Once fall turnover is past, water temperatures hover around 50F. During the days after turnover, warm afternoons can encourage bass to bite aggressively on normal-size baits, or even outsize spinnerbaits and jig-and-pig combos.

Once night-time frosts have further chilled the waters, withering lily pads, cane, and other shallow vegetation, the presentation picture changes. Now, bitty baits usually are the best lures to throw, even for the biggest bass in the lake.

Following the midfall feeding spree, bass activity levels wind down, and on cold, blustery days, it can be hard to entice even a few bites. But bass do continue to feed when the opportunity arises. They usually won't chase lures but gladly slurp small offerings that look easy to catch.

In clear waters, you can watch late-fall bass with an underwater camera, and spot them lurking around the greenest and thickest clumps of vegetation remaining, often milfoil or coontail. Thick stalks of green cabbage are a real magnet at this time, if you can find it. The bass' preference for small baits extends to waters without weeds, too.

In reservoirs, working creek channels with small baits often is the key to great winter catches. And these mini-baits are an overlooked option throughout much of the country, where anglers consider a 3/8-ounce jig with a #11 Uncle Josh chunk a small bait.

LURE SELECTION

Because of the reduced activity level of the fish, vertical baits that fall with a slow natural motion and look realistic when sitting on the bottom work best. That means jigs and soft plastics. The jig is the simplest of baits, which may be why it works so well in fall. Well, jigs work well anytime, but in fall they often are the best thing to throw.

Jig Choices: Select a downsized weedless bass jig or one of the new finesse-style jigs like the Terminator Tiny-T, Eakins Jig from Jewel Bait Company, Strike King Bitsy Bug, or the Falcon Finesse Jig. These baits come with a cut collar, which imitates a small crawfish or other invertebrate and also helps to make the bait fall slowly in a horizontal plane. Tip 'em with a 3-inch Berkley Power Craw, Eakins Craw, or small pork rind. If you don't use pork all summer, now is the time to stock several jars in your boat. The supple action of the skin can't be beat.

Hair jigs of fox hair or bucktail are another great fall addition to your tacklebox. The subtle motion of the hair and its natural buoyancy make it a high-percentage call when the water temperature dips below 50F.

Because the jig is compact, it gives you the best possible sense of feel of what the lure is doing, or what a bass is doing to it. Constantly weigh the lure as you tug or lightly lift it off the bottom, or ease it through a weed clump. If it's too heavy or too light, you have a fish on.