Suggestions for late winter/early spring bass...

Josh

Dead in the water
Staff member
Admin
I'm starting to get the bass itch real bad. Sure, most of me is thinking about the warmer late-spring/summer days and how much I love floating around the bass lakes/ponds. But some of me is also thinking about getting out there just to see if I can catch any over the next month or so before the prespawn really starts to wake up.

If you look on Youtube, there are a million "bass winter fishing tips" videos. But 75% of them are from the south where "winter" means something a lot different than in the PNW. And those that aren't are from the midwest/north where they have a whole OTHER kind of winter.

So what's a guy in the PNW (west side) to do if they are looking for learning about what our bass do in the colder months? Yeah, "look for shallow spots with access to deep water" is a place to start. And I do have some deeper lakes and ponds (though I've not had much winter success). But I've also got a couple that are mostly 4-8 ft and don't get much deeper than 12ft. What happens on those? I know the bass are in there. They don't pack up and head south for the summer. But I have no idea where to start looking for them.
 

Pink Nighty

Life of the Party
Been feeling the itch myself, especially with it being relatively warm this winter since the calendar turned. I might be heading to that pond before too long to hang a big bugger and chironomid dropper under an indicator. Slow slow slow is all I know about winter.
 

Evan B

Bobber Downey Jr.
Staff member
Admin
Anyone here ever employ the fly fishing version of the "Float n Fly" technique? I have friends that do that on reservoirs in Nor Cal and absolutely slay em. I imagine it'd have some place here in spots with a warming phenomenon of some sort (spring or other discharge of some sort).
 

Wanative

Spawned out Chum
Forum Supporter
I'm starting to get the bass itch real bad. Sure, most of me is thinking about the warmer late-spring/summer days and how much I love floating around the bass lakes/ponds. But some of me is also thinking about getting out there just to see if I can catch any over the next month or so before the prespawn really starts to wake up.

If you look on Youtube, there are a million "bass winter fishing tips" videos. But 75% of them are from the south where "winter" means something a lot different than in the PNW. And those that aren't are from the midwest/north where they have a whole OTHER kind of winter.

So what's a guy in the PNW (west side) to do if they are looking for learning about what our bass do in the colder months? Yeah, "look for shallow spots with access to deep water" is a place to start. And I do have some deeper lakes and ponds (though I've not had much winter success). But I've also got a couple that are mostly 4-8 ft and don't get much deeper than 12ft. What happens on those? I know the bass are in there. They don't pack up and head south for the summer. But I have no idea where to start looking for them.
Go slow roll spinnerbaits or swim baits in 4 to 6' of water. Save the flys for later.
 

Pink Nighty

Life of the Party
Anyone here ever employ the fly fishing version of the "Float n Fly" technique? I have friends that do that on reservoirs in Nor Cal and absolutely slay em. I imagine it'd have some place here in spots with a warming phenomenon of some sort (spring or other discharge of some sort).
This is my go to for cold. Marabou leech or bugget under a float, small twitches now and again to bring it in
 

mcswny

Legend
Forum Supporter
Anyone here ever employ the fly fishing version of the "Float n Fly" technique? I have friends that do that on reservoirs in Nor Cal and absolutely slay em. I imagine it'd have some place here in spots with a warming phenomenon of some sort (spring or other discharge of some sort).

Shasta?
 

Smalma

Life of the Party
With gear I have caught LMB and other warm water species year-round here in Western Washington though to be honest the winter period is pretty tough with a fish or two making a good day. For largemouth I would focus on the shallower lakes with some sort of cover, wood, rock, reeds, etc. The bass at the low temperatures have a slow metabolism resulting in slow digest of a meal which in turn results in infrequent feeding. As Pink Nighty suggests some low and slow around some cover is a good place to start. I have found the afternoon if much better than mornings or evens. Duirng the cold water period the smallmouth typically slide into deep water (often 40 to 60 feet deep). I avoid targeting them in that deep water as bring them from more than 40 feet results in the fish experiencing the "bends" with some mortality.

The late winter/early spring fishing for warm water species as largely driven by the lake temperature. More specifically look for a warming trend for better fishing. Look for things to start happening as water temperatures (not surface but that below say elbow depth) climb into the mid 40s. Continue to fish the largemouth in much the same areas though I would begin to focus more on the northwest corners of the lakes and if familar with the lake and its bottom structure or better yet where they will spawn later in the year focus on the best cover just outside those potential areas. The smallmouth also begin moving shallow (at least in the afternoons) which can be taken with variety of flies (basically anything that moves well and suggests a potential food item (sculpins, crawfish, large insects, small minnows). Fish those flies around the shallow logs and rocks as well as docks. Fish will improve as tempertures warm.

