Joe's Bass Report - Cold Front Tactics

Nicasio Reservoir got pretty darn tough with this post frontal, cold windy weather we are having. But, some anglers got them anyways, by adjusting and targeting areas of rip/rap that are both out of the wind and in receive direct sunshine. The best examples of this are almost always on stretches of road where there is water on both sides.

When the wind blasts any stretch of rip/rap directly the windy side gets blown out, and the protected side develops a windless pocket about as wide as the height of the rip/rap. This lack of wind keeps the water on the lee side much clearer and calmer than on the windy side. This in turn allows for deeper penetration of sunlight and the warmth that comes with it.

As an added bonus, rip/rap rock structure holds warmth very well and is a natural fish magnet especialy in the winter when the big females need to incubate their eggs.

Since the cold winds only chill the water on the surface, and the wind blows the colder water away from the rip/rap, it makes these areas even better, from the fish's perspective.

(Compare this to the windy side which becomes an accumulation point for the cold surface water as it's blown into the rip/rap and trapped.)

Many bass anglers assume that the best baits (due to the poor conditions) are either soft plastics, senkos, or other small finesse baits. Although these baits can work, fishing long stretches of rip rap is almost impossible to do efficiently with finesse-type baits. Since many of the biggest females who move into these warmer areas are not in actively feeding mode, my choice is to use reaction baits - Speed Traps and Chatterbaits like the Boogie Bait to be specific.

Marin County Bass Club - Jig Fishing Demo
Reminder! Tomorrow night is the meeting of the Marin County Bass Club at the San Rafael store. I will be giving an in-depth seminar on jig fishing starting at 7:30pm and lasting till about 8:30 I will cover everything you ever wanted to know about jigs. The talk is free and open to the public, so come on down and learn some serious skills!