Why You Should Be Fishing Grubs

Grubs are a great bass lure to fish yearlong, and they work exceptionally well when fished in the dead of winter. However, these lures are an eye-contact bait, and anglers should fish them primarily in a clear-water environment.

When bass become lethargic during the winter months, anglers fishing with grubs will have the opportunity to control the rate of fall by adjusting the size of line, grub or jighead. The 1/8- and 1/4-ounce size jigheads are most popular. Standard 6- and 8-pound test monofilament line is considered best. There are times when I'll fish with heavier line to control the rate of fall. A fishing line in the 8- to 12-pound range, for example, creates more friction with the water, thus the grub's fall rate is much slower.

When it comes to picking the right size grub, I often opt to fish with the larger 5-inch version. Not only do these bigger baits provide a larger target and are more buoyant, but I personally believe they'll catch bigger fish.

Fishing with a quality jighead is important. I use a casting model with a weedguard or an open-hook style. If the cover will permit, I'll use an open hook. If I'm fishing near brushpiles or tree tops, I'll use a weedless head to prevent hang ups.

When I fish a 5-inch grub, I often use a slightly bigger jighead. Although fishing with the lightest jighead is best, there are times when you're fishing too deep to use a small jighead. I've found fish holding in 30 to 55 feet of water during the winter months, and it takes a 1/8-ounce jighead too long to reach fish at those depths.

A jighead with a wide-gap hook is needed for solid hook-ups. If the jighead you're using doesn't have a wide gap, you won't be able to thread the larger grub on as far.

Bass naturally move deeper when water temperatures cool during the winter months. Some of my best catches have come off creek channels in 25 to 40 feet of water. If I had to pick a magic depth to fish in winter, it would have to be this range.

Randomly casting to the bank takes time and loads of casts to locate fish. But using a depthfinder will quickly pinpoint areas holding bass and will rapidly eliminate fishless areas. Who wouldn't want to catch 10 fish on 10 casts than instead of blistering the bank with a thousand casts in an area with no fish? Instead of casting blindly at the bank in search of a bite, motor toward the back end of a major creek and use your sonar unit.

Once you locate the gut of the creek channel, zigzag back and forth, gradually making your way out to the main body of water. As you closely monitor your sonar unit, you will likely find areas harboring several catchable bass.

A vertical presentation is a very productive way to fish a grub. I've also done extremely well with a "bump-and-wind" approach. I'll cast the grub out and let it fall to the bottom. After it has settled, I pull the rod tip up about 6 to 8 inches, moving the grub a short distance in a swimming fashion. Then, I let it fall back down. I repeat this step about three times, but on the third pull, I crank the reel twice. This emulates a baitfish trying to swim off. Bass normally will strike the grub once it begins to fall to the bottom.

If I locate a sizable cluster of bass holding in the 25- to 40-foot range, I often fish a grub vertically from directly above the fish. Simply drop the grub to the bottom and move it up and down several inches. Holding the grub still on the bottom is also good, but the raise-and-drop presentation is tough to beat.

I prefer to tie my knots directly to the jighead's hook-eye, but I sometimes use a loop knot. If you swim the grub over a creek-channel drop or near brush, for example, tying direct is always best. But if you vertically fish the grub, a loop knot will provide added action I've found to be very helpful.

I think you'll find a few of these tips for fishing grubs helpful and a sure bet to catch several more fish the next time you're on the water.