Smallmouth Tactics..are The Experts Wrong?

[Jim0861]

While fishing in the Jacks Fork this summer I was surprised at where I hooked into smallies. The smallies I hooked were, without exception, in the middle of the rapids away from cover or structure that would lessen the impact of the current for the fish/ I have always heard/read to look for smailles at the end of a set of rapids, on the edge, or behind cover as this requires less energy for the fish to maintain their position.

When fishing the areas conventional wisdom accepts I drew blanks only to cath fish in the middle of the currents with no structure or cover breaks. What do you seasoned stream fisherman think?

Thanks

[moguy1973]

It was a weird year with lower water than normal and I think that fishing tactics pretty much were thrown out the door. I only got to get out a couple times to smallmouth fish this year, but it seemed that wherever there was moderate current, cover or not, there were smallmouth to be found...In the past though,I have found that some of the best areas to catch stream smallmouth though is, around cover of course, but also right in the middle of the stream at the end of a pool right before the riffle starts...they like to hang out there and feed it seems...

[Feathers and Fins]

I have good friend who says all wildlife is hardwired from birth and will know where and when to go to certain areas and no matter how much we think we know or what conventional wisdom tells us wildlife will prove us wrong every time. When I was collecting reptiles that knowledge took me to areas that by all wisdom said the species should not be there but I found them. Same holds true for how I hunt and fish by going to places that should not have the game but more times than not does.

[Al Agnew]

I learned a long time ago that river smallmouth can be just about anywhere. If they want to feed, they go where the food is. Perhaps those fish were keying on a certain food, maybe stoneroller minnows, and that's where the stonerollers were. Another thought that occurred to me is that fish in such places are probably going to be very active; otherwise they'd be in or near cover and shelter from the stronger current. And since those were the actively feeding fish, those were the ones you caught. You may have fished over a lot of smallies in the more conventional areas that simply weren't active enough to be interested in your lures.

And sometimes these fish get into a pattern that seems weird but holds true much of the summer. There was one year on my home river when there were almost always a lot of good smallmouth cruising along the gravel bars, on the other side of the river from where they "should" have been. It about drove me nuts, because I just couldn't hardly make myself cast to the gravel bar when there was all this beautiful water on the other side. So I'd be casting to the "good" water, and suddenly see a couple of big smallmouth darting away from the gravel bar, under the canoe, and into the cover I was fishing. Aarrgghh!!! I finally started making myself cast to the gravel bar side once in a while, and began catching a few of them. But because there was no real target to cast to along a plain gravel bar in a foot and a half of water, it was still hard to make myself keep casting over there.

[Gavin]

You'd be surprised at what holds in featureless looking water some times.If its got depth & the right current speed..toss a lure in there. Big fish can be in a foot of water on inside bends and inside bend eddies sometimes Sometimes they are in the middle of the darn river on featureless gravel, inobvious rock ledge, isolated rock, clump of weed or moss. I've floated right over more than I've ever caught.Figure its a live and learn. Day 2 is almost always better than Day 1 on most water.

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[exiledguide]

A lot of times fish can be in rapids but in those rapids they can be in slack water protected by the rocks that make up the rapids. When I bought my property on the Big Piney over the years I kept a journal on the fishing directly above and below Brushy Creek and I found that the higher the river level and the greater the flow the more quality fish would be in the rapids. As the river level dropped or in years when the river was low during the season the fish were more likely to be caught in the slower main pool around the big rocks or trees in the water. There was no science involved it was just were I found the fish. It also suprised me because I had belived that the opposite was true. After this experience I figured out that to be sucessful you really needed to fish with an open mind and let the fish tell you what they wanted. Also over the years on that part of the Piney 90% of my fishing was wade fishing and it was between Simmons Ford and Mineral Springs and other than my access it was all public access. I seldom fished much past the end of July and always had at least 3 weeks vacation starting the saturday after memorial day. Also this was done before the otters were put in the river.

[Jim0861]

Based on your feedback and experience, what is the optimum water temperature for springtime Jacks Fork Smallmouth, and during a "normal" weather year, when does that happen?

[Jim0861]

And thank you all for your replies. Your insight is very helpul in assisting me with trip planning.

[Al Agnew]

Not sure there is an optimum temperature--the fish simply do different things at different temperatures, but can be caught if you know what they're doing. But...if there is a magic temperature, it's probably around 60 degrees. By the time the temps reach that figure, the fish are active enough to take just about any lure you want to throw--they'll hit topwaters, fast-moving lures, as well as the slower presentations. Springtime can be inconsistent, however, because weather changes make temps jump up and down, and in these transition periods, temperature trends are often more important than actual daily temps.

Basically, however, in an average spring the fishing gets "easier" sometime in mid-April.

[Jim0861]

Thanks Al. I will keep your advice and the 60 degrees in my mind. You have been a great help.