ENJOYING THE OUTDOORS: WARMER WATER MEANS HOTTER FISHING ACTION

In this flipflop time of year it's winter one day, spring the next, and the day after that -- who knows? It's also the time and circumstances under which the year's bass fishing begins.

Not that the bass aren't there and won't feed all winter. They are and they well. Cold Water, however, makes them captives of their own metabolism, and their feeding frequency only increases to a level to be enjoyed by fishermen when the water warms somewhat -- conditions typically seen in March.

Water temperatures in the range of 46 to 50 degrees represent the threshold of bass fishing. If it's cooler than that, fish are extremely sluggish and prone to little activity. Above that range they can stir pretty well.

Within that bracket, it just begins to happen, and each degree of added temperature is a major plus for the fisherman's hopes of getting his offerings gnawed.

Fishing in these entry-level temperatures, there is a tendency to think deep, the place to which bass are supposed to retreat in the cold. To the contrary, warmer weather brings the temperatures up first in the upper strata of water, especially in the shallows.

Bass are most active in the warmest water now, so consequently some of the best places to fish in March are relative shallows rather close to deeper water from which fish may have recently moved.

Mark it down: Early on, there are more bass in deep water, but they're stuporous and grumpy. The bass that have more life in them and those that are most catchable are those that saunter shallow on a day when the air temperature is warmer than that of the water and, thus, the water there is warming. That's the target zone.

Some places are going to improve quicker than others. The banks, points and coves on the northern side of a body of water warm a bit quicker than others because they get more exposure to the sun as it slips across the southern side of the sky. Such a spot might be good only for a degree or two more temperature, but that little increase could be enough to push the on/off switch of a bass to the positive sign.

Locations where there are rocks and gravel seem to warm a little quicker than mud-bottomed shorelines. Find a spot along a north-side shore where there are rocky shallows close to deep water and you have one of the first places where bass may be up and cooking.

March bass fishing is difficult for the hyperactive angler because the three preferred speeds of presentation are slow, slower and slowest. Plodding lures will be received much more eagerly than something that zips along.

Bass aren't agreeable to running foot races now. Save that for later when the water temperatures are in the 60s and the fish have their RPMs up to full tilt.

A variety of lures will produce on cold, shallow bass, but there are a handful that seem most reliable.

Early season bass tend to be less oriented to structures and cover than they will be later. Now, they're more likely to suspend off the bottom. They hold at seemingly random spots, hanging there to soak up what little warmth they can find. With that the case, it helps to fish a lure that will sample a good deal of water.

Shallow- and medium-running crankbaits used with slow or start/stop retrieves can be as good as anything. Plugs in crawfish, red and baitfish colors all seem to work pretty well.

Skinny, shallow-running minnow plugs -- those called jerkbaits -- are effective on chilly, suspended bass. These plugs, particularly those that are weighted to suspend and neither float upward or sink when halted, are productive with a retrieve that alternates twitches and stops. The colder the water, the longer the pauses should be.

Spinnerbaits are another way to go, especially when they can be slow-rolled through the haunts of sunning bass. Smaller spinnerbaits may be more effective on bass that are just beginning to feed.

One quirk to enable a spinnerbait to be fished more slowly is to replace the stock spinner blade with one of a larger size. The greater surface area of the larger blade will help hold the lure up in the water column with a slower-than-normal retrieve.

A jig tipped with pork trailer is a storied producer of cold water base. Although it typically isn't fished in a manner that samples as much water as crankbait or spinnerbait, a jig and pork slowly hopped or wafted down rocky banks is prone to get chewed on now and then by March bass. Light jibs, those of 1/8 or 1/4 ounce, may be preferred to reduce the drop speed to appeal to chilly early fish in the shallows.

March bass fishing looks particularly good to many bass anglers because it's the first that's been available for months, and even a bad day usually beats a good day working. There is added incentive, however, in that some of the first bass to move shallow at this time of year are the whoppers of the species. Some fish caught early are among the largest of the year.

This time of year brings plenty of days not fit to be on the water, at least to the extent that the misery factor outweighs the pleasures.

When conditions are tolerable, however, the March fisherman who seeks out the warmest shallow water and strokes it gently with casts stands a good chance to hook into something that reminds him what he's been missing through the cold, bleak months of winter.

~Steve Vantreese is outdoors editor of The Paducah Sun