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What are some other patterns to try in changing spring weather?

Question:
Question is now its spring time here in MO right now you sure can’t tell it, the way the weather has been changing just last week we had rain ice, and snow this did mess up the patterns. Soon the Bass will start moving up to the spawning beds. I had always started fishing along riffraff’s around the dam area. I usually use suspending jerk bait cranking it and pausing it, letting it rest and repeating it trying to trigger strikes. Sometimes I will use a shaky head jig with a worm or a soft salt craw if the lake water is still murky. If the water is clear I will use a finesse jig or a slow roll spinning bait. If I’m not getting any strikes due to coping with spring weather changes, and the water temp hits around 35 to 45 degrees with the wind direction coming from north and south with decreased cloud cover. What other patterns can I try?

-Tony

Answer:
Weather changes are often fast and furious in the spring but with those violent changes comes tremendous fishing. For water temps in the 35-45 range, I rely heavily on a suspended jerkbait with the standard pauses in between twitches, a grub attached to a jig-head and a dropshot with a small bait mimicking a baitfish.

Currently you should be experiencing water temps in the high 40's to mid 50's and the bass have one thing on their mind... getting ready for the spawn. With that being the case and the fact that they are cold blooded (simply meaning their metabolism is directly impacted by their environment) bass can be found grouped up in staging areas awaiting the spawn. As a result, the jerkbait and spinnerbait are certainly effective but I will also rely on a jig and wigglewart since the crawfish are becoming more active.

One other consideration is a carolina rig. Finicky bass can often be coaxed into biting by throwing a finesse style rig tipped with a french fry. When the weather and pressure change bass seek out comfort causing them to move up and down in the water column. By throwing a small carolina rig on rocky secondary points it can often produce results not realized by other methods. Just remember though, that fluorocarbon sinks so monofilament is often the best choice for your leader.

Best of luck!

Aaron Martin