The best fishing reports this past week were coming from the live oxbow lakes at Deer Park and Vidalia.

If you were catching fish last week and you went to the Old Rivers this weekend, you probably noticed conditions have changed big time.

As we move further into fall fishing patterns will change drastically.

The recent cold front lowered the surface water temperature several degrees. Today we’re on Lake Bruin and I think the surface temp will be around 64 to 65 degrees.

The bass will still be shallow but some will be deep. The big fish will probably be deep but getting them to bite may be tough. We are entering that time of year when you can catch a fish in one foot of water and on the very next cast catch a bass in 18 feet of water.

It’s what I call time consuming because you have to cover every depth and patterns won’t last very long. Cold fronts are the culprits.

The surface bite was slow behind this cold front but earlier this week, before the cold front, the fish were very active on the surface. Once a major front like this one passes and the barometric pressure rises, the surface activity just about stops.

You may get a few strikes early and late but don’t stay with the surface lures too long. The bottom bite is on the verge of taking off. Jigs and any one of the many soft plastic lures will now come into play.

Most think of jigs as seasonal lures, but I never put the jig down. In warm water I change the weight of the jig and the style of the retrieve. As the water cools down I go with a bit heavier jig and a much slower presentation.

Bass tend to hang tighter to cover behind a cold front. The fish will not move as far to chase a meal down so casting accuracy and lure presentation is the key to getting bites when faced with post frontal conditions.

If you don’t have the patience to fish slow, and water temps are in the 60’s crank baits will pick off the active fish.

Rat-L-Traps work real well if the lake you’re fishing has any coontail or hydrilla moss beds. Locate the moss and you can catch the bass on shad and bream colored Rat-L-Traps.

If there is no moss try bouncing a mid range crank bait like the Bandit 200 or 300 series off the wood and you can trigger a reaction strike or two.

Of course, the best time to go fishing is when you can but if you can pick your days on the water fish a day or two before the cold fronts pass and the day the front blows through.

The air pressure will be low, which makes the baitfish move around more and game fish will be all over the bait. The Mississippi River is still holding at a very favorable stage for fishing the live oxbow lakes, the Old Rivers.

The river stage at Natchez today is 18 feet and steady. There is no significant rise or fall coming down river so try fishing the Old Rivers for big slab white perch and bass.

I noticed a slight decrease in fishing boat traffic this past week as some had to the woods for deer hunting. That’s what makes this time of year even better on our area lakes and rivers.