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DEPTH is the obvious
key ingredient in selecting a lure, in that if the lure does not
get down to the location of the
fish, we stand little chance of catching him. This is particularly
true with bass, who spend the majority of their
time on or near the bottom. Even with live bait, if it is not presented
at the proper depth, chances of success are
slim. So, this criterion remains constant year-round.
ADAPTABILITY, also
remaining constant, simply requires that we select a lure which
will operate properly in the
environment in which it is presented. Diving crank plugs are not
suited for casting into dense grass beds and
Rapalas don't produce well over deep, open water. So, we select
one which fits the cover or topography being
fished.
Nine months out of the year, SPEED
is the third most important lure selection element. However, during
the
Winter, it has to share that position with its neighbor, SIZE.
SPEED is usually a
very essential ingredient in triggering an instinctive strike from
the predator bass.
Therefore, it become important that we select a lure which will
operate at the proper depth (the most important
lure characteristic, we recall), while moving at the necessary retrieve
speed. During all but the colder months, a
bass is usually best agitated into striking by a fast and/or erratic
retrieve. However, as the seasons begin to
change and the waters cool, the bodily metabolism of the cold-blooded
fish drops significantly and his actions
and responses become slow and sluggish. The result is that a much
slower lure speed is necessary.
Since a bass will usually try to eat
anything which will fit into its cavernous mouth (and, occasionally,
some
things which won't), lure SIZE would seem to be
an issue only related to the size fish we desire to catch. (`Big
lures for big fish', the old saying goes.) However, like the speed
factor, size becomes a very significant issue
during the Winter period. In fact, it possibly should replace even
adaptability and be the second criteria. It is
that important.
Imagine, for a moment, that the brain
of a bass has a little computer off in one corner. The program in
that
computer evaluates a potential morsel of food that the bass is considering
and calculates its energy value.
Then, the computer considers the water temperature, and the bass's
metabolic rate, the degree of difficulty it
will take to catch that food item, and comes up with the probable
energy that will have to be expended in the
capture. The final step then compares the two values and determine
if the food is worth the energy it will take
to capture it.
During the warmer months, when the
metabolic rate is high and the demand for food is correspondingly
great,
the bass usually goes after fairly good-sized food items.
However, during the Winter, all this
changes. Now, the bass are relatively dormant and the bodily processes
very
slow. The need for food is such that a three pound bass may only
require two or three ounces of food material
every five days. So, the larger fish will readily take even the
smallest of lures. This, along with the fact that
something small is usually easier to capture, is the reason why
small lures are always the more productive during
the colder months. It is also the answer as to why the bass taken
in the Winter always average larger in size.
The next selection element is ACTION
and it is very closely related to speed. This is, like size, not
really a
relative selection criteria except in the Winter. If we are selecting
a lure for a slow retrieve application, its action,
either inherent or angler-induced, should also appear slow. For
example, a crank plug with a tight, rapid wiggle
gives the distinct impression of speed, while one with a less erratic,
wide oscillation appears to be moving more
slowly. The related factors of speed and action are, then, compared
to the depth requirement to finally come up
with a good selection.
The final lure selection category we
designated OTHER and within its boundaries are
factors such as brand name
and color. No matter what the time of year we are addressing, neither
of these plays any significant importance.
Brand names are fine, from a quality and durability aspect, but
many `store brands' are actually made by the
major manufacturers and are fine products. The angler must simply
evaluate the item carefully.
Lure color plays no measurable role
in fishing success. Common sense tells us that most lure color schemes
bear no resemblance to any natural food source and, therefore, must
attract by some other medium. However,
color can be a major psychological stimuli to an angler, and therein
lies value. The color in which an angler has
confidence will be fished harder and with more concentration. In
effect, it will be kept in the water more. And, dry
lures have been known to catch darn few bass.
Now, let us move to bass locations
and the lures and presentations most appropriate during the Fall-to-Winter
transition.
From earlier studies, we note that
Fall bass will position in shallow cover flats near major drops
and deep water.
Short distances into tributaries, primarily feeder creeks, are prime
locations. Usually, the better cover will be
somewhat thin, such as brush or sparse grass. Thick grass and weed
beds are usually not very productive during
the mid-to late Fall and Winter seasons. Also, the bottom area will
normally have to be very clean and hard.
`Sparse cover and a clean, hard bottom' generally spells `brush',
so file that bit of advice away for a rainy day.
