Im new to the sport and i really dont want to stop fishing even in these winter months. I mostly do trout fishing but i also love bass. what can you tell me about the techniques and flies to use in the winter on these bass?

unless you are fishing a warm water (ie; power plant) lake the basic technique is wait till till spring

bentback streamers, clousers, bucktail jigs, spinsters, fished slow with a sinktip line like the teeny long sink tips-p-

Not in ALL lakes, but in many of them, you can find temperate bass (whites, hybrids, and stripers) in shallow water up in the creeks/rivers near where the lake becomes the creek/river. You'll also find Crappie in similar locations. These fish are very susceptible to fly anglers who walk in or fish from extremely shallow draft watercraft like canoes and kayaks. Then you've got the power plant lakes where water temps stay relatively warm yearround.

Temperate bass are very photo-sensitive. They will feed more actively on cloudy days, foggy days, rainy days, and for the first and last hours of daylight on sunnier days. Crappie are not as photo-sensitive. You will need a sink tip or sinking fly line to get down to these fish quite often this time of year, as they will often be suspended at 3-10 feet in 5-15 feet of water. You can fish over the top of them all day long and not get a bite. You have to get down to the fish.

If you want to chase largemouth bass in the winter you don't need to think deep deep deep. If you need some credentials see signature line minus the middle smallmouth lol. This will all depend on where you are fishing. In a small pond bass will be found throughout the water column. If you are fishing a larger reservoir they will be keying in on very small pieces of real estate that can be identified and fished with a flyrod. If I can find patches of dying And Decaying grass and vegetation in Shallowater I will be fishing there. The decomposition of the grass will raise the water temperature creating an active Environment for the fish. I have caught bass in the dead of winter around dying grass that you could not move the bait too fast. Look at the color of the bottom around where you're fishing and look for the darkest of bottom possible. Black warms up faster whether it be rock Blacksand or Darkwood. The slightest in temperature change can greatly affect a basses response to a well presented lure. I am also looking for a very Buoyant baits with lots of motion. When Bass won't take the reaction Bite of a fast moving presentation. Try moving too slow slower then slower because they do not want to move to far for food and try to upsize your bait making it worth their while. If you hit the right spot at the right time in the dead of winter it can be one of the best days of bass fishing of your life.

back in the 60's when lake Milwood(Arkansas) was hot we would catch bass in the dead of winter, freezing cold weather, on little George tailspins cranked fast across dying moss
and fallen timber. Robert is right on by saying not all bass go deep in winter.If you find a spot that has bass, they'll stack up and you have a good chance to catch a bunch. I was baitcasting then but since have saw the error of my ways!!!!-p-

thank you guys so much for the input! are there any well known power plant lakes in the dallas area?

Yes Monticello ,welch ,Fairfield Fairfield had a real bad fish kill and guy will tell you there are no fish but they are very wrong and the remaining fish not only grow really really fast more of there young survive and the population is doing well there and you have ashot at a lot of very quality fish that pull as hard as a bass at falcon or in a river. It is past Corsicana down 45 the other two are east of Dallas. There is also squaw creek but only open fri-sun and need reservations. Remember these lakes fish are already pushing up to spawn some probably already have.

Right now there are LOTS of shad up in the creeks around rocks and other structure. You can throw medium sized top waters early in the morning or late in the evening and hammer the big ole bass this time of year.

An influx of warmer fresh rainwater can also trigger action in those same creeks and where they drain into lakes.

KG's T&A bunker is a sweet fly with alot of action and can be fished deadly slow

In cold water lakes you can often find good quality bass on shallow cover on a sunny day during a warming trend, especially on northwest banks in the afternoon. I've zinged a lot of 4-6 pond bass on jigs in two feet of water off stumps and logs in the dead of winter. Darker bottoms warm the quickest, and small (as little as 1/10 of a degree) differences in temperatute can have a significant effect on a bass' metabolism. Throw some rabbit strip zonkers and work them subtly around shallow cover; you'll catch some bass.