What lure or lure type have you all caught the most bass with this winter? 2025
Riazuli reply :
Just curious - what lure or lure type have you all caught the most bass with this winter? Mine have mainly been caught on different lipless crankbaits (varied according to sky and water conditions), with some luck on plastic worms. I realize people are fishing various conditions and places, so just wondering what has been working for you (if you can list whether you're fishing ponds, creeks, deep lakes or rivers, WWDs, etc., that will be helpful too!).
Russ E reply :
here is a similar post that has ran for awhile
Riazuli reply :
On 1/23/2018 at 12:28 PM, Weedwhacker said:here is a similar that has ran for awhile
Thank you - I noticed that one, and will definitely be looking through it. I'm hoping to see what people say for winter bass in particular.
Russ E reply :
the few fish I have caught this winter were on a white suspending jerkbait and a ned rig.
we have hard water here. Hoping for a warming trend. A couple heavily fished power plant lakes are the only option until it warms.
Riazuli reply :
On 1/23/2018 at 12:41 PM, Weedwhacker said:the few fish I have caught this winter were on a white suspending jerkbait and a ned rig.
we have hard water here. Hoping for a warming trend. A couple heavily fished power plant lakes are the only option until it warms.
Yep, I've been "forced" to fish a nearby WWD area, as some of the ponds I frequent have been frozen over (although not sure about now after this last warm spell). What size was the jerkbait you used? I've been trying ones ranging from 1/8 to 1/2 oz (~2.5 inches long to 4.5 inches). Still haven't had luck on those yet, but also haven't fished them as much as the lipless.
Russ E reply :
4.5 inch 1/2 oz jerkbait. Bite has been pretty slow for me.
Bass_Fishing_Socal reply :
I'm not sure when should I count as winter for SoCal. It was pretty warm winter. From December I caught the most on jerkbait a few on Fluke and a few on finesse jig.
gobig reply :
flutter spoons
frogflogger reply :
hair jigs, sebile vibrato and ned rig
the reel ess reply :
Well, our winter came really late, with a vengeance. We even had "hard water" on all the ponds. There was ice on the big lakes in certain areas and on moving creeks! I've never seen that before and I have a few years on me. So I just kept fishing the same things until it turned really cold. Then I didn't fish for a few weeks. Went Sunday for a couple hours and caught one on a jig. I got two bite on it and one on a weightless Trick Worm. My fault that I only caught one. In bigger waters, the lipless crank has been good to me in the coldest months.
Turtle135 reply :
When I was able to do some "true winter" fishing every bass I caught was on a jig.
Of late since my local lakes froze over I have been running down to a warm water discharge (Nuke plant) where the water has been 45 - 48 degrees and a variety of presentations work.
senile1 reply :
I have caught the most with a finesse jig and subtle craw trailer, followed by a jerkbait, and then a flat-sided crankbait.
Our lakes have been frozen solid for the last 3 weeks so there has been no fishing for me since December. I need to get a Kansas license and hit the power plant lakes over there from what I have seen from @Bluebasser86. He has brought in some hawgs over there though it is an hour and a half drive for me.
Turtle135 reply :
On 1/23/2018 at 10:34 PM, senile1 said:He has brought in some hawgs over there though it is an hour and a half drive for me.
I have had to run about 2 hours south to get to that open water but by the time Saturday rolls around I am chomping at the bit to make that drive. 
senile1 reply :
On 1/23/2018 at 11:13 PM, Turtle135 said:I have had to run about 2 hours south to get to that open water but by the time Saturday rolls around I am chomping at the bit to make that drive.
I would normally agree, but I have so much going on personally right now that I am not sure I will be able to get over there any time soon. I would probably only get to go once, twice, or maybe not at all before Spring. Between my work, my Mom in a nursing home 6 hours away, and the weather it may be difficult to get there this winter.
Munkin reply :
Black bear hair jig is the best overall winter bait for me.
Allen
OCdockskipper reply :
Zman TRD finesse jig in green pumpkin with a Zman Batwingz trailer in green pumpkin/red flake. I dip the last 1/2" of the trailer in red Spike It.
Riazuli reply :
Thank you for the responses, gents! It's nice to see what's working for people, and awesome to see choices that I haven't really considered. Keep em coming!
Bluebasser86 reply :
On 1/23/2018 at 10:34 PM, senile1 said:I need to get a Kansas license and hit the power plant lakes over there from what I have seen from @Bluebasser86. He has brought in some hawgs over there though it is an hour and a half drive for me.
