Desperately Looking For A Producing Winter Bait. 2025
NC_Bass6 reply :
i am in kind of a pickle at the moment. i have been using every "winter bait" i can think of. nothing has been producing for me. ive thrown countless jigs, senkos, crawling a rattle trap, and a few lizards. i cant catch anything with them. the lake im fishing is small, as in i can do a lap around it fishing from shore, and is maybe 15ft deep at its deepest point. the water is stained due to rain, maybe a foot or two visibility, but is normally pretty clear. what would you recommend i use? i was thinking of finally learning the dropshot and using it on a very short leader. let me know if you have any other ideas.
Fishes in trees reply :
Back when I was bank bound, swimming a grub was my last resort method. Count it down to where it is less than a foot from the bottom, but never touching and swim it back. It seems counter-intuitive, but I would move it at a pretty good clip. Every so often a reaction bite would happen.
soccplayer07 reply :
drop shot a Roboworm!
flyfisher reply :
Basically the same baits will work in cold water as warm with the exception of top waters in most cases.
The key is slowing down and downsizing but even that is debatable. I have heard people say go larger because the bass want a large easy meal.
I have fished this winter and done ok and caught them all on the following baits:
X-rap in clown
Square bill crank
DT 10&14
Fluke
Shaky head
Jig
The one commonality is every one I was fishing about as slow as I could take it, to the point of non crank bait baits taking upwards of 5 minutes per cast.
I would say just slow down and watch your line. If you see or feel something different set the hook, they are free 
Bluebasser86 reply :
A suspending jerkbait with long pauses will catch winter fish if you have enough patience. Reel it down a few cranks and give it very soft pulls to move it along followed by extended pauses, as long as you can stand, up to a minute if you can wait that long. 15 seconds is all I can manage and I have to know there's fish there to do that but that's usually long enough.
WRB reply :
Your problem is the bass are not active when they are very cold. Unless this pond has a warm water source like underground spring, the small volume of water is the same temperature top to bottom until the water gets about 39 degrees, then the colder water floats to the surface and freeze at 32 degrees.
The cold blooded bass slow way down and don't need much food to survive during the winter cold water period, they rarely eat anything.
Basically you are trying to catch bass that have no interest in lures 99% of the time. Things will change when the water warms up to the upper 40's.
Tom
pjmags reply :
Try a dropshot or also slow rolling a spinner bait!
LgMouthGambler reply :
T Rig a big worm, and work it slow. If that doesn't work, go to a 5-6" worm. Try Tequila sunrise or a watermelon color.
Quitlimpin reply :
The winter bite can be super tough. Sometimes you just ain't gonna get bit.
J Francho reply :
Silver Buddy.
tbone1993 reply :
shakey head
Hyrule Bass reply :
when i would fish my uncles pond in the winter i never had any success with soft plastics no matter how slow i fished them, so i avoided even using those all together. what worked for me is a rapala husky jerk fished really slow like bluebasser86 described above. also i found that shallow diving cranks like a Manns -1 slow rolled also worked well for me. that husky jerk had been virtually useless to me until i tried it in cold water. the colors that worked best for me were silver with an orange breast on the jerk bait and silver with a red breast on the shallow diving cranks. of course my uncles pond wasnt 15ft deep either it was more shallow, like 7-8ft deep...
DINK WHISPERER reply :
I would definately creep some swim baits along near the bottom. Try big & small ones til u find a preference. When i was shore bound i would catch them in ponds on a Yum minnow after freezes slooooow rolling it.
BassWhole! reply :
When its cold and tough, I'm only tying on:
Suspending jerk bait
Blade bait
slim senko type thing.
Crestliner2008 reply :
On 1/17/2013 at 10:52 PM, J Francho said:Silver Buddy.
Ditto. Suspending jerks would not be a good idea in heavily stained water. But if you can see down 2' - 3', then I'd give them a go as well. Nothing wrong with the drop shot either in winter.
Megastink reply :
On 1/17/2013 at 9:36 AM, Bluebasser86 said:A suspending jerkbait with long pauses will catch winter fish if you have enough patience
This is one of my top three techniques in winter. Find the Steepest bank on the lake, and throw parallel to it. The bank should be at least a 45 degree angle.
On 1/17/2013 at 10:12 PM, Quitlimpin said:The winter bite can be super tough. Sometimes you just ain't gonna get bit.
I question your dedication, sir!!!! hahaha
On 1/17/2013 at 10:52 PM, J Francho said:Silver Buddy.
YES! I fish the Northern Chesapeake Bay quiet often, and the ol' Silver Buddy (blade bait) is the premier technique. Find videos from Pete Glusek about fishing the SB in winter.
