The winter months are tough on smallmouth bass. These fish are not common through the ice and most of the better smallmouth bass lakes are in the northern part of the country. There are some lakes that are located in the southern part of the country that do offer some very good smallmouth bass fishing in the winter, but the fishing pattern is the same as the fall pattern up north. Smallmouth bass can be found along quick drop-offs, points, deep water humps and at times just suspended in open water. With temperatures in the 50s and low 60s, the fishing can be very good. Once water temperatures drop into the 40s, the fishing becomes very difficult and most bass anglers will not be fishing for smallmouth bass anymore. There are still some catchable fish, but you need to really downsize your baits and have some patience fishing the deeper water.