Lure selections in the shallow feeding
areas often depend only on the adaptability element. When a bass
is in
six, or less, feet of water and related to some cover, he is obviously
an active, feeding fish. Accordingly, he will
usually strike nearly any moving object. Our experience has shown
that a spinner bait and the reliable plastic
worm outperform all other lures during this period. And, for approximately
two weeks during the mid-point of the
Fall feeding spree, top water lures can be excellent. In fact, it
is normally the best of that type angling to occur
all year. A Devil's Horse, large Bang-O-Lure and RAT-L-TRAP will
usually be top choices. Where shallow crank
plugs were superior choices in the Spring and early Summer, they
do not appear to be as attractive to the bass
in the later seasons.
As long as the surface temperature
of the waters is above 60 degrees, expect fairly fast retrieves
to be the order
of the day. Even with the worm, we should use a rapid, erratic retrieve,
with a lot of short jerks and hops. If the
bass are extremely active and seem anxious to take the worm on the
drop of the initial cast, use a ribbon-tail
worm. It has a slower sink rate and the action of the fluttering
tail is a good attraction. Otherwise, a straight-
bodied lure, such as the standby Mann's Jelly Worm is better for
working rapidly across the bottom. Another
point is that the long, curly tail of a flutter-tail worm is prone
to wrapping around limbs and breaking off when
fishing in brush. Normally, it is best reserved for use in grass.
The spinner bait selected should be
a quarter ounce `safety-pin' type with a single blade, either a
#5 Colorado or
willow-leaf. The willow-leaf is ideal, since it provides a lot of
fish-attracting flash and sound but little drag. If the
cover is relatively thin, use a short-arm spinner bait to maximize
the hooking percentage. This type and style
spinner bait can be fished with a rapid retrieve, while still remaining
a couple of feet below the surface.
As the surface water temperature drops
past 60 degrees, we can expect to see the bass start to move along
the
major ledges and drops towards the deeper, open water areas. While
they are in this transient state, they will
usually have progressed too deep for effective spinner bait presentations.
Therefore, the worm will probably be the
best bet. If the break-line the bass are using happens to be a channel
edge and have any current present, a diving
crank plug, such as the Fat Free Shad series is very likely to produce
well.
It will be found that the bass will
gradually work deeper as the water continues to cool. And, once
this migration
has begun, the fish will not usually return to the shallow cover
areas. They will, however, stop their movements
towards the depths if a period of Indian Summer occurs. And, this
can spell a period of very productive structure
fishing for the angler who has kept up with the earlier movements.
When the surface water temperatures
start to pass into the mid- to lower 40 degree ranges, the bass
will move
very deliberately towards their wintering locations. Although it
depends on the actual body of water being
addressed, most reservoir bass appear to winter at depths of 25
to 45 feet. (There will ALWAYS be bass
shallower than this, but not in schools. The schools of fish will
ALWAYS hold deep in Winter.) The guide
seems to be related to water clarity and the clearer the water,
the deeper the bass should be expected to be.
There are some very key points to help
in finding these Winter hot-spots. First, they will be in an open
water area
that has the deepest water in that vicinity. Second, they will be
out of the effect of any current flow. And, finally,
the fish will be very tightly schooled on some small, well- defined
structure feature. It may be a selected place
along a drop line or a solitary hump protruding from the depths.
At times, they will even suspend in the open
water of a submerged creek channel. When this happens, it will usually
be either a small channel where they can
use each side as reference structure, or they will be near some
predominate feature.
When the bass have reached these deep
holding areas, they are very dormant and not prone to feed often.
However, they will eat periodically and that makes them cacheable.
The secret lies in agitating the fish, while
also making it easy for them to take the lure.
This type fishing separates the confident
angler from those who are not so positive about their abilities
or their
chosen fishing locations. Deep Winter bass must first be located
and then the lures presented with pinpoint
accuracy. Everything seems to be done in slow motion and the angler
who is not sure of his location, technique
or lure will not stay at it long. (I am sure the biting cold often
has something to do with that, as well!)
The absolute best lure for deep schools
of Winter bass is the silver or chrome spoon. A one-quarter to one-half
ounce size will do fine. The intent is to simulate a dying bait
fish which is fluttering gradually towards the bottom.
This is a common occurrence in the Winter, in that bait fish, in
particular the shad family, is very susceptible to
the cold and the lower oxygen content it brings. In the early Winter,
we often are able to observe this
phenomenon near the surface. Later in the season, it is still occurring,
only deeper.
The spoon should be attached to the
line using a good ball-bearing swivel to prevent line twist and
to allow the
spoon some `play' around the snap. A 6-10 inch wire leader helps
keep the line and lure from hanging up. The rod
should be short and very stiff. This is necessary for lure control
and maximum feel. Since we will not be casting
the spoon, that feature of the rod is not a factor. The line should
be heavy, usually 17-20 pound test in mono. The
new no-stretch lines (Gorilla Braid/Fireline) make feeling the strikes
much easier. We can use them up to 40 and
50 pound test. This heavy test line will also allow us to manhandle
most snagged lures free. If there appear to be
numerous snags on the bottom, switch the treble hook for a single
weedless one. You will not notice an
appreciable difference in your hooking percentage.
