In the winter, northern bass anglers have to deal with icy, hard water, so to be successful, you must work around the ice. When they can find open water, January and February will produce some of the best bassing of the year.
That’s because northern bass group up during these months. At this time of year, probably 99-percent of the bass are in 10-percent of any northern lake. Although the bass have a slower metabolism, they’re still eating. So, your catch ratio will be good, once you identify the places where bass are holding.
Another big advantage to fishing in January and February is that most northern anglers have put up their fishing rods and you’ll pretty much have the water to yourself. You can fish really popular northern lakes all day in January and February and perhaps never see another angler. Northern bass don’t move into their prespawn pattern until March or April.
Some productive bass-fishing lakes this time of year include Lake Hopatcong (the largest freshwater New Jersey lake) and tidal rivers like the Delaware River. Whether you’re fishing a river, a lake or a farm pond with open water in the North in January or February, there’s one key ingredient that fits all waters – you’ll find bass holding in the deepest water with the steepest vertical bottom breaks.
In a farm pond at this time of year, the deepest, most-vertical break only may be 8-feet down by the dam, so that’s where the bass will be concentrated. In the Delaware River, the deepest, most-vertical breaks in January and February will be the old shipping harbors and coves, which offer deep, vertical breaks out of the current. On a lake like Lake Hopatcong, the deepest, most-vertical break areas will be the main lake points and the channel bends. The bass are holding in these sections because the deepest water in this coldest part of the year usually will be the warmest water. Too, the baitfish will be there, and the bass can change depths quickly and easily, according to the temperature by simply going up or coming down those vertical breaks. Many of the breaks will be on a 45-degree angle or more.
During January and February, fishermen will try to catch bass in two ways – by getting a reaction strike, or by finesse fishing slowly to catch feeding fish.
To get a reaction strike from bass that react to a bait but aren’t really feeding, fish suspending jerkbaits like a Bomber Suspending Pro Long A or crankbaits with a tight wobble like a Bandit Flat Maxx Deep. You can work the crankbaits to imitate a dying shad. You also can crank a jerkbait down to where you think the bass are holding and let it sit there motionless for long periods. With a tight-wobbling crankbait, let it sink to the bottom, and then jig it up and down like a jigging spoon.
A jig-and-pig combo like the BOOYAH Bankroll Jig with a YUM Chunk or the 4- or 5-inch YUM Dinger on a War Eagle Shaky Head will produce January and February bass. Shake the worm, move it slowly, and then shake it again with the line. Many northern anglers prefer pearls and silvers for the shaky-head worm and the jig-and-pig. On bottom-bouncing baits, like the worm, bass fishermen like blacks, browns and crawfish colors, natural, more-translucent colors in clear water and brighter colors on overcast days.