Long Slow Deep Pools

[smbass43]

So this will be our 4th year visiting the Eleven Point and every year we have great sucess fishing moving water. WE have noticed that the long deep slow moving pools, which seem like great places to fish, don't produce. Maybe we are fishing the wrong lures/presentation, but I wanted to ask some of you experts if you encounter the same senarios. If you do have success, do you use different bait/lures for these waters? I will say that on occasion I will throw on a spinnerbait and seem to catch a couple Grass Pickeral... Any info would be appreciated!

[superfly]

Above Greer fishing for smallie, I have had the best luck fishing the end of the long deep pools during this time of year. Try a 1/8 oz jig head (black) with a 3" kalin grub (dark color). Good Luck. Practice catch and release. MR

[smbass43]

We always catch and release, unless we seriously injure the fish. I will try the jig at the end of the pools. Thanks. Anyone else have luck in these pools above Greer?

[snap]

Definitely not an expert here....and also have trouble catching fish(trout) in the slow deep pools between Turner and Riverton. It has come to the point where I bypass them for the moving water and pools at the back of the moving water. My reasoning and thoughts are that trout feed more actively in the moving water ...or, should I say, the active fish are in the faster water. Not saying there are not fish there....just have not had much luck catching them!!!

[jdmidwest]

In the pools below Whitten down past Riverton, we usually troll crawdad plugs like shad raps or rebel craws. We are usually in the jet boat when we do it. We have in the past used the square stern canoe and a 3 hp motor to the same effect. It works well for a trout, smallie, or a walleye.

[Al Agnew]

No matter what you're fishing for, you have to remember that ACTIVE fish, the easiest ones to catch, will be where the food is. Long, slow, deep pools simply don't have much food for game fish, except at the heads and tails and around the edges. If a trout or smallmouth is lying on the bottom of a deep pool, it isn't feeding, and it won't be easy to catch. Even in the winter, when smallmouths are most likely to be found in the deeper pools out of the main current, the ones that are catchable won't usually be in the deepest part of the pool at the time, because even in the winter the food is shallower. In the winter, it's a balancing act for the fish--they are sluggish so they need to hang in places where they aren't as vulnerable to predators, like deep water or heavy cover. But they still need to be within easy reach of shallower water if they feel the urge to feed.

With smallmouth this time of year, concentrate your efforts in slow current just deep enough that you can't easily see the bottom, especially around big rocks and log jams. For trout, it's smart to spend most of your time in faster water, although the biggest ones may be in deep water at the edge of faster water.

[smbass43]

Al,

That makes sense, and thanks for the explaination. I am assuming that this holds true year round?