The boat should be positioned directly
over the suspected location of the bass school. This necessitates
the use
of a good depth sounder for accuracy and to maintain positioning.
Do not use an anchor, for obvious reasons.
If you are in the more northern states
and your waters have iced over, be advised that a depth sounder
will read
very well through the ice. Carry a small propane torch or thermos
of warm water, along with your portable sonar.
Melt just enough of the surface of the ice to allow the transducer
face to be in full contact with the resulting water.
This forms the contact to and through the ice. It is all right if
the water freezes the transducer in place, in that it
will continue to read just fine.
Once we have found potentially good
structure and hopefully a school of bass, the rest is fairly easy.
We just
lower the spoon to the bottom, raise it up about three feet, and
start to jig it slowly up and down. Normally, an
upwards lift of three to four feet is fine, with the lure being
allowed to flutter back down to its original position on a
tight line. The strike will ALWAYS come on the drop and will usually
be noted by either a slight `bump' or the line
just suddenly goes slack. Occasionally, when starting to raise the
rod tip, the spoon may feel as though it has a
wet dishrag on it. This indicates that you did not detect the originally
strike and that the bass is holding the lure.
Set the hook sharply.
A second lure for deep Winter bass
is the jig and eel. It can be cast to the located structure or worked
from a
vertical position, as with the spoon. Control and on-target presentation
is better from directly overhead, but the
winds associated with the Winter season may require anchoring the
boat. If that occurs, the anchor will
necessarily be placed off the structure and the lures cast to the
fish holding location. The key is to work the jig
very slowly, but steadily. If the winds allow, use a light jig (one-eighth
to one-fourth ounce) and swim it along just
off the bottom. The strike will be noted only as a gradual tightening
of the line or a swim-off to one side or the
other.
Usually, the better Winter jigs have
rubber strand bodies and are dark in color. Black and very dark
blue have
always been successful. Because the water will be cold and pork
rind will stiffen significantly, it is best to use
plastic trailers with the jig during the Winter months. Use only
narrow trailers which give good action. Split the
plastic trailer with a razor blade or knife if its thickness interferes
with it action. Also, keep the trailer short,
possibly three inches, to preclude adding too much bulk/size to
the lure. Remember, small lures are best this
time of year.
Summary
In the Fall, all wildlife feeds heavily
in preparation for the coming Winter. Fish and other aquatic creatures
are
no exception. Bait fish and other forage of the bass gather in the
cooling shallows for one big feast. The predator
bass follows and the excellent fishing of the Fall season begins.
There are a number of successful bassin'
patterns which may be found, each dependent somewhat on the changing
weather and water conditions. The
following are some of the ones to look for.
1. Large, shallow cover areas will
hold large numbers of Fall bass when conditions are reasonably stable.
These
will be very active fish, prone to readily take a lure. Spinner
baits and free-running, vibrating crank plugs (Spot,
Rat-L-Trap) produce excellent results. Fast retrieves are usually
the ticket.
2. The outer edges of weed beds and
stump fields may produce the most bass, if they are not found directly
in
the cover areas. This is always true for the larger fish. Lures
here should be kept near the bottom. Experiment
with retrieve speeds until the best is found. Lipped crank plugs
and worms are recommended.
3. The first well-defined drop-off
out past the shallow cover may be best if recent water levels or
weather
conditions have been unstable. Bass in these positions will be relatively
inactive. Keep the lure on the bottom
and the retrieve slow. A Plastic worm or jig is the first choice,
followed by a slow crank plug.
4. There is always a period of good
top water schooling activity in the middle of the Fall. Use top
water and
shallow crank plugs when casting to the breaks. When the bass go
down, try to find their holding area and go
with a plastic worm.
5. Early Fall bass are in a period
of migration towards the shallows. Look for them along the edges
of feeder
tributary channels, usually near the bottom. Depending on the depth
of the channel edge, use lipped crank
plugs and worms.
6. Late Fall/early Winter bass will
be schooling tightly on major structure breaks near deep water.
Use a plastic
worm or jig and pig and keep the retrieve very slow.
7. Winter schools of bass will be relating
to deeper structure. A slow lure or a vertical presentation with
a spoon
is in order. A 3 inch smoke grub fished like the spoon may prove
excellent. Just be slow and pay attention for
the light strikes!!
The transition of Fall into Winter,
and the following cold season, provide some of the better bass angling
opportunities of the year for the dedicated fisherman. In some respects,
it become a matter of `mind over
weather.'
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