Winter brings some of its harshest weather it seems in January to Western Kentucky and that alone can make a January fishing tough. But there are still some good bites we find every January when the weather cooperates at the beginning of the year.
With water temps often at their coldest levels of the whole year, fishing strategies become very one dimensional which usually means fishing in and near deep water and fishing very slowly. Fish will still move to eat. But keep in mind they will not move very far or very fast. Because of this, your strike zone becomes a lot smaller. That’s why fishing slowly and closer to vertical is more important in these frigid waters.
Best Bite in January - Bluegills
If you are looking for some steady action and to put some fish on the table for your family, you are hard pressed to beat January bluegill fishing on the lakes. This is largely due to the fact that they group up in their biggest schools in the winter and will generally winter on deep flats just off the main river and in the mouths of larger bays. They are looking for deep flats, out of the current but in the deeper waters sheltered from the colder weather near the surface.
Your presentations can be very simple. Just grab your favorite light action spinning rod and some 4 pound line and then tie on a drop shot rig with a small No. 6 hook tied on with a 4-12 inch dropper tag end and 1/8 to 1/4-ounce bell sinker a few inches below the hook. Thread on a red worm and go to work.
Two small bluegill jigs tied to the end of the line can be dynamite catchers. The Trout Magnet or Panfish Magnet plastics on a small jighead can be the ticket for big gills in the winter. If you want to get it deeper quicker, just pinch on a piece of split shot or two and you will be in fast and furious action.
The biggest thing is to spend your time looking for fish along the bottom in deep water. It might take you a little while of idling and looking at your electronics to find fish hunkering near the bottom but when you do, you will find gills. And you are likely to get bonus red ear, catfish and smallmouth bass fishing like this.
Here is a great video shot in January of some great bluegill fishing deep on Kentucky Lake.
The Other Good Bites in January
Crappie fishing can be good fishing vertically or making short pitches to fish on deep brush. Look for creek channel edges and sides of humps in the mouths of bays or just outside the bays on the main river out of the current. If we happen to get warm rains, don’t be afraid to move towards shallower mid depth brush on high spots off the creek channels.
Bass fishing can be good in January focusing on channel swings, deep ledges and around deep brush as well as around rip rap with lures like Alabama rigged swimbaits, single lead head swimbaits, jerkbaits and blade baits. And don’t over look a big football jig with a chunk trailer for deep bass on rocky stump laden bottoms.
White bass fishing can be very good in January as they are a little more active in colder waters than their black bass counterparts. A blade bait, jigging spoon and hair jigs can catch a boat load of nice white and yellow bass if you find them relating to a creek channel ledge just out of the current.
It is also very common to find big schools of catfish deep in the winter. These schools can be as deep as 45 feet but you can also find them as shallow as 20 feet deep in the winter. Look for deep flats and ledges off of the main river on the LBL side. Cut bait works but you can also catch some on artificial lures like jigging raps, jigging spoons, blade baits and jigs.
January fishing can be tough because of volatile weather and snow storms. But on the calmer days, don’t be afraid to bundle up and look for groups of fish deep but grouped up in large numbers off the main river and out of the current.
