Cold Front Tatics - What's your say?

[EBass]

Hello fellow FM members. Now that we had the biggest cold front of the summer hit us, where do you think the bass will be hiding?

I think they will be in the thickest nastiest slop in real shallow water (top water frog or fluke), or suspended off of humps in deep water say 15-25 FOW (drop shot/carolina rig). And quite possibly any where in between. (cranks/spinnerbaits)

I'm fishing after work to test my theory. I don't expect much of a bite, but I gotta get on the water. You know how that goes.

So what do YOU think??

[goose89]

ebass, good ? i'm going out tomorrow also to see what happens. was planning on going to a shallower (25" max" lake without a lot of obvious structure) before this front hit (couple of points, no midlake structure). now i'm wondering if something with alot of different options like tonka would be better. what do you (and others) think. my guess is the slop is gonna be a bust. i'm thinking deep and slow. any other opinions appreciated. thanks in advance.

goose

[This message has been edited by goose89 (edited 08-11-2004).]

[BigMike]

Ebass you're crazy - it's just nasty out there... less boat traffic & more fishing for you I guess . Good luck finding the fish. If I was heading out, as much as I hate deep water fishing, I think that is where the fish are going to be. This cold front is down right WRONG! We have had a really cool summer but I'm sure that front pushed the bass deep. If it was a short cold snap (like 1 or 2 days) maybe they would be up shallow, but with an extended front like this (3-5day) I think whatever is left up shallow will be REAL small.

Try the deep weedlines & points! Points are always good areas for cold fronts. Use deep diving cranks on and around a point in 10-15 FOW. Try worms either rigged: carolina, jig, or drop-shot. Good luck - and bring a sweatshirt!

This weather kinda reminds me of fishing last September/October on the river... burrrrr! Think of this weather as training for hitting the Rum with me this fall.

[Granny]

I just got back from some poor fishing in Virginia where it was 98 degrees with 93% humidity. I was pretty happy to come home to a cold, cloudy, rainy Minnesota! I have had good luck with this type of wheather using a black spinnerbait with an orange blade or a white & yellow spinnerbait with a silver blade. The last two times out my wife and I have caught 2-19" and a 20" off of these spinners in <5 FOW. With the water temps being cooler and nice cloud cover, my inexperienced guess would be that the fish will be up shallow but not necessarily in the pads. I would go for the outside edge of the pads with a spinnerbait, tube, worm, and.......my black and red secret bait with a 1/4" fuse!

Granny

[EBass]

LOL Granny! I still think that big bass will hang in the shallows as long as there is cover, food and oxy. More so cover and food. OH duh water temp in the shallows will be warmer, but ya never know. Some will be deep, some will be shallow. I'll let you know how I do or don't tomorrow.

[st.crioxfishin]

I am also somewhat worried about the affect this front is goning to have on the fish. Im going to be in the junior state tourney on Fri. and am still not fully sure what kind of plan I am going to put together.

I was thinking T-rigging 6 1/2" worms, and trying those on the weedegdes. I am also going to be pitcing 4" and 4 1/2" tubes in the shallow thick weeds.

I have had good results with these presentations during cold fronts. You just have to work slower and mentally accept the fact that you probably aren't going to get as many bites, and when you do get those bites you better get a good hook set so you can get the fish in.

I agree EBASS, there will be big ones still in the thick shallow cover. Right before this front came upon us, me and a buddy of mine got 5 fish over 18" in one day, biggest being 6lbs 21". So I definatly think they will still be shallow, just very tight to the cover. Also the bass will sometimes stack up on docks that are in a little deeper water. I found this out from personal experiences so I don't know if these presentations will always work, but they might be worth a try. Good Luck.

b. downey

[EBass]

I'm kinda limited to shallow water due to the pop can I have for a boat. So I like to get outa the wind. However, if the 22mph gust slow down I'll try some deep water humps to. I don't expect much except wind burn. In any case, "Git er done!"

[delmuts]

i would also check pts next to deep water ; especially if there are weeds. del

[friendlyfisher]

EBASS, How did you do tonight, I noticed the wind died down to nothing, the nicest part of the day was at about 8:00pm. what did you try and how did you do. I plan on going out in the early morning, hope the wind is calm. ff

[MedicineMan]

I myself have done very well in these types of conditions fishing for Bass. What people forget is the fact that Bass don't like rapid weather changes. There are exceptions to that rule. But for the most part its right after the front comes through that the Bass shut down. After a few days of stable weather the Bass will start to bite again. The weather has been stable for a few days so the weather really shouldn't affect the Bass. I've also noticed that the drop in water temp doesn't have that big of a difference in Bass location. Ebass, if you say "Git er done" any more. We're gonna have a big problem!

P.S. They call me.....tater salad

[This message has been edited by MedicineMan (edited 08-12-2004).]

[Granny]

Ebass,

How did you do? My cousin called and told me he missed a big fish last night . He said he was going to post his story so I won't give any more details.

When I got married a couple weeks ago the guys put "Get er done" on the front license plate and "Got er done" on the back. Larry the cable guy and Ron White rock!

Granny

[This message has been edited by Granny (edited 08-12-2004).]