Frankly for my early fishing for warm water species I often would focus on yellow perch. The spawn much earlier than the bass or crappies with spawning beginning as the water temperatures climbs in to the upper 40s. The like to spread their eggs (in long gelatinous strings) over shallow structure. Prespawn they will school by sex with the males shallower in tight schools. It is not uncommon to find the schooled up in large schools; basically the entire population of a small (say 30 to 50 acres) in a single location. It can take careful fishing to find those schools but once found the pay off is huge. I typically fish an appropriate sink line cover that 3 to 6 foot contour casting every few feet along the shoreline as I move around the lake. Once a school is found they may be a school that is only 10 or 20 feet wide. Presenting a fly (say a small wooly bugger) to that school can result in fish virutally every cast while a cast a few feet to the side produces nothing. Those shallower fish will be males though turning around and fishing a little deep may produce the females which can be slightly larger. The good news about the early season perch game is that they tend to school in the same areas annually. Thus once the exploring is done good fishing can be repeated the next trip or next year.

Good fishing.

Curt
 

Bugmeister

Staying Gold
Forum Supporter
I'm starting to get the bass itch real bad. Sure, most of me is thinking about the warmer late-spring/summer days and how much I love floating around the bass lakes/ponds. But some of me is also thinking about getting out there just to see if I can catch any over the next month or so before the prespawn really starts to wake up.

If you look on Youtube, there are a million "bass winter fishing tips" videos. But 75% of them are from the south where "winter" means something a lot different than in the PNW. And those that aren't are from the midwest/north where they have a whole OTHER kind of winter.

So what's a guy in the PNW (west side) to do if they are looking for learning about what our bass do in the colder months? Yeah, "look for shallow spots with access to deep water" is a place to start. And I do have some deeper lakes and ponds (though I've not had much winter success). But I've also got a couple that are mostly 4-8 ft and don't get much deeper than 12ft. What happens on those? I know the bass are in there. They don't pack up and head south for the summer. But I have no idea where to start looking for them.

I was doing OK until earlier today; i was taking a break from work mtgs and dropped into PNW bass/warmwater area for just a minute. I have the itch now too.
 

doublespey

Let.It.Swing
Forum Supporter
The fish I've found in smaller W Washington lakes (on the rare times I've been out this early in the year) have been suspended in 15 - 20' of water. Most were accidentally caught when I was targeting panfish with jigs, using a fishfinder to locate suspended fish and then dropping down a small maribou jig with the intent of hovering it above them with very minimal motion. Very similar to the float & fly except I wasn't using a float. Tough duty if there's any wind. It would probably work for targeting bass with slightly larger jigs, but I doubt I'll do it in the future cause there's quite a few other things I'd rather be doing than sitting in a cold boat staring at a fishfinder. But if you need a fix it does work 'round here-
 

Long_Rod_Silvers

Elder Millennial
Forum Supporter
With gear I have caught LMB and other warm water species year-round here in Western Washington though to be honest the winter period is pretty tough with a fish or two making a good day. For largemouth I would focus on the shallower lakes with some sort of cover, wood, rock, reeds, etc. The bass at the low temperatures have a slow metabolism resulting in slow digest of a meal which in turn results in infrequent feeding. As Pink Nighty suggests some low and slow around some cover is a good place to start. I have found the afternoon if much better than mornings or evens. Duirng the cold water period the smallmouth typically slide into deep water (often 40 to 60 feet deep). I avoid targeting them in that deep water as bring them from more than 40 feet results in the fish experiencing the "bends" with some mortality.

The late winter/early spring fishing for warm water species as largely driven by the lake temperature. More specifically look for a warming trend for better fishing. Look for things to start happening as water temperatures (not surface but that below say elbow depth) climb into the mid 40s. Continue to fish the largemouth in much the same areas though I would begin to focus more on the northwest corners of the lakes and if familar with the lake and its bottom structure or better yet where they will spawn later in the year focus on the best cover just outside those potential areas. The smallmouth also begin moving shallow (at least in the afternoons) which can be taken with variety of flies (basically anything that moves well and suggests a potential food item (sculpins, crawfish, large insects, small minnows). Fish those flies around the shallow logs and rocks as well as docks. Fish will improve as tempertures warm.

Frankly for my early fishing for warm water species I often would focus on yellow perch. The spawn much earlier than the bass or crappies with spawning beginning as the water temperatures climbs in to the upper 40s. The like to spread their eggs (in long gelatinous strings) over shallow structure. Prespawn they will school by sex with the males shallower in tight schools. It is not uncommon to find the schooled up in large schools; basically the entire population of a small (say 30 to 50 acres) in a single location. It can take careful fishing to find those schools but once found the pay off is huge. I typically fish an appropriate sink line cover that 3 to 6 foot contour casting every few feet along the shoreline as I move around the lake. Once a school is found they may be a school that is only 10 or 20 feet wide. Presenting a fly (say a small wooly bugger) to that school can result in fish virutally every cast while a cast a few feet to the side produces nothing. Those shallower fish will be males though turning around and fishing a little deep may produce the females which can be slightly larger. The good news about the early season perch game is that they tend to school in the same areas annually. Thus once the exploring is done good fishing can be repeated the next trip or next year.

Good fishing.

Curt
You mention the Northwest corners of lakes. Why is that?
 

Smalma

Life of the Party
With the winter/early spring sun being low in the sky (to the south of us) the north end of the lake will often get more direct sunlight (less shading) with the west side of the lake getting early in the day sunlight. Perhaps equally important this time of year the wind tends to come from the south which tends to push the surface water of the lake to the north. In both cases the result is often the north end water will warm slightly faster.

