Skunked...need advice (weedy winter pond fishing)

[HOUSE]

So, I consider myself a good fisherman in the Spring/Summer/Fall...but I SUCK in the winter time. I live in Ohio and we had a strange warm spell roll through here and I went out fishing yesterday to one of my favorite retention ponds. Weather unstable: rainy and 45*degrees the day before, 61* the day I went fishing, with a lot of sun and no wind...The water was pretty murky from the rain, (which I think is what killed my fishing luck). I've caught 4+pounders out of this pond before, so I know they are in there.

I usually fish jigs in the winter, but this pond has a layer of moss on the bottom that is at least a foot thick. Yesterday, it wasn't as bad as it was in the fall, but it was still pretty thick so I struggled dragging or hopping a jig. Instead, I fished a Senko texas-rigged with a light weight along the bottom pretty slowly. I then tried a wacky rigged worm, finesse worm, and soft plastic jerk bait...still nothing. Thinking they couldn't see it with the murky water, I tried slow-rolling a Colorado blade spinner and also a noisy lipless crankbait...nothing.

I was mainly fishing the center of the lake and the west end. I did venture up to the shallow skinny side late in the day. I saw some signs of life out in the pond with ripples. I never had a single strike though, from 3pm until dark. Any suggestions on what I might have tried differently? Do you guys think I was fishing the right spot?

Here's a picture of the pond to get an idea of the size. I'd say it's about 100ft across and 500ft long. I'm unsure of the maximum depth, but I'm guessing 10-15 feet in the middle and it slopes off to about 3 feet deep 5 feet from the shore. The west end is deeper and usually wind-blown. The skinny east end is very shallow after the bottleneck.

 

[Captain Ahab]

I have my best luck winter fishing using a float and fly technique - weighted torpedo bobber with a very light jig and small soft plastic - the same set up I use for crappie fishing but I upsize the hook

It is hard to find 1/64 or 1/32 oz jigs with larger hooks but they are around - you want a size 2 or 1 hook

3 - 4" soft plastic minnow style like a sassy shad or Fin-S (wacky rigged finesse worms work well too)

Fish them slowwwwwwwwwww cast and then jiggle - let it sit. This style of fishing is actually better if it is windy as the wind will move your bait around and also cause it to jiggle. If it is windy all you need to do is cast and let the wind move it.

You want try the lure at various depth - anywhere from 24" below the float to up to 5'. Also, use a light leader as winter bass seem much more line shy - I use 10lb braid with a 5-6' 8 lb floro leader

 

[Captain Ahab]

My other "go to" winter bass lure is a suspending jerk bait (X-Rap, pointer, etc.) You have to fish them slowwwww So cast out, short pull and wait, then repeat. I can often see the bass come up and sit under the lure (in slow motion usually) and them slowly swim over and inhale

When the water is cold the bass are slow but they will feed


Oh yeah, I have found that the bass will actively feed for only a few hours each day - and they keep changing their times. Try fishing at different times until you find them feeding. If I had to pick a time I would choose mid to late afternoon which allows the sun to warm up the water a few degrees on some days

Remember, just because it gets warm out for a day or two it takes the water much longer to warm up then the air - so if you get two or three warm days in a row fish the next few days even if it get cold

 

[200racing]

try a drop shot setup to combat the slime. this way the weight can collect all the slime it wantsand you bait stays up in the clear. with a bouyant bait you could carolina rig as well be sure not to use flouro after the swivel as it sinks .big bite baits flying squirrel and shaky squirrel has floating. the gambler gigi stick and big stickhas a hollow tail that traps air so it floats the end of the tail is like a small tube so the tenacles wiggle even when you let it sit. https://www.gambler-lures.com/Giggy_Stick_s/134.htm by far my favorite shakey head worm.
this my PB spotted bass 3lbs. i cast out shook it some let it sit a little and went to work it again and felt dead weight.

all of z-man baits are made of a floating plastic that is insanely tough
https://zmanfishing.com/store/categories/elaztech

hank parker said one time to get a bait off the bottom he put styrofoam in the hollow body of a tube and then fished it on a carolina rig

float and fly might work as well especially if there if a a chop on the water. here is a good article on it. https://www.bassresource.com/fishing/float-n-fly.html

hope you get them next time. :fishing:

 

[kmsnowman]

Jerk bait, slowwww long pause.