Cold front pushes Seminole bass to river channel grass edges

What anglers are reporting The last solid report was mid-October, when cooling water had bass schooling and chasing shad on topwater. Since then, we have had a steady stretch of warm weather, but a significant cool down is arriving this week.

This week's outlook Expect the fall transition to accelerate as nighttime temperatures drop into the 40s. Cooling water will push threadfin and gizzard shad tighter into the Chattahoochee and Flint river channels, as well as the clearer water of Spring Creek. Bass will follow, setting up on the deeper edges of hydrilla and eelgrass points to ambush bait. The topwater bite should hold up early in the day, but subsurface moving baits will become the primary tool as the water cools.

Where to start Look for grass points and hydrilla edges near the main river channels or at the mouths of spring runs in Spring Creek. Focus on areas where you see bait flickering on the surface. Work the outside edges of the grass with moving baits, and punch into the thicker hydrilla mats if the sun gets high and the bite slows down.

Bait box

• Walking topwater baits for early morning schooling fish
• White or chartreuse spinnerbaits for working eelgrass and pad edges
• Swim jigs in shad patterns to swim over submerged hydrilla
• Heavy punch rigs with craw plastics for penetrating thick grass mats
• Lipless crankbaits to rip through the edges of the grass

This weekend A strong cold front pushes through on Friday, dropping daytime highs into the low 60s with northwest winds. Thursday offers a strong pre-front feeding window. By Saturday and Sunday, expect post-front bluebird conditions. Bass will pull tight to cover and bury in the hydrilla. Slow down, switch to punching mats, and focus on the steepest channel swings where fish can adjust their depth without moving far.