Over the past few years, every discussion of cold water bass fishing is usually focused on forward-facing sonar and throwing minnows on jigheads, but that’s not the only way to catch them. Bassmaster Elite Series and NPFL pro Patrick Walters is regarded as one of the best in the world with that technology, but he also likes to go shallow and “old school” in the winter with moving baits.
He mixes in both approaches but knows there’s a time and place for both ways of catching bass.
Moving Fast
Because of the time of year, bass are all over the place. Some are shallow, some are deep, some are out in the abyss chasing shad; it’s a little bit of everything right now. This is why Walters likes to keep it moving with fast lures.
“A lot of times late in the year, the fish are scattered,” he began. “They’ll be concentrated once you find them, but you have to cover a lot of water until you run into them. That’s why I love cranking, with either a shallow diving crankbait or a lipless. I’m not going to be dragging a worm or jig around slowly because the fish aren’t everywhere and power fishing approach is going to be better as you search.”
The fast-moving baits are also what’s sometimes needed to trigger a reaction. “The bass are feeding heavily in the fall, so something that’s going by them really fast is going to appeal to them,” he said. “I like to fish square bills, crankbaits that dive less than six feet, and lipless baits because you can burn them and get their attention.”
He fishes his shallow crankbaits on a 7-foot medium light Randy Howell Daiwa Tatula Elite rod designed for small crankbaits and jerkbaits. He fishes the crankbaits on a 7.1:1 Daiwa Tatula 150 SV reel with 12 to 14-pound fluorocarbon.
“I still like a faster reel this time of year, but as it gets colder, I’ll slow down to a 6.3:1 reel,: he said. “The reel has the SV boost so it casts them well, even into the wind and it will even cast lightweight balsa baits very far. At the same time, it’s perfect for making slight roll casts and stuff like that to shallow targets like docks when accuracy is so important.”
Burning a lipless is another of his favorite ways to catch them as the water cools, and he’ll use several different sizes of baits, depending on the depth at which he’s fishing. “I throw the heavier baits on a 7-foot, 6-inch Daiwa Tatula Elite cranking rod that I designed and will use the 7-foot, 3-inch medium heavy “Multi Purpose” rod for the lighter baits,” he said. “Half ounce and up, I go with the bigger rod and the lighter baits, it’s the shorter rod, especially when I’m fishing in less than two feet of water and burning that lipless back to me.”
According to Walters, line size and retrieve speed are two more critical parts to effectively burning a lipless in shallow water. “I like to fish them on 20-pound fluorocarbon to keep the lipless up shallower,” he said. “I also like a faster reel, an 8.1:1 Daiwa Tatula Elite, so I can cast it out a mile and use that fast retrieve to really burn the bait back to me.”
Chasing the Buzzbait Bite
Walters will also keep a buzzbait handy for as long as he can get away with it, often fishing it well into the late Fall. He likes them because they appeal to bigger fish and allow him to fish quickly as he searches for active fish.
“During the fall, it can be an all day thing and you can catch some really big ones doing it,” he shared. “I like to start with it first thing in the morning, then put it down for a bit to crank midday and try the buzzbait again after that. There’s a window in the Fall when it can be a great way to run shade lines and catch some giants with a buzzbait in the afternoons.”
Walters will use both skirted buzzbaits and those with just a Zoom Horny Toad on the back and prefers 40 to 50 pound braid. “I use the toad style buzzbait primarily and will also mix in a Zoom Z Craw Jr. on the back instead, especially with smaller buzzbaits,” he said. “I like to fish it on a 7-foot, 4-inch medium heavy Daiwa Tatula Elite big topwater rod and the same reel I use for my lipless crankbaits. This great bite works well when the water gets down into the 60 to 70 degree range, both in the Fall and then again when it warms back up to the 60s in the spring.”
Fishing during the winter months does not need to be all about staring at your electronics, there are still ways to catch them with moving baits and it’s one of Patrick Walters’ favorite ways to catch them this time of year. Sticking with moving baits will get you in front of fish faster and you can really clean up when you land on them.
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