Keys for Locating Winter Bass

Although fall fishing is still upon us; the weather will change the patterns from fall fishing to winter fishing quickly it will just take a few cold nights. As this change occurs your pattern of shallow water fishing will go away and finding bass will become a little tougher; your baits may change drastically and the keys or the natural elements will have to lead you to the fish.


The good news is there are many natural elements that will lead you to the fish; being observant enough to use these natural elements will probably determine your daily catch. Most fisherman are by products of going to spots where they have caught fish in the past, if the bass were here last winter they may or may not be present in that same spot a year later. So redundant fishing locations can be a complete bust for many reasons, the most prominent reason being fishing pressure; bass are being pushed out of their typical locations more than ever because they are being caught so many times. When your spots don抰 pan out the natural elements that occur every day on our lakes must be your key to finding the fish.


The first element I look for is under water points, set your Lowrance unit to reflect the deeper points with a color high-light; you will be amazed at how many points you抮e missing when you do this. If the bass are moving to 15 ft. depths this will allow you to highlight through your Navionics chip loaded on your Lowrance HDS and will highlight the 15 ft. depths or any depth you choose. Observe the shore line as it tells a story of what is underneath; steep drops off the banks generally occur when there is a hilly fall off the bank; this will indicate sharp drops at the banks edge. Look for the seagulls hovering over water and diving for bait fish; birds feeding over an open flat is an indication of bass also feeding from underneath and will be a great natural element that will lead you to the fish. There are many natural elements I have just listed a view; but if you抮e observant you will quickly learn how nature helps you find the fish!
Fish Lake Guntersville Guide Service