The winter months can be a difficult time to catch bass. The bass are not as hungry or aggressive and they tend to be more finicky.
Not only do you need to use the right lures for winter bass, but you also need to select the right lure colors in order maximize your success with these finicky cold water bass.
There are a few color concepts and rules of thumb when it comes to winter bass fishing colors.
When the water gets cold, a couple of things happen. Fish of all species move out to deeper water and begin eating less food.
The combination of the fish in deeper, darker water and them eating less food leads to a color change.
All fish will lose some color and become more dull or pale in color. Because of this, you want to use more dull or pale colors.
You don’t want to be throwing very bright or flashy colors.
When bass are finicky and not as willing to eat, you really need to be using as realistic colors as possible.
And since all the baitfish and creatures of prey become more dull in color, match you lure colors to these.
Also Read: What Do Bass Eat in the Winter?
When using hard-body lures in the winter, I keep my colors super simple.
For my crankbaits, I either use light brown-red crawfish patterns or pale grey-yellow colors.
When bass are out in deep winter waters, they feed on tons of crawfish.
Red-brown colors are always go-to patterns in cold water. And since the crawfish are losing their color in the winter time, select duller brown and red crawfish patterns.
The real blood red crawfish colors are great for the late winter early spring transition and pre-spawn.
Shad and bluegill are the primary baitfish forage of bass. And in the winter, they actually look very similar.
The shad lose some of the flashiness and go from a silver color to a grey color.
And bluegill lose the bright blue and orange colors and become more of a pale grey or white color.
I almost exclusively use translucent colors for my winter jerkbaits.
Winter jerkbaits are fished very slowly and bass can get a very good look at them.
Translucent colors are much more subtle and nonthreatening. Winter waters are typically clearer, and translucent jerkbaits catch bass like nobody’s business.
If I couldn’t use a translucent color, I would use a grey or shad color pattern.
I love jerkbaits with a black or dark blue back on them. This is pretty standard on most lure patterns.
I keep my winter soft plastics very simple as well. I pretty much stick to three color schemes. These are black, green pumpkin, and grey.
Black is the absence of color. Black is obviously very dark and contrasts very well in water of all clarities.
But at the same time, it is not bright and invasive. Black is very visible to bass without being off putting or spooking to the bass.
Also Read: When to Use Black and Blue Lures
Green pumpkin is probably the more universal and consistent color pattern.
Green pumpkin mimics everything and nothing. It could be a bluegill, a crawfish, a bug, a larva, a baby bass, or whatever other prey might be in the water.
I love adding a bit of red flake during the winter time as it seem to get a few more bites.
I only really use the grey pattern for my shad imitation soft plastics.
If I am fishing a soft plastic swimbait or fluke in the winter, I am going to rig up a grey one.
The grey color resembles shad and pale bluegill that are out in colder water. These work especially well on a drop shot rig.
I can’t really tell you why pink works in the winter, but it is one of my favorite colors, especially for smallmouth bass. I goes against all the color rules for winter fishing.
Pink is bright and very unnatural. Maybe bass have different eyes than us and see pink as a pale red or something like that.
But simply put, pink soft plastics catch winter bass.
When I say skirted lures in the winter time, I am mostly talking about jigs.
But I will occasionally use spinnerbaits or chatterbaits, especially if I am winter pond or bank fishing. My favorite colors are black-blue and brown.
I am sure you have heard of the black-blue color combination. It is super popular for skirted baits and soft plastics.
Black-blue seems to work best in the cold winter water as well as the hot summer water.
l am not sure why black-blue works so well, but it is my number 1 color choice for winter skirted baits.
Brown skirted lures are a terrific crawfish imitation. Hopping a brown jig on the bottom looks exactly like a crawfish darting around.
Bass hone in on crawfish during the cold winter months, and if I find a deep pocket, submerged structure, or rocks, I will pick it apart with a jig.
There are two main takeaways for winter colors for bass fishing. First, use more realistic colors.
Don’t use bright or vibrant colors in an effort to get the bass’s attention. Finicky winter bass don’t respond to those colors.
Secondly, use pale or dull colors. All the baitfish, crawfish, and other prey lose a lot of their color in the winter months.
To match the hatch, use lures with more bland, beige colors.
Also Read: Warm Winter Day Bass Fishing
The winter season scares off a lot of anglers. The cold water makes it harder to catch bass, and many anglers simply give up and wait until the spring bite comes around.
But as long as you know the right lures, lure colors, and fishing techniques to use, winter bass fishing can be a great time to be on the water.
Bass never completely stop biting, so you should never completely stop fishing for them. Good luck!
Also Read: Best Lure Colors for Cloudy Days
