ESPN Bassmaster Elite Series Angler Dustin Wilks

Jerkbait fishing in the winter can be awesome.  The main limiting factor is the lure’s diving depth.  Most deep diving suspending jerks (like the Daiwa® deep T.D. minnow, T.D. spawn, or Double Clutch) will only go about 6–7 feet deep without weighting them to sink.  If the fish happen to be close to that depth range and you have plenty of patience… watch out bass!

Winter bass like to come up slightly in the water column to strike a lure just above them.  The water needs to be fairly clear (about two feet visibility or more) because of the bait’s thin profile.  With a thin-profiled bait, they cannot feel the vibrations it emits as well and must see it to eat it. I like to pull slowly rather than jerk in water this cold.  In really cold water (38°F to 43°F) you might have to let it sit for five or more seconds between pulls.

I’ve also found a small twitch during the pause often triggers a strike.  Daiwa’s new Viento reel with twitchin’ bar is perfect for this action.

As the water temperature increases into mid and upper 40’s you can speed the bait up.  At 50 degrees you’d be surprised how many bass want a fast moving jerk.  The trick to getting reaction bites through this temperature range is throwing slack in your line between jerks to get the bait to “walk” side to side under water.  I always experiment though.  There are few hard-and-fast rules to fishing.  As water warms I’ll still try slow presentations, but I’ll be more alert to the fish becoming more active and wanting a fast bait.

I really like to fish jerkbaits over grass and on grass lines.  If no grass is present, points, floating docks, creek channels and channel banks (bluffs) are good targets.  Lure color can be important.  I generally like natural colors, but I don’t overlook firetigers and chartreuse, even in clear water.  These baits are thin and a little splash of color is sometimes a good thing.  I like mono or a hybrid line that does not sink, and a medium or medium light action rod.

Dustin Wilks
Secret Weapon Pro
BASS Elite Series Angler

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Tags: cold water, dustin wilks, jerkbaits

This entry was posted on Saturday, January 2nd, 2010 at 8:12 AM and is filed under Fishing Articles, Tips and Tactics, Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.