Best Jig Trailer for Winter Bass Fishing
Lots of baits and techniques just don’t work during the winter season, but the jig is not one of them.
No matter how cold the water gets, you can still catch winter bass on a jig. But there are some adjustments that you need to make to your jigs to still have winter success.
And probably the most important of those is the trailer that you pair up with your jig. But what is the best jig trailer for winter bass fishing?
Impact of the Cold, Winter Water
When the water temperatures get very low in during the winter season, everything slows down. Not just the bass, but all the other creatures in the water too.
The crawfish and baitfish both move around much less and much slower. So when trying to imitate wintertime bass forage, less is generally better.
This is why you need to change the jig trailer you use in the winter. You need to change to something with less action.
Dead Action Trailers
The best winter jig trailers will have little to no action. Most jig trailers have a flapping or swimming action as they come through the water.
But when trying to imitate much more sluggish forage, a dead action trailer is ideal.
“Dead action” simply means that the soft plastic doesn’t have any of its own movement in the water.
There are a few different types of dead action jig trailers, but my favorite is the classic chunk style trailer.
Chunk Trailers
By far, my favorite winter jig trailer is a chunk style soft plastic. There are two reasons why I love these soft plastic trailer baits so much.
First, like I already mentioned, they have no swimming or flapping action in the water. They just flow and undulate naturally with minimal movement.
This is incredibly natural and not intimidating to the cold water bass. Second, the chunk baits have a smaller, more compact profile than any other soft plastic trailer.
In the winter, bass don’t have as big of appetites because their metabolism slows way down. So they are generally more likely to eat smaller, snack sized baits rather than full sized profiles.
So the chunk baits downsize your overall jig profile and help keep the jig easy and appealing for the cold water bass to eat.
Best Winter Chunk Trailer: Zoom Super Chunk Jr.
Without a doubt, my favorite chunk bait is the Zoom Super Chunk Jr. I have probably caught thousands of bass over the years on a jig and Super Chunk Jr combo.
Now to be honest, I think you can use whatever bait you like, but this is definitely the one I recommend.
The Zoom Super Chunk Jr has been around for decades and is still a nationwide producer year after year.
And with a bunch of awesome colors, you can perfectly pair up the Super Chunk Jr with any jig color you like using.
How to Retrieve Jigs in the Winter
Slow is the name of the game. Whether you are using a finesse or football jig, you need to retrieve them very slowly.
Bass aren’t going to chase bait on the bottom. You need to make the meal as easy as possible for them.
On top of that, bass aren’t the only thing that slow down in cold water.
The bait such as shad, crawfish, bluegill, eels, and everything else slow down drastically.
This means that bass are on the hunt for slow, subtle moving bait.
Reeling this In
Successfully targeting winter bass with a jig relies heavily on understanding how cold water impacts their behavior and their forage.
By opting for “dead action” trailers like classic chunks, particularly the Zoom Super Chunk Jr., anglers can effectively mimic the sluggish movements of wintertime bait, presenting a smaller, more appealing meal to less active bass.
Remember, a slow and deliberate retrieve is paramount, as bass are conserving energy and won’t chase fast-moving baits.
Embrace these adjustments to your jig presentations, and you’ll find success in catching bass even when the water temperatures plummet.
