Capt. Steve Barnes has put away his cast nets and is spending the winter months chasing striped bass with artificial lures.
“The colder temperatures with chances of rain — or even snow — turn the fish on,” he said. “In winter, I have more confidence with artificial lures over live bait.”
Barnes dead-sticks a soft plastic fluke-type lure on a 1-ounce jig head, holding it still and allowing the slow drift of the boat to move the lure.
Anglers on Lake Texoma and Possum Kingdom are bringing in striped bass by dead-sticking plastics and casting swimbaits. Photos from Capt. Steve Barnes.
“Lures in white, silver and chartreuse work best for me,” he said. “I think the fish see contrast in color better than baits that are one color, so if I have a chartreuse jig head I use a white or light-colored fluke and if I have a white jig head, I use a chartreuse fluke.”
Barnes occasionally finds birds working, and otherwise drifts areas where fish have been feeding — getting their attention by splashing the water or beating on the side of the boat.
“When that doesn’t work, we’ll cast swimbaits on the rocky shorelines until we find active fish,” he said. “We’re bringing in a lot of good box fish and some over 20 inches. The big fish are on the move. I’m breaking out the winter gear and going fishing even on days with no customers.”
At Possum Kingdom Lake, Guide Randy Wood said dead-sticking is working for stripers, with some good blue catfish mixed in.
“The birds are working, and there are plenty of fish but they are moving fast,” he said. “The fish chased the bait up shallow several times; we switch to swimbaits when that happens.”
