John Flores: Outdoors, winter is time to take your time

Wilford Brimley’s character, Joe Gill, in the made for television western "Crossfire Trail," tells the younger J.T. Langston, who is working on a horse’s hoof, “Better slow down there, young fella. If you take your time, you get a more harmonious outcome.”
Nothing could be truer when it comes to both fishing and hunting during the month of December. The later it gets in the fall, on into the winter months, things simply start to slow down. Therefore, some of the tactics you use should include slowing down too.
Take rabbit hunting, for instance. Rarely is there ever a frost south of I-10 in October and quite often on into December. As a matter of fact, kind of like this year — so far.
Nonetheless, the days are getting shorter, the leaves are falling in bunches, and the cooler weather has changed the woods and marshes to the point that rabbits often don’t flush until you practically step on them. If you walk and tromp through the grass and briars too fast, the outcome won’t be so harmonious.
One of the tricks to successful rabbit hunting is to find a spot where there is ample fresh signs in the form of droppings and walk the cover thoroughly and slowly. Starting and stopping regularly often will unnerve a rabbit, causing it to burst from cover. And, if it didn’t work the first time, then walk the cover again. Sometimes making a second pass puts a rabbit in the pot.
Don’t be in such a hurry to get to the deer stand during the winter months on those frosty mornings either. I remember years ago my boat breaking down at the landing. It was cold that morning and I could see my breath every time I exhaled. Moreover, it was well after sunrise before I finally got the engine started.
About that time, an old friend, Boogie LaCoste, showed up. Boogie had a deep voice that sort of resonated when he spoke.
Boogie said, “What’s wrong with your boat, Podna?”
I told him I couldn’t get it running that morning, but all was good now — I finally got it cranked. Then I mentioned, “You’re running late to be deer hunting this morning, aren’t you?”
Boogie, with a big grin on his face, replied, “Nawh. It was too cold to get out of bed this morning, I stayed close to momma and kept warm. Besides, those deer are gonna move late today. They don’t like this cold either.”
He was right, of course. Deer are all about energy and when it’s cold they burn calories trying to keep warm. It’s not uncommon to see deer feeding throughout the day when a cold snap occurs.
We both went our separate ways, me to run my boat to make sure everything was OK and Boogie to his deer stand.
About an hour later we both pulled up to the boat ramp at the same time. Across the deck of Boogie’s boat was a big spike buck.
That’s when Boogie, clearly happy with himself, says to me, “I sat in the stand 20 minutes and this old boy came out and I shot him. See, it don’t pay to be in a hurry when it’s cold.”
Another harmonious outcome for sure.
I know quite a few bass anglers who just can’t stay at home with their boat sitting in the driveway. These guys pretty much fish all year-round, even on the coldest days. And, if you don’t know much about bass fishing, they can be tough to catch when the weather is cold.
One of the tactics I’ve seen used for catching bass during the cold winter months is punching grass. Several years ago I went fishing during the winter with a local tournament angler named Luke Fears. Luke was a master at punching grass for bass and was going to demonstrate the technique to me.
Luke and I left the Amelia boat landing in his bass boat and I have to admit, I hated the boat ride to where we were going in the oil field canals on the east side of Lake Palourde. That morning it was 39 degrees outside and the wind chill as we sped along at 60-plus miles per hour must have been in the low teens. It was absolutely miserable!
Like Brimley, I should have said, “Better slow down there young fella,” but I didn’t. I don’t know why Luke was in such a hurry. We weren’t fishing a bass tournament. No one was at the boat landing, and no one was apparently fishing except us two fools.
When we got to the canal, where Luke wanted to be, there were several large floating grass mats. Luke had a few of his rods on the deck ready to go and while I was sitting there shivering, he wasted no time flipping a one-ounce jig with a blue and silver flaked Berkley plastic tube bait onto the mat.
The jig was so heavy it “punched” through the mat and sunk about three feet to the bottom of the canal. Luke let it set for a minute and slowly started to jig it up and down. When nothing happened, he flipped the jig onto the mat again several feet away from his first toss and methodically repeated the whole process.
This time a bass grabbed the jig and Luke immediately set the hook. It was literally a tug of war as my friend had to pull the big largemouth through the thick mat of grass against its wishes.
Luke wasn’t concerned with his line breaking. He was using 30-pound test braided line. And when he finally got the bass through the grass and into the boat, the fish weighed over 5 pounds.
By being methodically patient and slowly bouncing the bait off the bottom, it turned into a harmonious outcome fishing for winter bass.
It’s the same with most species of target fish during the transition from fall to winter. Fish are less active and not as hungry during the winter. Anglers often need to work baits slower to get the bite they’re looking for, whether that be for speckled trout, redfish, or bass during the winter.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention a little something about safety. During the winter months, the days are shorter and no doubt you’ll be using your running lights a bit more. Take time to make sure they’re working before you get on the water.
Also, the water is a whole lot colder than during the late summer and fall. Accidents do happen. What’s more, if you happen to fall overboard, wearing a personal floatation device and not sitting on it can make the difference in a life and death situation.
During the winter, hypothermia can start within minutes. When the water temperature is 40-50 degrees, death could occur in 1-3 hours.
So, as we get deeper into December and the subsequent winter months, take a tip from old Brimley. Slow down. If you take your time, you get a more harmonious outcome!