Bad thing is, you could make that drive and completely blank really easily. I fished Monday in the rain, sleet, and snow (normally means good fishing in the winter there), for 2 fish with the biggest being 2.5lbs. The guy that went with me never had a bite.
My best baits have been a shakyhead, beaver on a homemade brush jig shakyhead, and a jerkbait.
Shakyhead
Beaver on the homemade brush jig/shakyhead
MichaelCopeland reply :
Unfortunately I haven't caught any bass this winter. Haven't had many opportunities to do so. Nothing seemed to work when I did get to. Only thing I've caught this winter is a bullhead catfish on a crappie jig that had a little piece of Ol' Monster used in place of the normal jig tube body.
Riazuli reply :
On 1/24/2018 at 2:56 PM, MichaelCopeland said:Unfortunately I haven't caught any bass this winter. Haven't had many opportunities to do so. Nothing seemed to work when I did get to. Only thing I've caught this winter is a bullhead catfish on a crappie jig that had a little piece of Ol' Monster used in place of the normal jig tube body.
At least you caught something! I had a period of a couple weeks or so where my only catches for a while were snagged gizzard shads lol, so I feel your pain. I did catch a snakehead during that time... This was beginning of January I believe or end of December. Since then, I've been paying close attention to the tides and conditions and have pulled in a few (all on lipless crankbaits). Keep at it!
Hog Basser reply :
Haven't had much time on the water this winter, did a little crappie fishing with mild success. Got out for about a 30 minute span to bass fish with one of my sons (age 3) and some friends kids with snow on the ground. First cast, caught a 2.5 lber on an old crankbait I've had in my box for years and don't know the name. My friends 8 year old girl caught a nice 3 lber on a Mann's Baby 1- I set her up with. Then I caught another 2.75 lber on that old blue crankbait again. It was so cold, we didn't last much longer than that with the little ones. But fun to get out.
So short answer: crankbaits
reggieab reply :
The roostertail! Simplistic but effective.
Dorado reply :
On 1/25/2018 at 2:39 AM, reggieab said:The roostertail! Simplistic but effective.
I'll echo that statement. I caught two LMB last Sunday off a chartreuse roostertail.
Riazuli reply :
On 1/25/2018 at 2:13 AM, Hog Basser said:Haven't had much time on the water this winter, did a little crappie fishing with mild success. Got out for about a 30 minute span to bass fish with one of my sons (age 3) and some friends kids with snow on the ground. First cast, caught a 2.5 lber on an old crankbait I've had in my box for years and don't know the name. My friends 8 year old girl caught a nice 3 lber on a Mann's Baby 1- I set her up with. Then I caught another 2.75 lber on that old blue crankbait again. It was so cold, we didn't last much longer than that with the little ones. But fun to get out.
So short answer: crankbaits
That's awesome that you all had such good luck in such a short span of time! Sounds like a fun time.
On 1/25/2018 at 2:39 AM, reggieab said:The roostertail! Simplistic but effective.
Can't forget the old rooster tail. Aka dink slayer lol. I'm sure they're solid on bigger bass too.
FishDewd reply :
I've caught 3 bass this winter... apparently that isn't too bad for someone who is choosing winter to get into bass fishing for the first time. Lol. Two were on yamasenkos (red pumpkin w/ black and green flake), then when I finally got the stuff I needed for a proper ned rig, I caught one on the second to last cast of the day about a week ago. Used a pink bubblegum TRD (don't laugh, that's all my Cabela's carries right now, though they are getting others in... one of these days!) and a 1/15 oz Z man shroomz jig head. None were over a pound though, but a dink is better than nothing! I also caught a few catfish on senkos, and a few catfish on other baits: 2 in my pond with a bass tube, and one on a magnum zoom lizard. So right now, the senkos are in the lead with about 4!
Still trying to watch something on the Yum Dingers, but I think I may have the wrong color.
Riazuli reply :
On 1/25/2018 at 9:53 AM, FishDewd said:I've caught 3 bass this winter... apparently that isn't too bad for someone who is choosing winter to get into bass fishing for the first time. Lol. Two were on yamasenkos (red pumpkin w/ black and green flake), then when I finally got the stuff I needed for a proper ned rig, I caught one on the second to last cast of the day about a week ago. Used a pink bubblegum TRD (don't laugh, that's all my Cabela's carries right now, though they are getting others in... one of these days!) and a 1/15 oz Z man shroomz jig head. None were over a pound though, but a dink is better than nothing! I also caught a few catfish on senkos, and a few catfish on other baits: 2 in my pond with a bass tube, and one on a magnum zoom lizard. So right now, the senkos are in the lead with about 4!