While speaking of weather it often is best to avoid fishing immediately after a cold front pass through the area. Instead, the more consistent fishing will be after several days of stable weather. Later in the year the front end of a cold front can produce a nice but short bite but have not seen that as much of a factor in the early season.

All of the above is just bass fishing generalizations from decades of fishing but they are just that generalizations with lots of exceptions. In the end the best time to fish is when you can.

Curt
 

Long_Rod_Silvers

Elder Millennial
Forum Supporter
With the winter/early spring sun being low in the sky (to the south of us) the north end of the lake will often get more direct sunlight (less shading) with the west side of the lake getting early in the day sunlight. Perhaps equally important this time of year the wind tends to come from the south which tends to push the surface water of the lake to the north. In both cases the result is often the north end water will warm slightly faster.

While speaking of weather it often is best to avoid fishing immediately after a cold front pass through the area. Instead, the more consistent fishing will be after several days of stable weather. Later in the year the front end of a cold front can produce a nice but short bite but have not seen that as much of a factor in the early season.

All of the above is just bass fishing generalizations from decades of fishing but they are just that generalizations with lots of exceptions. In the end the best time to fish is when you can.

Curt
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NRC

I’m just here so I don’t get mined
Forum Supporter
201A39F5-3526-4E06-A307-06865CF61FEC.jpeg
Still too early in the year / too cold at night, or worth giving a shallow lake’s NW corner a shot on Saturday? I’ve never fished for spiny rays this time of year in WA so I need a nudge if I’m gonna try…
 

jasmillo

}=)))*>
Forum Supporter
View attachment 57921
Still too early in the year / too cold at night, or worth giving a shallow lake’s NW corner a shot on Saturday? I’ve never fished for spiny rays this time of year in WA so I need a nudge if I’m gonna try…

I may give it a shot this week or next just for fun. Not a full outing but maybe a few hours in the afternoon. I think I started targeting them in Mid April last year which was the first time I have specifically targeted bass. Figured I’d give it a shot a little earlier this year for shits and giggles. We’ll see though….so many options to choose from!
 
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Shad

Life of the Party
If you have friends or family in Florida, as I do, a getaway this time of year can scratch all kinds of itches. Gulf has been kind of a bust because of a persistent red tide, but the ponds all around the neighborhood have provided some pretty solid action on gurglers and Clousers, all within easy walking distance. This one got a few "Whoops" out of me....
20230314_102623.jpg
We're dealing with a cold front today. It was a chilly morning, but as of 4:00, it's 67 and sunny. Contemplating a trip out to chase the evening bite after dinner....

But seriously... the fish will get going soon, even in Western WA. I recommend slow, steady strips on streamers to coax up a bite from the relatively cold, sluggish bass. I would recommend gurglers, which have been an absolute blast for me down here, but cold bass aren't likely to be ready to eat off the top quite yet.

As an aside, I don't typically haul fish up on the grass, but down here, you had better, lest ye lose your fish and/or limbs to the gator that could be lurking anywhere....

Hang in there, PNWers; better times (or at least better weather) are surely just ahead.
 

BriGuy

Life of the Party
If you have friends or family in Florida, as I do, a getaway this time of year can scratch all kinds of itches. Gulf has been kind of a bust because of a persistent red tide, but the ponds all around the neighborhood have provided some pretty solid action on gurglers and Clousers, all within easy walking distance. This one got a few "Whoops" out of me....
View attachment 57935
We're dealing with a cold front today. It was a chilly morning, but as of 4:00, it's 67 and sunny. Contemplating a trip out to chase the evening bite after dinner....

But seriously... the fish will get going soon, even in Western WA. I recommend slow, steady strips on streamers to coax up a bite from the relatively cold, sluggish bass. I would recommend gurglers, which have been an absolute blast for me down here, but cold bass aren't likely to be ready to eat off the top quite yet.

As an aside, I don't typically haul fish up on the grass, but down here, you had better, lest ye lose your fish and/or limbs to the gator that could be lurking anywhere....

Hang in there, PNWers; better times (or at least better weather) are surely just ahead.
So, I assume fishing from float tubes and pontoons are non-starters, then? :oops:
 

Shad

Life of the Party
So, I assume fishing from float tubes and pontoons are non-starters, then? :oops:
Depends how crazy you are, I guess, but I sure wouldn't try it. Good news is you can access most of the fish from the bank.

I went out again today. A bit too late in the day, methinks; the fish were super lethargic in the mid-day sun. I caught a few, but the big ones were elusive. I discovered a small, shallow pond FULL of beds and giant bass that I will need to get back to late or early in the day before I leave. We're talking 3-6+ pounds here. You could just see them cruising under the surface everywhere. Never seen anything like it. Cool, but also frustrating...
 

Squatchin

Life of the Party
Forum Supporter
Bass are being caught now by gear guys all over western washington. Seriously considering hitting the local puddle tomorrow. Weather be damned. If my "honeydew" isn't too long, I'll report back. I have always heard the biggest fish are the prespawn female, so I'd like to shake fins with one this year.
 
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