Pre-Spawn
The “Pre Spawn” period begins when the surface water temperatures reach about 50 degrees and goes until the bass start spawning.
This is one of the best times to catch large numbers of bass and big bass as they become active and feed heavily in preparation for the spawning period.
Crawling jigs along the bottom is still one of the best way to catch bass while the water is in the low 50’s. But somewhere around 53-55 degrees the bass will start chasing baits and at that time I like to use reaction baits (spinnerbaits, chatter baits and rattling lipless crankbaits (traps)).
To find this transition use a “swimming jig” for jig fishing and when you find bass chasing the jig as you retrieve it to make the next cast you’ll know it’s time to start throwing the reaction baits.
Another class of baits that works well through this transition are jerk baits. Both hard (husky jerks, X-raps, etc) and soft plastic jerk baits (flukes, sluggos, etc.) can be worked very slowly in the colder water and worked more aggressively as the water warms.
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