It’s Winter; Should I Be Slow-Rolling My Lures?

A while back in one of my articles, I mentioned lure presentation speeds while fishing the colder months. In that article I shared that I tell my clients it’s like building a fence – there are at least a hundred ways to do it and none of them are wrong. In my opinion it boils down to personal preference and what you have confidence in. Now, I’m not saying I never fish a slow presentation. However, I think most anglers automatically assume that because the water or air is cold you must work your lures slowly to produce a bite.

I like to look at each day individually and the conditions we are facing. This tells me a lot about which few baits I am going to select and the action I need to put on those baits in order to produce a bite. Let’s dive in and take a more detailed look.

Let’s say a front hits early morning around the pre-dawn hours, air temps are in the 60s and falling as you leave the ramp. By day’s end temps are in the low 50s. These are some of the best conditions to produce a big bite. The reason I say this is because the fish have already pulled out into their refuge areas and should be going on a very aggressive feed ahead of the colder conditions setting in. The barometer is on the rise and they will be fattening up to have enough energy in reserve to hold them for a day or two. I believe that when the pressure reaches a certain point, usually around 30.2, the bite shuts off. With the colder temps I am going to throw a Down South Super Model or a Corky because I know these fish are going to start dropping lower in the water column. This doesn’t mean I’m working my bait slower, though. In fact, under these conditions I rip my baits through the water, trying to keep them in the middle of the column with a swift popping action. Almost like walking the dog with a topwater, but sub-surface. I’m looking to appeal to the aggressive feeding mode I have experienced under this scenario. Call it game of many casts; the more casts I can make and the more water I can cover, the more bites I get.

Let’s take this same scenario, same temperatures, but the front blows in at 9:00-10:00pm the evening before you plan to leave the dock. Well, chances are we’re not leaving; I would likely advise my guys to sit out the day. The winds are already beyond what I consider the safe threshold and all your water is chocolate milk. Just getting out of the harbor can be dangerous. So, you sit out that day, knowing the winds are going to be backing off, waiting for the second day. Instead of fighting steady 25-35 mph wind, on day two you’ll likely have 15-20 mph early, backing off to 10-12 mph by mid-morning and on into the afternoon.

The biggest factor I consider at this point is what the overnight low temperature will be. Let’s say the forecast calls for low 40s to upper 30s. While there’s no guarantee, but with some of these fronts this is the day we start to see the barometer beginning to fall. We know the north wind has drained a lot water out of the bay, and as the wind continues to back off, the water will drop a little more. I will tell my anglers there’s no need to rush. Let’s let the sun come up and start warming things up, and let’s stay out until sunset.

Generally speaking, in the winter months, the last couple hours of daylight are the warmest of the day. We leave the dock around 9:00-10:00am, or in time for a mid-morning solunar feed prediction, if there is one for that day. Leaving later like this allows us to not only catch the wind backing off, but also allows me to survey water as we are running along – looking for the best water clarity with the right amount of bait activity. Activity we would have missed if we left at or before sunup.

We find our first stop and I’m instructing the anglers on how we are going to approach it, and giving lure suggestions. Two days of cold temps with a big dip in the overnight lows – I’m going to suggest the same Down South Super Model plastics and Corkys – but this time I’m going to suggest that we keep it low to the bottom.

Most all of us have seen fish after a big front. They have red bellies and some even have tiny lice clinging to them. This suggests they are lying on the bottom, soaking up whatever warmth they can from the bay floor. Now, just because I say to keep it low to the bottom does not mean I am going to work my lure slower. Most of the time working a Corky, I can’t do that without getting balled up in grass. When I’m working it low to the bottom I am still working it fairly quickly. Erratically is probably a better word.

When I make a cast I allow time for it to fall through the water column, visualizing it being just above the grass. Then, instead of big rod tip pops, hopping the bait from the bottom to within an inch or two of the surface and letting it fall again, I am usually holding my rod out to the side and ripping the bait in 6- to 12-inch bursts and then pausing for a second or two. We know they’re hunkered down, and I believe this erratic “in their face” presentation will draw more curiosity strikes when they’re not actively feeding. I sense this to be true because I often feel short, quick thumps and setting the hook produces no hookup. It’s almost as though I happened to put it within a few inches of their nose and, without moving, they try to gulp it in but do not succeed. None-the-less, a bite is a bite, and sometimes we connect.

Hands down, the winter months are my favorite time of year to fish and, you can ask my wife, I have spent countless hours out there on days off earlier in my career, trying to figure out patterns. I look at winter as a giant puzzle and challenge myself to put it together under every possible scenario as quickly as I can.

Bottom line here is that I personally do not believe it’s a must to slow your presentation to a crawl simply because it’s winter. Instead, like I tell my clients on days with conditions like those I have described here, do what you are comfortable doing. If slow-rolling is your game, well, continue with it. I just wanted to share what I have learned through my own wintertime experiences.

Be safe on the water, and especially this time of year, check the weather forecast the night before or at least before you launch the boat in the morning. No fish is worth taking that chance.

See you on the water!