5 Best Baits for January Bass Fishing—What Actually Works

January feels like winter, but it’s really the start of prespawn — and the biggest bass are often the first ones sliding shallow. While a lot of anglers stay out deep chasing numbers on the same pressured fish, this episode is about getting ahead of the curve: fishing shallow on stable or warming trends for fewer bites, but bigger bites. You’ll hear the exact 5-bait rotation I lean on in January for shallow prespawners, plus when I abandon the bank game and switch to two deep “cold-front” backup baits when a brutal snap shuts the moving bite down. We also clear up a major misconception: water temp by itself doesn’t matter nearly as much as the trend — whether the lake is warming or cooling — and how that changes where bass position on flats vs. the first drop. What you’ll learn: • Why January is prespawn in a lot of the country — and why big bass move first • The shallow “big bite” mindset: fewer bites, better fish • How warming trends spread fish out vs. cold fronts stacking them up • Where to fish in the backs of creeks: flats, ditches, and the first drop nearby • Spinnerbait rules for winter prespawn (single Colorado vs. double willow and when) • Jig adjustments for cold fronts: weight, bottom-contact retrieve, and soaking key spots • When a squarebill or lipless becomes the only bait they’ll touch • When to bail out and go deep: the two backup baits for the nastiest cold snaps Watch the episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/A5xiNhTwotQ Follow Catch More Bass — new episodes every Monday at 2 PM CT. YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLLJHIrTVplvfzK7I8FEog0BXmrt83Yc3T  Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/catch-more-bass/id1842586566 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2QGQyLEtWoErDF6vD7igy3 Follow Tom: IG @TomRedingtonFishing