Winter Bass Fishing Baits 

Wintertime bass fishing can be either really good or really tough. It's all about knowing what to look for and using the right cold-water lures. A few staple baits for cold winter bass are an “A rig” or Alabama rig, jerk bait, and a finesse jig. All baits have a different role to play on the water every day in the winter. That being they all fish in a different water column, some are more for hunger bites, while others you can work into a good reaction bait. 

An Alabama rig is a bait that mimics a ball of shad using 5 wires with 3 that have paddle tail swimbaits on them with two dummy swimbaits. In the state of Missouri, it is against the law to use all 5 hooks you are only allowed 3. The Alabama rig is really productive when the water temp gets into the low 50s high 40s. When the bass are suspended over deep water it is my go-to option for the winter. You can do a long cast over a wide area mimicking a ball of shad, controlling with your reel speed how fast or slow the bait will move. The slower you reel the deeper it will be, reeling the bait faster will keep it in the middle to top half of the water column. . You can also give your rod big twitches or strokes to entice a reaction bite out of fish watching or following the bait. Letting your bait fluctuate through the water column with stop and go retrieval can be another good way to get bit. 

Having the right equipment when using a rig is very important.  I generally use 3.3in or 3.8in swimbaits on a rig with ¼ oz swimbait heads. If I am wanting my bait to go deeper, I will put ½ oz jig heads and occasionally put bigger 4.0in swimbaits when the bass are targeting bigger shad. The rod set up I use is a 7’4ft heavy action rod with 20-25lb fluorocarbon paired with a fast action reel like 7.2.1. Having a rod with enough backbone, length in the rod and light tip is important to casting a bait so heavy far all day long.  A key component to loading the boat with a rig fish is wind, having that direct wind on the bank you're casting on is very important. That and fishing deep water channel banks that have big chunk rocks or brush throughout the spot. Some fishermen prefer to throw a rig on a 50-60lb braided line. I generally use 20-25lb fluorocarbon I feel the bait cast smoother with fluorocarbon line also the 25 lb. has plenty of strength to straighten the hooks out when snagged. 

A rig is a fish catching machine that I highly recommend all fisherman to use in the cold winter months. This Bait fished right will put all other wintertime baits tot shame and be your prominent fish catcher this season.