Patience Will Yield Cold Weather Bass
Perhaps my favorite thing about fishing during this time of the year is the reduction in boat traffic. I can get to my favorite spots without having to deal with churned up water from a bunch of jet skis and ski boats, and I can also fish many of my secret hidey holes without having to worry about sparking the curiosity of other passer bys. Even though I know at times there aren’t many more than 10 boats on the whole lake, I constantly see somebody running to another spot.
I remember one day out on the water in early January a couple of years ago. I was fishing one of my favorite mid-lake areas on Lake Anna near central Virginia. I had pulled up on a spot and began fishing. During my time on the spot I had noticed another boat run by me and pull up on a spot about 200-300 yards from where I was. The driver of the boat turned off his outboard and quietly trolled his way over to his area of interest. As I was fishing my area (with no luck), I repeatedly gave my attention to his direction to see how he was doing. Even though I would much rather be the one catching fish, I am always excited to see others catch them as well.
After 5-10 minutes of the other boat fishing their area, they quickly picked up the trolling motor, fired up the outboard, and blazed back off in the direction from which they first came. As the boat was passing me by, I immediately thought to myself that, “I bet there are fish over there and he just wasn’t patient enough with them. If you have never fished for bass in the dead of winter than let me give you two pieces of advice that will hopefully help you out.
Stay Deep! This is the time of year when the shallow banks or flats of a lake or river become very cold and windy. Largemouth Bass prefer water temperatures that vary in the 60-70 degree range and in the dead of the winter you will typically see temperatures in the mid 40’s give or take depending on how rough the season is and what part of the country you are in. This will result in the bass seeking deeper areas. The deeper water will allow them to conserve their energy and hold up in cover along structure lines. The targets that I like to hit are the steepest drop-off areas I can find that has the wind pushing in the direction of the decline. I like the exact opposite in the summer because with the wind pushing in the direction of the incline, bait fish and other nutrients in the water are blown into the shallows setting up the bass to feed shallow. In the winter the wind pushing in over the decline allows the bass to sit along the drop-off in a sort of an eddy area and conserve its energy because it doesn’t have to work to against the wind or current. Another factor to look for is cover on the structure. This will give the bass a “home” to shelter in, but most importantly it will give them a spot to ambush their prey when they are ready to feed. Cover always boosts my confidence when I wonder if there are any fish in that particular area.
Slow Down! During the winter bass become lethargic. Rather than chase down their prey like they do in the spring thru fall, they prefer to sit and…sit. For them, chasing down a meal requires energy and in most cases, the meal (if they are successful) will only replenish the energy it took to catch it. For this reason I may cast out a lure and do what I call “dead sticking”. I will present my lure into an area and sometimes let it sit for an upward of 2-3 minutes slowly shaking it on occasion. This presentation will often yield strikes from bass that have become opportunistic in the face of what they are considering injured or dying prey. By not ripping or retrieving the lure through the water (power fishing), the bass will not have to chase the lure down and use up its energy.
So using these two principles, I picked up my trolling motor and ran to the same area the other boat had just left. After more than 30 cast to the same exact spot and 1 hour 30 minutes later, I hooked up and landed a 4-5 lb largemouth. I fished the area for another couple of hours and landed another couple of fish. The point I am trying to make is that in the dead of winter, try and reduce your run time and extend your time on areas that you believe the fish should be. Patience is definitely the key to catching cold weather bass!
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