[Mr Special]

Yesterday stopped by CedarLake in MPLS on the way home to test out my New/old rig. Just casting from shore I had one fish come up and bump my Weed Demon and saw it go back down into the open spot in the Lily's. So I thought maybe too big, I downsized to a BassRatt and it came half way took a look and left. HUMM? So I pitch a pig&Jig at it and same results.
The only thing I could think of was a slow non weighted bungee worm. Casted it out brought her back to the opening let it sink, she came took a look, opened her mouth and I set the hook. 16" not great but not bad for shore fishing and only about 30mins

Good luck

[This message has been edited by Mr Special (edited 08-12-2004).]

[EBass]

It was what I expected. YAWN - Boring. I caught three bass all small and a little pike. I started working shallow water 3' with pencil reeds. I heard some commotion in the reeds so I knew they were there, but just not into chasing anything. I got one on topwater frog on the edge. It was about 13" but a fat football. Then nada. My buddy Lance wanted to work the humps. (Yes I'm talking Medicine) So I had a carolina rig with a fluke and he had a drop shot and worm. We were drifting the saddle between the first hump in front of the boat launch and felt some rocks on the lindy weight. Sure enough, BAM I missed it then BAM and I missed it again. Kept drifting and it felt like sand without rocks and we left.(should've tried to find the rocks again) Back to the shallows we went. We fished a real shallow shore line where the other two small bass and pike came from. (crank and spinnerbait)I am a topwater freak so off to the pads that I knew had deeper water. I had a HUGE blowup right away but it missed it(figures) and never hit again and missed some other smaller blowups in the general area. Lance missed some to then towards the end he got one that went about 15" on the topwater frog. Only fished for two hours and there was a bass club going on to and to top it all off my Vexilar went on the fritz. I think the battery is shot. I wish I had more time, but it turned out to be a nice night weather wise. I didn't see anyone else catch anything, but not that I was paying attention.

What did I learn? Fish slow then have a follow up lure to toss at the missed blowups. Thanks for the Tip Mr Special. My ringer was on high so I must've been driving when you called. They (bass) won the battle that night, but the war is not over!

[SluggoMaster]

I'm not sure why you guys are having a hard time, as I have had a tremendous week, with the fish in 2' or less all week.

Sunday night 14 pounds, Monday night 14.5 pounds, Tuesday night 13.5 pounds. Wednesday night, 7 pounds (just two fish) and tonight, was the best with 16 pounds 9 oz for 5 fish. All were 5 fish, except for Wednesday night. The Wright county bite has been exceptional in my opinion.

[Lost]

You and your slugs.

Great catches! Get any pics to post?

[riverrat56]

we got a bunch tonight on washington on topwaters, 10 in all i think for 2 guys, all on buzzbaits, biggest was 16 1/2 inches, all fish caught in under 3 ft of water.

[EBass]

Kewl, I'm glad you guys did well. I should've stayed shallow.

[Duffman]

I caught 6 bass last night in the metro, 2-4lbs. My newbie fishing partner caught a small one and then hooked into a 20"er. I thought I was going to see my second broken rod of the night when she dove under the boat, but the drag finally kicked in. For a guy who has fished less than half a dozen times in his life, he sure was happy when I grabbed that pig for him. A quick measurement and photo and she was back in the drink.

*$*!! I busted one of my favorite St Croix rods by hitting it with my other rod when casting. A costly mistake on my part. Oh well, it happens.

Was fishing plastics slowly, didn't get a lot of action, but the ones we caught were of decent quality. The action should only get better as the weekend progresses weather wise.

Good luck people!

EBass.....
We were fishing in 2-6ft deep water. Dang, that's two outings in a row with a 20"+ fish, I think I might actually know what I'm doing. Yea, right, only to be humbled next time out. LOL

[EBass]

If I'd caught that one that blew up on my frog I'd be a much happier camper. But it does look like the area was shallower water from the sounds of everyone's posts.

[Clay.P]

I definately stick with the deep bite for cold front bass. A lot of times the fish holding deep are a little less affected by the front. If I was on a deep rock bite, I will downsize from a carolina rigged lizard to a french fry. If I was on a deep weedline bite I will retrieve the bait a bit further into the weed edge then I normally would.
If I am on shallow fish, I usually go into the thickest cover in the area. If it is matted vegetation, I will flip a jig or tube into the matt and work it slow. Most of the time the surface bite will slow down and the fish will kiss the bait instead of eat it.

[Juan Grande]

Does consistent cooler weather slow down fishing? I understand that cold fronts can impact fishing, but this recent cooler weather has been here for a week.

I fished hard all weekend on a lake I'm pretty familiar with, but none of our usual spots produced fish. We did get one nice 19" fish that weighed in a 4.5 lbs, but not much else.

We usually fish shallower, 12' or less, but I thought about fishing deeper structure. There'a a decent sized sunken island where is raises up to 7' from 15' and there's a 25' hole right next to the island. What's a good tactic to fish bass on that drop off? I'm guessing tubes or carolina rigged worms, but I'm not sure. I'd say that 98% of the bass we catch are on some sort of plastic worms. They NEVER hit any surface baits, spinners, etc.