Scott F

Early spring can be great in rivers. The biggest fish of the year are often caught during this time. The problem with rivers in spring is the unpredictability. If you are fortunate enough to have some stable weather, and the rivers aren’t blown out by spring rains it’s a great time. The prespawn period for lake smallmouth is the best time to find smallies shallow and hungry. In the lakes I fish, they go deep pretty quickly after the spawn is over and are never as easy to find for the rest of the year. Just about at that time, river fish are over the post spawn and are active and shallow and will be up until the ice starts to form.

I’ve never fished big rivers like the Ohio or Mississippi. I’m talking about mid-sized to small rivers and creeks.

I’m definitely not a very slow, deliberate fisherman, but I’m also not very fast either. It usually depends on what I’m throwing. I used to fish with a guy who was a speedy, power fisherman. He hated stuff like Senkos that required you to slow down and be patient. Since we were often in his boat, I had to go at his speed. If I tried to throw a plastic worm of any kind, I’d be watching it water ski back to the boat as he’d have the trolling motor on high most of the time. I didn’t often fish with him using my boat because of how he hated slowing down while I was operating the TM. It was much better for my enjoyment when I just quit fishing with him.

A single, Colorado bladed spinner bait is about the only version I use. Because they aren’t easy to find, I had a guy who makes spinner baits make me up a bunch.

Are you fishing from the bank, floating in a canoe or kayak or wading?

Those same colors will work just fine.

If you are talking about lake fish, spring is definitely best right up until they lock on the beds. For river fish, summer is better. Easier to locate and much more consistent. Lake fish go deeper as the water warms and they stay shallow all summer in small to medium sized rivers.

After fishing pre-spawn smallmouth on a lake, and then going to the river, I always get surprised by the river fish and how much harder the river smallies fight. The 13 inchers fight as hard as the 17-18 inch lake fish fight.

https://www.in-fisherman.com/editorial/life-of-bass-size-factors/358997

About 30% of adult bass die from natural causes every year. It is likely that the floating bass you saw were just part of that 30%. There also might be a problem with low oxygen levels or some other poison in that part of the lake.

Nice! That news story I hope means I could have a quick sale for a good price on the lightly used boat I’m trying to sell.

None of the waters I fish are clean enough to let me be comfortable enough to wet wade. My motto is if it’s not safe to drink, I’m wearing waders. There’s a lot of farmland around and the cows leave a lot of waste plus huge numbers of geese. E Coli is always present. Any open cuts are an invitation to an infection. A lot of my rivers also require you to bushwhack your way through the woods that are loaded with poison ivy, poison oak, and thorny bushes. Waders keep me safe from that.

Just because you get under the bridge doesn’t mean you can get back out. A west wind pushes the water level up and people have gotten stuck.

What kind of a boat are you fishing from? If the water is even a little bit high most boats can’t get under the bridge that is on the east end of the lake and separates the north and south sections. Even in low riding boats, you still might have the top of your motor hit the bottom of the bridge. It’s a perched lake meaning the water levels are above the surrounding farmland which means when the wind blows, it gets very rough. They used to close the lake if the winds get above about 15mph As far as fishing, 99% of the fisherman will be pounding the rip rap. You may also encounter hybrid stripers which will rip the rod right from your hand as well as white bass and walleyes. I’ve never targeted smallmouth as you’ll find them scattered along the rip rap along with the largemouth and every other fish in the lake. There are also a LOT of catfish. You’ll probably get more of those bass fishing than all the other fish combined. Good luck.

I used to have that problem with the titanium Terminator spinner baits. The wire doesn’t get bent out of shape but is brittle and just breaks. It happened to everyone I ever bought. Hasn’t happened as much with the cheap spinners that just get bent out of shape and break after you repeatedly bend them back.

The location of the skeg on the trolling motor also needs to be considered. Some motors have the skeg on the nose of the motor and the transducer is mounted behind it which will protect the transducer from getting hit. If the skeg is near the prop and the transducer is exposed, a shield can help.

Nope. Back to Indiana where I’m originally from. Real estate taxes are over $5,000 a year less for a house that is worth more than the one I’m leaving. Insurance is a lot cheaper too.

The state of Illinois wants $236 to renew the plates on my two boats. I’m leaving Illinois for good in just a few days so I won’t be paying the price. I understand the need to collect fees to keep the state running, some, are just excessive.

I’ve got some Abu Reflex spinners from the 60s that I caught my first smallmouth on.

In my experience, a twister tail lets the Silver Minnow come through the water much better than the pork trailer does.

I haven’t purchased waders in some time as I can’t physically wade anymore. I don’t keep up on what’s out there now. There are high priced brands like Simms , but you don’t have to spend that much. As suggested, try Cabelas. Just don’t buy the cheapest stuff they have. You can try fly shops too. They are pretty knowledgeable but often have higher end gear.

You can save money now and buy cheap ones, but you’ll be replacing them next year when they fall apart if they last that long. The best waders have separate boots that give your ankles a lot of support when you are walking on rocky bottoms. The constant wet to dry conditions take a toll. Felt sole’s keep you from slipping on slick rocks. The best waders are lightweight and have good tight seams. Buy them larger so you don’t pull on the seams when climbing over down trees and rocks. Not using waders means rocks and sand will get into your shoes, the soles will cause you to slip, no ankle support, no protection from poison ivy, or bacteria in the water. I understand wanting to save some money. If you get serious about wading, you’ll see that you didn’t save anything if you have to buy twice.

Your transducer has nothing to do with the motors anchor positioning. The motor has its own GPS built in that it uses for spot lock.

Easily 5 or 6 inches. I seldom ever use live bait anymore except in the fall when I fish with a river guide who uses big red tail chubs. A 15 inch bass has absolutely no problem eating 6 inch chubs.

Yep.