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Coldwater Spinnerbaiting
Picking my way past cypress trees and buckbrush, I was exploring flooded Hickahala Creek bottoms just south of Coldwater, Mississippi.
A couple hours of sunshine was prodding the temperature above freezing, and the off-color water lapping at the hull of my 9-foot Bass Hunter was 46 degrees. To my left, the depth was no more than three feet, but as I passed under Highway 51 I reached deeper water where dirt had been scooped out to make the raised roadbed. Directly out from the bridge, the bottom dropped down to eight feet. Most times of the year, this whole flooded swamp was prime spinnerbait area, but once water temps dropped into the 40’s, bass seem to lose their interest in the fast-moving bait.
Hickahala Creek Bottoms, Coldwater, MI, — once-prime fishing resource, now a stagnant, algae-choked swamp as result of creek channelization.
Usually I relied on jigs to slow down my presentation and probe the brush and laydowns. When I hung up and broke off a jig, I discovered I’d left my spares in the garage. Before switching to a soft plastic lure, I wondered if a slow-rolling spinnerbait might stir up some interest.
I chose a 3/4-ounce short-arm spinnerbait with a single nickel Colorado blade that a local fisherman had given me earlier that winter. The old chartreuse skirt was tattered, and the round lead head of the homemade bait had nearly all the red paint scrped off.
Several fruitless retrieves over the ledge and across a brush pile, and I started doubting the wisdom of my choice. After my sixth cast, I lowered my rod and the lure dropped to the bottom while I reached for my coffee jug. My boat swung around in the breeze, and as the spinnerbait was dragged over the bottom, it snagged. I jiggled the rod tip a couple of times to free it and then turned again to fill my cup. When I looked up the next time, my line had moved about eight feet to the right. I grabbed my rod with one hand and set the hook on a heavy fish -- a five-pound largemouth.
I cast again, and this time I deliberately allowed the spinnerbait to flutter to the bottom and then jigged it down the drop-off. I repeatedly popped it loose from between logs, and at one point one of those "snags" didn’t feel the same, so I set the hook again — this time on a 4-pounder. The next bass slurped up the spinnerbait about ten minutes later. Within another hour, I’d caught six more bass in the three to five pound range.
I realized the slower I fished, the better I did. Every one of my fish that afternoon came while the spinnerbait was in contact with or within inches of the bottom, moving so slowly that the big Colorado blade was barely turning.
Anglers tend to relegate spinnerbaits to warm water, but as I discovered, in cold water, they can still produce exceptional results. For another first-hand account of the productivity of a spinnerbait in cold water, read a journal entry from Rick Vogelbacher’s winter day on Round Lake Indiana — evidence that every fishing situation, even cold, sleety, windy winter days, offers unique possibilities.
While we generally expect to find bass on deep structure in winter, they can also be found in relatively shallow coves where sun heats the rocky, sandy bottom.
Cold-water bass still have to eat, but they may be sluggish and target slow-moving, bulky prey. If the presentation matches their mood, a spinnerbait may be the right bait. Here are some pints to consider.
Location
In winter, if the lake or reservoir is muddied by winter runoff, head for the clearest regions you can find. On the other hand, in extremely clear lakes or reservoirs feeder creeks with some color to the water may improve your odds with a spinnerbait.
Start where creek channels swing close to secondary point, especially those having ledges with standing timber or brush piles, then move toward the back of the cove or creek. The backs of coves should be more productive later in the year…. During cold water times, cut across while you still have some good depth and fish back up the opposite bank ledge. Search drop-offs for schools of forage fish; below or around them, look for bass.
Presentations and Retrieves
Slow down. Fish a spinnerbait like a jig when the water temps drop below 50 degrees. Most times and places where a jig will work, so will a spinnerbait.
Pitch to cover (4-8 feet of water), letting the spinnerbait fall to bottom. Keep light, constant contact with the lure as it flutters downward. A short-arm spinnerbait, like the Secret Weapon, is better suited to this type of presentation than ones with the standard frame.
Hop the lure. Lift your rod tip fast enough to feel the blade thump, about 18 inches, and then let it flutter back down to bottom, following it with your rod tip so you can feel the weight of the lure. Pause briefly and then repeat the sequence through the strike zone.
Slow-roll. Even in winter, you may find relatively warm water in sheltered, sun-warmed shallows or steam plant discharge areas. There, retrieve slow enough for the lure to drag or slide right across the bottom, moving steadily, just fast enough for the blade to thump.
Spinnerbaits work well in shallow water, but they can be fished slow and deep, if that’s where you need to go to reach big bass. Switch to heavier baits and smaller and/or fewer blades to reach greater depths. To increase weight, remove the rubber core from an inline sinker and clamp it to the hook shaft under the skirt or to the frame just in front of the spinnerbait head.
 Remember — a single blade produces less lift and more vibration than a tandem configuration. Larger blades have more water resistance and create more lift. Therefore, to get your bait down to deep fish, drop down in blade size.
Innovate and adapt. Don’t be afraid to buck conventional wisdom. One thing is certain… bass can surprise you. If none of the high-percentage wintertime retrieves described above produce, don’t put your spinnerbait away just yet. Cast it into the shallows and swim it back steadily just within the zone of visibility. I’ve had spinnerbaits hammered by bass that respond as though it were a dogwood-blossom spring morning rather than an icy, mid-winter day.
Become a line-watcher. In cold water, bass seldom deliver a savage strike. Instead, the line just twitches, goes slack or moves sideways without your feeling anything. If the line does anything odd or the blade stops turning, set the hook even if you can’t feel a bite!
Winter Lures
- Size: 3/8 oz Midnight Snack
- Color: Midnight Snack II (black/blue tips) or Rock Craw (pumpkinseed/orange), bulked up with 4-inch Uncle Josh split-tailed spring lizard or #10 Big Daddy pork frog.
- Blades: Colorado (CO) or Turtleback (also referred to as magnum willow or Oklahoma), hammered finish in clear water to scatter the light and reduce sheet glare. Silver or nickel finish in clear water, gold or copper where cloud cover or muddy/stained water reduces the amount of light penetrating through the water. Black or gold in muddy or stained water. Blade size depends on lure and water conditions, but generally #3 CO on 3/16-oz, #4 on 3/8-oz. In colored water, dim light, upsize blade a size or two.
Early spring/Pre-spawn Lures
As water warms going into spring and fish become active, drop down to smaller sizes and begin cast-and-swimming retrieve.
- Size: 1/8- and 3/16-ounce models
- Colors: Translucent skirts (TN Shad, Citrus Shad, Blue Ghost, or Baby Bass), or White Shiner. For stained waters, Chartreuse Shiner or chartreuse with darker accents.
- Blades: Turtleback or Indiana; gold or copper where less light due to cloud cover or muddy/stained water. Black or gold in muddy or stained water. Later, add a small front red blade.
- Rod: Sensitive, medium- or medium-heavy power, medium-action 7-foot rods that can wrestle monster bass out of brush piles or heavy timber. Casting rods for flipping to cover, spinning outfit for slow-rolling open water, light lures on light lines.
- Line: Braided line for flipping in cover… 10# or 12# mono for slow-rolling open water. Down to 6-pound line for 1/8-ounce lures.
I’m not going to try to convince anyone that a spinnerbait is the best coldwater bait out there. It may not be the first bait you try when the lake cools, or even the second or third. But if you eliminate it from your tacklebox or boat locker in cold weather months, you’ve removed an important weapon in your arsenal. Under the right conditions, the lure can still produce for you.
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