Largemouth Thru Ice, Now.

[TruthWalleyes]

I don't get into bass fishing in the open water months. But they intrigue me through the ice. Small test line and light action rods are the means to a big grin when icing largemouth.

A few times each winter i specifically target bass, and i would like to hear others opinions as to where they typically find bass and how they entice them into biting.

This winter i have found them close to weeds and dropoffs, with thin ice conditions and lack of snow cover the weeds are abundant. So far, i haven't had to downsize below a medium size live forage rippin shad.

Last year i had lots of luck using a macho minnow and minnow head and found them on breaks.

What are your winter strategies in finding and hooking largemouth? Thanks.

[fishuhalik]

i like points coming off of big weed flats. sometimes on the edge, sometimes in the thick of it. once i found an awesome school of largemouth in 16fow out in the open. when i specifically wanna target bass through the ice, i pick small lakes with very limited stucture so its easier to narrow them down. i typically use sunfish gear, like a diamond jig with a few waxies. if there's too many sunnies i like using a small jigging spoon with a minnow head. on lakes that dont have a million tiny pike i'll throw down a tipup with a shiner while i jig. usually my best bass fishing is early & late ice, winter seems to be tough.

[Bass Whacker]

slick jig micros with a impulse minnow they go nuts for this combo. I always target main lake points when looking for bass in the winter weeds near by are a huge plus but not always needed, but I even found some cruising with crappies over the basin this year. I also move alot because the bass always seem to bite very quick. No reason to sit around and wait.

[fishcast]

Early early ice is great for me on some lakes. Usually targeting lanes in weeds in bays and mouths of bays 4 to 8 ft. I like a 1/8 red forage minnow spoon with little atom soft plastic tails globbed and shaking all over the trebles or one of those storm soft plastic swimbaits for vert. Jigging. Also, a fat head under an arctic warrior tip down.

Mid winter is tough for me but I get them adjacent to weeds on sharp breaks (usually they are some of my favorite mid summer spots)

Late ice is hot but the season is closed

[Gordie]

I have had alot of Big Bass sightings this year while spearing and have also had numberuos accounts of them inhaling a few of my spearing decoys and then just spitting them back out and swimming back into the weeds.

I like to spear pike along weed lines but have noticed more bass when set up in a open pocket with weed cover around it.

I have been mostly in the 5-7 fow range this year.

Some of the decoys that I use are from 6-13 inhes in length and I not talking of the live ones thats they have been coming to.

[RiverFish]

John Gillespie's show yesterday focused on fishing for bass, mainly with tip ups. They did catch a ton of bass though. Looked like fun.

[Jaspernuts]

I think it also comes down to they are more active on certain lakes than others. We taget them with mono on tip ups with shiners or small creek chubs. Im actually going out today, so I will report back later. Only fished this one lake once earlier in the year and my nephew got a 20 incher!