On 1/17/2013 at 11:02 PM, Red Earth said:also i found that shallow diving cranks like a Manns -1 slow rolled also worked well for me.
Dont be afraid to fish shallow. Bass in winter will be shallow, but not necessarily relateing to cover. cover water quickly with a balsa squarebill (no rattle). Dont reel to slowly either, you are still looking for a reaction strike!
On 1/17/2013 at 11:39 PM, reason said:When its cold and tough, I'm only tying on:
Suspending jerk bait
Blade bait
slim senko type thing.
I agree with the first two. My number one-of-all-time winter tactic is BURNING a chrome rattle trap. You might want to yo-yo it as well. Dont be afraid to fish it overly aggressive. Winter temps often produce a baitfill kill. Bass might be used to seeing shad flutter down to the bottom. Thats where a silver buddy comes in. yo-yo it on the bottom.
The shallowest bass i ever caught was in 8" of water, next to a tree... in February. I grew up in northern New Jersey. This lake was all frozen; just this one little flat with one tree on it was thawed. and i caught that bass on a jig. I grew up in Jersey, you live in North Carolina. Our two opinions on "tough" winter fishing might be a little different. Good luck!
Sam reply :
May I suggest a flat sided chartreuse with black or light brown back crankbait?
Fish normal retrieve or slower on a spinning rig with 8 pound floruocarbon line.
Good luck.
River Rat316 reply :
HAIR JIG, cold water screams hair jig, 2-3' visibility is not that bad, hair jig, blade bait, and suspending jerk bait.
xxjace reply :
Well I was having the same problem..and a buddy of mine told me he fished nothing but small baits. Like 2 inch grubs and little crappie tubeson a beetle spin...I've been using storm 2 and 3 inch minnows and doing decent..well a lot better than I was but its still slow..winter is just a slow time for fishing..they just aren't as active in the cold months.
ww2farmer reply :
My winter fishing is limited to the last 2-3 weeks of the season before I put my boat away, and the first 2 weeks or so after ice out untill the water starts making noticable gains in water temp. The temp ranges in the fall/winter period I fish are usually the high to mid 40's, and in the spring from the high 30's to mid 40's. Baits that have worked well for me on both ends of those periods have been small 3"-4" plastics on a drop shot, shakey head worms, small mid- deep diving crankbaits, finesse jigs, and a grub slow rolled on a jig head. Stuff that works better for me in the spring with rising water temps have been lipless cranks, suspending jerkbaits, and small shallow running cranks. Stuff that works better for me in the fall/winter with falling water temps,have been tubes, football jigs, small plastics rigged on a wacky jig, and smaller flipping jigs, and plastics in what remaining heavy grass cover is left. I have not yet been much of a silver buddy/blade type bait kind of guy, but know it works for alot of people, it's something I deffinatly want to try and get a feel for.
Nitrofreak reply :
On 1/18/2013 at 4:23 AM, River Rat316 said:HAIR JIG, cold water screams hair jig, 2-3' visibility is not that bad, hair jig, blade bait, and suspending jerk bait.
There is nothing like a floating fly rig, or a hair jig, you can't beat it for cold water conditions, or cold front conditions, when the bite is tough or slow these rig's always work if you find the fish first.
Brent Christian reply :
silver buddy
zwhiten12 reply :
Jerk bait, get those reaction bites!
roadwarrior reply :
On 1/19/2013 at 2:22 AM, Brent Christian said:silver buddy
Give the Sworming Hornet/LFT Live Magic Shad a try, too!
Cast and let the lure hit the bottom. Reel up quickly, then fall again on slack line.
Repeat until you feel you are out of the zone. Keep the rod steady and pointing up.
Do not pump the rod, that just moves the lure forward.
merc1997 reply :
when cold water fishing is slow, a crappie jig and a road runner are hard to beat.
bo
Silas reply :
On 1/17/2013 at 10:52 PM, J Francho said:Silver Buddy.
Man! I haven't heard that name come up in a loooong time! I didn't think many threw it any more. I also throw a couple of "G.. Blades!"
( I had to edit that post.....all I gave was the NAME of the bait!! LOL!!
Silas reply :
On 1/18/2013 at 4:00 AM, Sam said:May I suggest a flat sided chartreuse with black or light brown back crankbait?Fish normal retrieve or slower on a spinning rig with 8 pound floruocarbon line.
Good luck.
I have one of those tied on right now and will also try it tomorrow!! Spro Little John!
xxjace reply :
Okay my last two trips I've used 3 inch storm minnows the ones that a silver with red under there chin.. I swim them close to bottom and slow..I've slammed them last two trips after having no luck this winter so far..I had to go back to store today not because they were torn up but I kept getting them hung up and losing them..give them a try finally found some winter magic..and it's just been the 3 inch too nothing on the other sizes..
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