(see disclaimer)

 

Delta Black Bass:

During the winter months the largemouth bass tend to gather in schools. In the central delta the bass like the sloughs that are not real deep, sloughs with depths of ten to twenty feet are ideal. There has to be a lot of clean weeds and a steady current flow. The bass will sit on the edge of the weed beds in eight to ten feet of water. I pitch a lot of jigs, grubs and plastic worms this time of year. Split shoting or dragging a worm along the weeds works really well also. Normally the water temperature is around forty-six degrees, but the bass will still move into shallow water to feed. I have caught bass on spinnerbaits and crankbaits this time of year also. The key is, stay in sloughs with sparse clean weeds and a good current flow. This time of year the bass along with the stripers chase the shad into bays and dead end sloughs. When you find a good area you will catch a lot of bass ranging in the same size. They tend to school in sizes averaging one to two pounds with an occasion three pounder. These spots will produce bass year after year as long as the weeds stay. In the north delta in the winter is probably one of my favorite areas to fish. The bass will migrate to these waters in the winter when the delta turns over. I know from the past twenty years, that when the water clears up and the temperature drops into the high forties these bass will start to school up in large numbers. Most of the bass are true northern bass here and they don’t really get real big, a five pounder is a trophy. The bass are real pale looking and don’t have all the color markings on them, like a florida strain bass. Up north there is not a lot of weeds, it is mostly dirt banks with a lot of wood. When you find the bass in a certain area, you will catch a lot of them. Remember these spots, because the bass will use these areas year after year. In the winter you will also run into a lot of crappie, some going over a pound in size this time of year. Remember one thing when you find the crappie, don’t catch all of them because you will deplete the school. They are one kind of fish that will keep biting till there are no more in the school. So just take what you can eat and release the rest!

Good Luck,     Alan Fong
Practice catch and release!

You can contact "Alan":  Email  alan@fishinreport.com