Still trying to watch something on the Yum Dingers, but I think I may have the wrong color.
Dinks are indeed better than nothing, especially in the winter! You sure did pick a tough time to get into bass fishing, but looks like it's working out for you. And yeah, 3 isn't bad for winter. For me, 1 winter bass holds me over quite well lol. Also, no shame here in admitting that one of my biggest producers while growing up was a bubblegum colored zoom finesse worm and other bubblegum colored worms. The bass in the lake I grew up on loved em. And yeah, if you seem to be having bad luck with one color, switching can always help. You never know when the bass might prefer that color on another day or place with different conditions.
FishDewd reply :
Not just bass fishing, but bank bass fishing since I don't own a boat! I think the pink TRD may not be the worst idea in my location though, considering that the waters are so murky and dark. Sure, vibrations can be felt, but nothing like a hot pink little worm wiggling on the bottom to really entice a bite! I mean... who wouldn't want a piece of that action? 
Riazuli reply :
On 1/25/2018 at 10:59 AM, FishDewd said:Not just bass fishing, but bank bass fishing since I don't own a boat! I think the pink TRD may not be the worst idea in my location though, considering that the waters are so murky and dark. Sure, vibrations can be felt, but nothing like a hot pink little worm wiggling on the bottom to really entice a bite! I mean... who wouldn't want a piece of that action?
Kayaks are a great way to get out on the water and covering more areas if you don't have a boat. They're not too expensive, are good exercise, and can get places boats can't. I still plan to get a bass boat when it makes sense for me, but right now my kayak takes care of all my needs. As far as bank fishing, that's been all my winter fishing as I don't want to take the kayak out on the Potomac in the winter. Most of the main water bass are hiding in the deep which is too far from shore and too close to other boats to comfortably consider in my kayak during the winter.
DogBone_384 reply :
A gold blade bait’s worked best so far this winter, netting 3 yellow perch and 3 smallmouth bass, with the biggest being 1-4 and 2-2, respectively. Plymouth, MA has some open water right now which is rare this time of year.
Riazuli reply :
On 1/25/2018 at 8:20 PM, DogBone_384 said:A gold blade bait’s worked best so far this winter, netting 3 yellow perch and two smallmouth bass. Plymouth, MA has some open water right now which is rare this time of year.
I haven't had any luck yet with the blade bait, but I've also been using the lipless a lot more. Check out my other post on lipless vs blade baits for winter bass:
FishDewd reply :
On 1/25/2018 at 12:17 PM, Riazuli said:Kayaks are a great way to get out on the water and covering more areas if you don't have a boat. They're not too expensive, are good exercise, and can get places boats can't. I still plan to get a bass boat when it makes sense for me, but right now my kayak takes care of all my needs. As far as bank fishing, that's been all my winter fishing as I don't want to take the kayak out on the Potomac in the winter. Most of the main water bass are hiding in the deep which is too far from shore and too close to other boats to comfortably consider in my kayak during the winter.
I love kayaking, but they are still out of my price range right now, unless I wanted to go with a really small one not intended for fishing.
Riazuli reply :
On 1/25/2018 at 10:51 PM, FishDewd said:I love kayaking, but they are still out of my price range right now, unless I wanted to go with a really small one not intended for fishing.
Save up and check ones out on Craigslist or other classifieds. You never know when you might find a great deal on something. Until then, enjoy bank fishing! I am 
evilcatfish reply :
2.5-2.75" tubes with a 1/8 oz head is my favorite winter bait, maybe a bigger tube under certain circumstances. Sometimes feel like finesse tubes have gone out of style since the Ned rig gained so much popularity (nothing against the Ned of course, it obviously works well)
kingmotorboat reply :
Flipping a general larew salt craw, and dragging a speed worm in 10 foot of water
N Florida Mike reply :
Plastic worms, of course!
Lately it's been ol' monsters and trick worms. In late fall-early winter They were all over grape shad 7.5 inch culprits and 6 inch lucky strike worms in tequila sunrise.
Mr. Aquarium reply :
blade baits and jigs! people love jerkbaits but i cant figure em out, i suck at jerkbait fishing!
Riazuli reply :
On 1/27/2018 at 1:11 AM, N Florida Mike said:Plastic worms, of course!
Lately it's been ol' monsters and trick worms. In late fall-early winter They were all over grape shad 7.5 inch culprits and 6 inch lucky strike worms in tequila sunrise.
