

im just kinda curious and want to try new strategies this winter

[LCpointerKILLA]

In winter I usually go to one of my most productive ponds, or if I am with my buddies to the most productive part of the lake; I just throw everything and anything until something appears to work, and once I find that something, I stick with it. It's not anything like spring where I have certain techniques that are pretty much sure things. Even though it is Florida, bass fishing in winter is way different.

[paul.]

my suggestion would be to check out the articles above.  they go into some serious detail about winter patterns.  but to be short and sweet, for me its jigs and t-rigged plastics on deep structure and wood.  sometimes even carolina rigged plastics.  then in the afternoon on sunny days i check for shallow fish with square or coffin bill med. running crankbaits, rattletraps, spinnerbaits, and jerkbaits and lightly weighted plastics.  sometimes i even try flipping a jig.

some guys like a drop shot or a shaky head, but the lake where i do most of my fishin' makes these kinda difficult.    

[Catt]

Main lake points

Start deep with T-rigs, C-rigs, & Cranks

Work shallow with same baits but change cranks for lipless & spinner baits

K.I.S.S.  

[Sam]

I stay inside.

When the temperature goes below 70 it is freezing out there.

Have some hot chocolate; watch the bowl games; organize your tackle; read some bass books; see some bass videos and DVDs and stay warm.

I see no reason to bother those nice fish when it is cold outside and they don't want to be bothered. ;D

[John J.]

I stay inside.

When the temperature goes below 70 it is freezing out there.

Have some hot chocolate; watch the bowl games; organize your tackle; read some bass books; see some bass videos and DVDs and stay warm.

I see no reason to bother those nice fish when it is cold outside and they don't want to be bothered. ;D

Amen to that Sam!

However I do sometimes hit the lake on "warm" winter days when the temps are above 50s. I tried yesterday at my home lake (Lake Orange) and the day would have been good if I had a fully charged battery for my trolling motor (thought I had already charged it) and my sonar could work in water temps in the mid to upper 40s.

For some reason the depth finder was giving me an innacurate reading of 8'9" no matter where I went on the lake...even at the dam where I knew it was 25-30 feet there.

I had the suction cup mount securely on the side with the transducer in the water pointing down, but still it gave a weird reading. It repeated itself because I was moving (heading out towards the dam) and it showed little fish constantly near bottom....

With my sonar not working properly I was 'blind' so to speak. I flipped my jig around a little near bank (it was evening) and I tried the rip-rap on the dam and some deeper cover but I never got bit.

Normally I am not a big winter fisherman, but the temperature was tempting yesterday, but now that I know my sonar doesn't work in water temps below 50, I am waiting until spring....

God bless

[Sam]

John,

I hate when that happens.

But it happens to us all, sooner or later.

It is called experience!

Merry Christmas.

[X-Rap]

I fish Suspending jerk baits like crazy. My favorites the X-Rap.  Just keep the retrieve slow.  That'll work for me until the lakes freeze up.

[Crestliner2008]

Winter is a relative term. I envie all you folks south of N.J. who have access to open water this time of the year. Here in MA, we're socked in with 6" - 12" of ice, so all I can do is dream. If I had open water I'd be there with bells on!  Even water down to 35 degress is fine for me. Big fish hole up big time in cold water. Finding them can be a challenge, but once you do, it's one after the other. Last year at this time we were still fishing open water - until the second week of Jan. I believe. This year is another ball game. But if you only fish water over 60 degrees, you are really missing the boat big time!  

[Bankbeater]

I'll start with jigs and plastics around the deepest structure I can find.  As the day gets warmer I'll move into the more shallow water and throw lipless baits, minus 1s, and finesse jigs.

[cpr1]

Winter here in cali can be considered as a few rain clouds over head w/ 10 mph wind with a wind chill factor of mid to upper 40's . That's cold enough to keep most off the water so it's prime time to fish multiple spots of the lake that aren't being pounded by many anglers.

My typical arsenal for winter daytime fishing consists of jigs, creatures & stickbaits. Worked really slow over and accross secondary points and drop-offs. As the sun warms up the upper water column, I move up to the flats w/ deep water access near by and target the more active fish.

Night time can be good too. I just upsize my lures to bigger profile jigs and creatures. I like using brass/tungsten & glass combo and rattles to get their attention.

Cheers!

[RoLo]

Of course, cold water means slower action, but that's not all it means.

Our chances of hooking the biggest fish of the year are exceptionally

high during the coldwater period. That's true for all game fish species,

both fresh and saltwater.

I think Senko77 really boxed it in.

During winter, when the metabolism of fish is sharply slowed down

they instinctively favor the steepest drop-offs available, whether it's

a point, channel, hump, bluff, etc. A steep slope provides easy access

to a wide range of depths with a minimum of expended calories

Retrieving the lure slowly from different angles is something you don't

often hear but is a wise approach during the wintertime. I also agree

with starting off in shallow water (anytime of year), because fish in the

shallowest water are normally the most aggressive fish

and easiest to catch. That failing probe progressively deeper.

The shape of a soft-plastic lure (worm, crayfish, minnow)

may be less important than it's coldwater suppleness.

Some plastics become stiff in coldwater and are best avoided.

This is why many anglers prefer Pork Rind over soft-plastics

because even in near-freezing temperatures, pork rind remains supple

Roger

[HogHooker]

Rock piles, and deep depression/holes. Using a jig, lizard, or dropshotting

[Crestliner2008]

Blade Baits....period!

[jloya1sd]

Down here in San Diego I favor golf coarses and rock quarries this time of year.  Throwing Mad Man Craws with 3/8 oz Owner Stand-up type jig heads stuffed inside them works well.

[roadwarrior]

Welcome aboard!

8-)

[SBM-RL]

My winter strategy.

Cut hole in ice

Take 2' uul action rod and place minnow on hook and wait.

wish i was somewhere where i could conventionally catch bass this time of year.

[Shenanigans]

I like to use jigs T-rigged plastics, small cranks in the clear water and large in the dirty water. Rattle-Traps off points. The main thing to do is one get out there and two go slow, and then go even slower than that. Takes allot of time but well worth the learning experience. Give it a try. I have fished in allot of different states and your cold water presentation is the key to success.

/me

[skunked_again]

hmmmmmmmmm.......winter strategy

i strap my 1911 to my hip and walk the banks looking for crank baits thats been lost and floated to the bank. make a new walking stick and whisper sweet nothings to my bass boat sitting in my garage shining like the day i brought her home. i also like to do a complete clean/lube of all my bait casters. everything cleaned spotless then lubed with the finest grease.

sigh............

[Catt]

Go down to Central Bass Fishing & read Tom_Redington's December Lake Fork report.

That's about as good as it gets