Cold Water Bass Fishing Tips

Well folks, it’s getting quite a bit cooler around here these days and from what I’ve been seeing in the news, it’s getting down right cold in a lot of places.

Now I know that the weather alone isn’t going to stop us true addicts from going fishing but it sure is going to make us switch some of our lures out to ones that we believe will be more effective during the end of this year and the first part of next. So here goes for what I will have tied on for my next fishing trip.

Suspending Jerkbaits

To start with, when the water cools around here, one of the first things that I like to try is a suspending jerkbait or as it is sometimes referred to as, a rip-bait. I carry two with me, the first being the River2Sea Suspen’88 and the other is the Lucky Craft Staysees 90 ver.2. Both of these baits are suspending baits and will stay down at their diving depths for long periods of time without any effort from the angler.

Both can be adjusted for depth by adding some suspend dots to the underside of the bait and both can be easily cast on 10 to 12 pound line with bait-casting gear. Both of these baits have been successful for me at this time of year with low water temps and the hook-up ratio has been good on both of these lures. However, there are some differences between the two that keep me using both.

The River2Sea Suspen’88 is just a little bit lighter and will not dive as deep. The finishes on the Suspen are more of a matte finish and seem to be what the bass want at times. I will use this bait over the Lucky Craft when I am fishing a little bit shallower and feel that the bass are suspending. What I like to do with this bait is to cast it out, let it sit on the surface for a few seconds, reel it down quickly to its depth and then wait. This is the hardest part of fishing these baits for me. I know that I have to wait a LONG TIME before I do anything with the bait.

After about ten seconds I will give it a couple of twitches and wait again. Bass often hit a jerkbait in cold water during the pause. I have had them hit it without biting it and only come back to eat it once it starts moving again. When I get hit and don’t hook up, I will wait, again for 10 – 15 seconds and only then, twitch it once and wait again. This will very often produce the strike that is serious. Other times, there will only be a weight on the end of your line or your line might jump, you have to be aware of all of these possibilities when fishing very cold water.

I will use the Lucky Craft Staysees 90 ver.2 when I want to fish the same way only deeper. Since it will run in the 8 – 10 foot range, I will use it more off of sloping points and into channels. I fish the Staysees the same way as the Suspen. Again, the most difficult part for me is the wait between the initial cast and reel down and when I start moving the lure. I hate to be redundant but I will sit and count to 10 before I even consider moving the bait.

Then I twitch it once or twice and wait some more. I do this all the way back and then repeat at a different angle. The biggest advantage to the Lucky Craft is the sheer number of available patterns. There are over 30 compared to 5 for the River2sea. Obviously I don’t have all thirty but there are 5 that I like to carry that have proven to catch fish for me.

Spinnerbaits

When I just can’t stand to fish that slow anymore, I will use a spinnerbait. I have a lot of confidence in spinnerbaits to illicit reaction strikes so I use them all year long. I like the 3/8 ounce River2Sea Crystal Spin. The double willow leaf blades give the angler a lot of feedback and the resistance in the water from the blades allows you to really slow roll the bait anywhere in the water column without having to fight to keep it horizontal.

You can do a lot more with this bait but I find that most of my bites on the Crystal Spin at this time of the year come very close to the bottom just as I pass next to some form of cover. The advantage to using this bait is that when a fish strikes, it usually is very easy to detect and setting the hook is no problem. I don’t use any kind of trailer this time of year because I don’t want to bulk up the bait.

Jigs

The next bait that I have waiting in the wings is a jig. I prefer to use swim jigs and small trailers during the cold months. It just seems as though a more slender profile appeals to the bass during the winter. I like to thin the skirts and trim their length back to just behind the hook.

I use the Strike King Baby Rage Craw as it gives the jig a little bit more action without being over whelming. I fish it slow and like to just raise it off the bottom and then let it glide, not fall, back down. I allow it to sit and then just pull it slowly for a couple of feet, wait and pick it up again, repeating this all the way back. Most of my strikes come as I am dragging the bait along the bottom and can be very subtle so you have to be ready!

The last bait that I have tied on is a wacky-rigged worm. I like to use the Strike King Perfect Plastics Ocho and the Jackall Flick Shake worm. I use these two because they have very different actions on the fall. The Ocho is a little more rigid and has a pulse to it when rigged wacky style. This subtle action can be just what the doctor ordered for some tight lipped bass. At other times, they prefer the action of the Flick Shade worm which is more of a squirming action. Between the two, I usually manage to pick up a few bass here and there.

As with any other season of the year, the most important part of fishing is using the bait that you have confidence in. You have to make some allowances for changes in weather and other conditions but the fact is that while a bass’s metabolism slows down a great deal in the cold months, they still have  to feed to live. So use a lure that you have confidence in but be willing to try something new on occasion and you just might find a new way to fish that you really enjoy!

See ya on the water…