I was sight fishing a decent sized bass yesterday and threw just about everything I had at him with different presentations without any luck, but admittedly didn't try worms for long enough..he didn't take a weightless senko or a jig with craw trailer, but I have a feeling the one thing that might have worked would have been a drop shot or shaky head...im gonna hit the same spot in the next few days and see if he's still there or at least another one to sight fish (next to a WWD, so odds are there will be at least one decent sized one hanging out).
On 1/27/2018 at 1:19 AM, Mr. Aquarium said:blade baits and jigs! people love jerkbaits but i cant figure em out, i suck at jerkbait fishing!
That's another one I didn't try from my previous post... Will give that one a shot too. I shyed away from it cause I was near a lot of rocks, but I might have to take the risk!
Mr. Aquarium reply :
i fish smaller ponds that are deep in the winter. i fish out of a yak and the bigger places are friggin hard in a yak. so small ponds. find deep structure, steep drops, flats, rocks, trees, anything deep. when you find one fish, youll find more. they school up in the winter, especailly smallies.
with blades i use a ML rod with 8-10 lbs floro. slow hops, cast out, let it settle to bottom, lift rod till i feel it vibrate. sometimes they want it ripped up, most of the time they just want it lifted. then pause let it fall to bottom, let the fish tell you how much vibration and how long to let the bait sit on bottom.
hair jigs are my new thing ive been using, havent been out since november and december water in the 40s, hair jigs were getting chewed. cast out crawl it on bottom, or slow hop.
Riazuli reply :
On 1/27/2018 at 1:57 AM, Mr. Aquarium said:i fish smaller ponds that are deep in the winter. i fish out of a yak and the bigger places are friggin hard in a yak. so small ponds. find deep structure, steep drops, flats, rocks, trees, anything deep. when you find one fish, youll find more. they school up in the winter, especailly smallies.
with blades i use a ML rod with 8-10 lbs floro. slow hops, cast out, let it settle to bottom, lift rod till i feel it vibrate. sometimes they want it ripped up, most of the time they just want it lifted. then pause let it fall to bottom, let the fish tell you how much vibration and how long to let the bait sit on bottom.
hair jigs are my new thing ive been using, havent been out since november and december water in the 40s, hair jigs were getting chewed. cast out crawl it on bottom, or slow hop.
I'm also a big fan of the smaller ponds in the winter, with it being easier to track down the bass. They're in there somehwere, right? I purchased a deeper castable sonar, which really helps to locate those deep spots for winter time bass. I don't use it for fish finding - just to map out the pond's depth and for structure locations. Generally, if there is a overflow drainage in the pond, and/or a fountain, those will likely be the deepest spots in the pond (from my experience in mapping out at least a few different ponds).
I never knew you could catch smallies in ponds - I've yet to catch a smallmouth, as I lived more south for most of my life, but am now closer to smallie waters. Can't wait to land one.
DogBone_384 reply :
On 1/25/2018 at 10:51 PM, FishDewd said:I love kayaking, but they are still out of my price range right now, unless I wanted to go with a really small one not intended for fishing.
I started with an Ascend fishing ‘yak, which are a lot of kayak for the buck. Last I knew they’re made in MO too.
Also, have you tried Craigslist and your local want ads?
Either way, best of luck getting one. Kayak fishing opens a whole new world!
FishDewd reply :
I have, occasionally, looked through ads... seems like a lot of people want darn near what they paid for them new. But mostly just not in my budget right now.
Riazuli reply :
On 1/27/2018 at 9:51 AM, FishDewd said:I have, occasionally, looked through ads... seems like a lot of people want darn near what they paid for them new. But mostly just not in my budget right now.
You could try starting off with something smaller that at least has some room to put a kayak crate...You can score something like that for as low as 100 bucks on craigslist - maybe even lower. I remember from when I was actually looking to "downgrade" my kayak before because I wanted something lighter and easier to haul around, but then realized the one I had wasn't too bad to load up on my car, and at least doable by myself. You could do that, and then when you're ready to spend more, get something you really like. Just a thought - I'll stop trying to convince you now lol. I felt obligated, because when I started kayak fishing, like dog_bone was saying, it opened up a whole new world. For me, it was exhilarating, liberating, therapeutic, and totally worth any investment I put toward it. I felt like it improved everything - my work, school, and life in general.
Riazuli reply :
Just ordered a bunch of squarebill crankbaits (kvd 1.5) as their have been some hefty bass caught on them at my recent spot. I was using some smaller ones with no luck (and also hadn't used them as much as the lipless), so I'm looking forward to using these when they come in. I'm also looking forward to the fact that they will have less chance of getting snagged seeing as they don't sink or dive as deep.
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