winter fishing

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When you’re fishing for bass flipping mats and punching heavy cover the results are usually epic! Not many bites during this fishing trip on Lake Kissimmee but we caught a trophy fish in heavy cover using one of my favorite fishing techniques. Punching mats is a great way to fish for bass this time of year throughout Florida with fish moving in to spawn throughout the winter and getting stuck due to cold fronts or even using heavy cover such as hydrilla and hyacinth as stopping points before heading to the bed. My standard setup is a 1.5oz tungsten weight, a straight shank hook, and a compact creature bait. Terminal tackle is 65lbs braided line, a high speed decent quality reel, and fishing rod usually longer than 7’6″. Below are all the specifics on the fishing gear and cameras used in the video.

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Reel Shimano Curado http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Shimano_Reels_Casting/catpage-RLCSHIMANO.html?from=mkfish

Reins Tungsten http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Reins_TG_Tungsten_Slip_Sinker_Heavy_Weight/descpage-RTGSS.html?from=mkfish

Gambler Crawdaddy http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Gambler_Crawdaddy_4_10pk/descpage-GBCD.html?from=mkfish

Dobyns Champion Extreme MH 795 http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Dobyns_Champion_Extreme_HP_Full_Handle_Casting_Rods/descpage-DCX.html?from=mkfish

Hack Attack Flipping Hook http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Strike_King_Hack_Attack_Heavy_Cover_Flipping_Hooks_4pk/descpage-SKHAFH.html?from=mkfish

Gambler Culling Scale http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Gambler_Digital_Culling_Scale/descpage-GDCS.html?from=mkfish

Power Pro Slick 65lbs Braid http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Power_Pro_Super_8_Slick_Braided_Line_Timber_Brown/descpage-PSBT.html?from=mkfish

6th Sense Peg X Stoppers http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/6th_Sense_Peg_X_Stoppers_9pk/descpage-6SPEG.html?from=mkfish

My Costas http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Costa_Del_Mar_Blackfin_Sunglasses/descpage-CDMBF.html?from=mkfish

All the camera stuff, the drone, everything you need to shoot vids! https://www.amazon.com/shop/mikeybalzzfishing?ref=ac_inf_hm_vp

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Winter fishing for bass in the most epic cold front of the year means insane fish activity and even catching a personal best bass over 10lbs on a crank bait. I’m not saying it’s fun fishing on days like this but pre-frontal conditions, strong winds, usually rain, and overcast skies have been the ideal times to target trophy fish this year. The west wind, a normal signal of a front passing through in Florida, sets up perfect on some offshore structure I’ve found and that current supplied by the strong winds lines the fish bass up in an eating mood! For the most part the most successful fishing techniques all related to power fishing – and mainly grinding a crankbait on the bottom in 15-24ft of water. We did catch a few fish dragging a Wrecking Ball and Carolina Rig but fish seemed to want the bait moving fast and digging into the bottom.

Weather: winds WSW 15-25mph (we took water over the bow of the boat many times), overcast with occasional heavy rains – note temps were in the low 60’s-70’s, the next day saw lows in the upper 30’s – i.e. it was a massive cold front!

Make sure to LIKE & SUBSCRIBE – SUPPORT #REALFISHING

Inststagram: https://www.instagram.com/mikeybalzz/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mikeybalzzfishing
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mikeybalzz
Website: https://mikeybalzzfishing.com/

Want to know what fishing lures, terminal tackle, and fishing/camera equipment are being used in the vids? Check it out all below:

Strike King 10xd http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Strike_King_10XD_Crankbait/descpage-SK10XD.html?from=mkfish

Mustad Triple Grips (Change your hooks!!!!!) http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Mustad_KVD_1x_Strong_2x_Short_Triple_Grip_Treble_Hook/descpage-MKVDEST.html?from=mkfish

Sunline FC Sniper http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Sunline_Super_FC_Sniper_Fluorocarbon/descpage-SLFCS.html?from=mkfish

You need this graph – Lowrance HDS 12 Carbon:http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Lowrance_HDS-12_Carbon_Fishfinder_Chartplotters/descpage-CAR2X.html?from=mkfish

My Costas http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Costa_Del_Mar_Blackfin_Sunglasses/descpage-CDMBF.html?from=mkfish

All the camera stuff, the drone, everything you need to shoot vids! https://www.amazon.com/shop/mikeybalzzfishing?ref=ac_inf_hm_vp

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Had an absolutely killer day fishing a hair jig on a super cold day in Florida. Caught around 25lbs of bass targeting suspended pre spawn fish in deeper water. Used a very light or soft rod – a 7ft crankbait rod paired up with 12lbs flourocarbon and and a Shimano 6:3:1 speed reel. The key was to reel the bait upward while slightly moving the rod tip in a flicking motion. Then let the jig pendulum back to the bottom without feeding it line. Here’s all the stuff I was using:

JTK Hair Jig 5/8oz http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Gambler_Hair_Jig/descpage-GHJG.html?from=mkfish

12lbs Red Label Flourocarbon (super good deal)
http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Seaguar_Red_Label_Fluorocarbon_Line/descpage-SRLF.html?from=mkfish

Powell Max 3D Crankbait Casting Rod 7′ MH Composite
http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/Powell_Max_3D_Crankbait_Casting_Rods/descpage-3DCC.html?from=mkfish

Hero Session 5 http://www.tacklewarehouse.com/GoPro_HERO5_Session_Camera/descpage-GPHS5.html?from=mkfish

Shoulder mount: http://amzn.to/2mabFzn

Suction cup mount: http://amzn.to/2lvM7Jl