Late season bass can be tough, but it’s certainly worth the effort.
When the leaves fall and the weather turns cold, many anglers are thinking of anything but bass fishing. While it can be a challenge, it’s a prime time of year to get into a late season trophy with the right tactics.
Fishing in November and December usually means water is cold, but it’s typically the surface water which is cooler than the water down about 15 feet or so in larger bodies of waters. Bass will often pull back to these depths to spend most of their time, moving up to the shallows to forage. Working fish in these shallower depths targets fish that are actively feeding which can increase your chances for success when seeking out these fish first.
It is also a good idea to fish the warmer banks of the lake. Look for spots where the sun can warm the flats, points and coves for the better part of the day. This warmer water will also attract bait; as the saying goes, “Find the bait, find the fish.” Use your electronics if available to look for signs of life. Bait balls, surface activity in shallow flats and points are a good place to start. Look for small creeks or inflows that can carry bait or insects.
So let’s assume you found a nice sunny bank or point where schools of bait can be seen cruising the shallows. What strategy would you use to get a trophy in the cold later season weather? Personally, I like to start with a faster presentation and work slower if I am not seeing results after a time. Jerkbaits are a good first choice, as the erratic presentation can draw a reaction strike even if the fish is not in a feeding mood. These can be cast right up to the shoreline and aggressively retrieved for the first 25 to 50 feet. Let the lure rest, then move to a jerk, jerk, pause cadence. You can cover a large area of water with a fast lure like a jerkbait.
Paddletail swimbaits are another good choice, as they can work a little deeper than a jerkbait on the surface. Work these in a slow erratic retrieve and vary the pace to explore deeper water near the edge of the flat or point. You may need to change up colors depending on the mood of the fish; natural color patterns are always a good first choice, but don’t be afraid to change up if the bite is slow. This tends to elicit more of a deliberate strike rather than a reaction bite like the jerkbait.
If you are looking to draw a ton of attention, A-Rigs are a great alternative. Similar to an umbrella rig in the saltwater arena, this smaller, castable version is meant to imitate a small school of baitfish. Dressed with up to six swimbaits, this can be a hard bait to pass up for a hungry bass. As with the other swimbaits, natural colors are a good starting point. You can add additional flash by fixing a few willow leaf spin blades to this to make this an even more attractive bait. This is a good bait to work around points and in slightly deeper waters.
If the fishing really gets slow, one bait that always comes to my mind is the Ned Rig, a short stumpy plastic worm, on a mushroom style jighead. While this sounds too simplistic, I believe more fish have been caught on a Ned Rig regardless of the season. These are great for slow dragging out from a flat, or slowly hopping down the edge of a point. The trick with working this bait is slow! You need patience to work this lure. The “worm” part will stand straight up as it contacts the bottom of the lakebed and very small “hops” along the bottom are irresistible to bass (both largemouth and smallmouth). Do not try to lift the bait off the bottom, but instead just wiggle the bait a couple inches at a time during the retrieve. Many times you may not even feel the strike, the line will just suddenly start to move sideways. Best colors are often blue/black, green pumpkin, or “motor oil.” This is probably my all-time favorite finesse bait in any season.
Late season bass can be tough, but it’s certainly worth the effort if you have the patience to keep things slow, even if you’re not landing fish right away. Try a few of these tactics the next time you are out this late season, you may just land your best bass of the season!
