archman

I have read a lot about a spybait but haven’t had any luck with it. In the meantime I have done really well on a jerkbait. I know it says you should fish the spybait very slow like a finesse application. But has anyone had any luck fishing it like a jerk? It’s basically a sinking jerkbait.

For those of you saying you can’t fish it around weeds why don’t you try it weedless? I use the owner ultra finesse ball head for weedless applications and it works great.

That still says Montreal is the closest.

Are there any Riot Kayak dealers in the states? It seems like they are all in Canada or Europe. Have they said when this $999 will be available for sale?

I have recently been using the 4 inch keitechs on Lake Erie and slamming the smallies. However if I get two fish from one bait I am lucky. They either rip or flip it off. I noticed the bass assassin elite shiner has many of the same colors and the same profile but are a little cheaper. Anyone have a first hand comparison?

I just put the jig head in from the head so the hook is exposed on top. I think I will bite the bullet. I haven't found anything close. I love the tail action on the slow retrieve.

I love the 2 and 3 inch Easy Shiners. However I get one fish out of them and less sometimes if the collar tears it when changing. Is there another swim bait with the same profile that is more durable?

What hooks do you guys for Texas rigging a tube?

Cool, looking forward to what you found out. I went out on Lake Erie yesterday around me, and absolutely slaughtered the smallies. It's not often on Erie this late in the year you can get a yak out. So I am really looking forward to coming back up for one more swing at some smallie action before I completely switch over to steelhead.

So do we know yet how this affects the bass fishing this time of year?

That is a great question, anxious to hear the answers.

I heard a strong SW wind muddies up the river. Can anyone tell me why?

Thinking about going to the lower Niagara the weekend of November 8, are the smallies still around this late in the fall?

Believe it or not we did it in the kayaks. I don't have a depth finder so I am not totally sure how deep. But we fished right at the edge of the faster drift. My buddy had trouble with the presentation I fished him probably 6 to 1. I would cast to about 10:00 and usually the hits came when it got to about two. Sometimes I would try to stay vertical in the faster water and that worked. The mouth in the lake was VERY good in the transition water. For tubes I just casted upstream out of the weedy parts and put the rod down as I drifted. They loved that. The last day there wasn't as much current which made for easier fishing in the yak but the bite slowed. We fished pretty much straight out from the launch right by the coast guard, all the way out about 200 yards into the lake. I saw many boats fishing shallow on cranks but not doing as well as us. This is our 2nd year up there and I am hooked too.

We went earlier this week and boated around 90 in a days time. Tubes and dropshot were the ticket.

I am new to lake smallie fishing this year. I have been fishing the rivers for awhile, though. But I have heard in the fall they are harder to catch in certain lakes? I have also heard that even though numbers go down, the size goes up...at least in the Great Lakes.

I might try the line conditioner. I hear a lot of talk about the KVD stuff. Does the real magic you can get at Walmart work? is it all the same stuff?

I tried both Yo Zuri hyrid and Power Pro (with the Yo zuri as a leader). I definitely preferred the yo zuri. I did not have any breakoffs, and two of the smallies I landed were pushing 5 lbs. I didn't care for the braid, but I'm sure I need to just get used to it. Every little rock seemed like a bite. The Yo Zuri was good as far as feel and abrasian resistance, but it does seem a little stiff compared to straight mono.

I use seaguar for steelhead fishing as a leader and don't have issues with knots breaking. But I guess it's a different animal with all of the rocks and zebra muscles on Erie.

Thanks for all of the advice. It could be the knot. But I fished at the Fingerlakes for 3 days (different kind of structure) and did not have one breakoff. I am just thinking the zebra muscles and rocks on Erie are causing a lot more abrasians on my line, and the p-line fluoroclear can't handle it. Anyone try Yo Zuri hybrid (fluoro and nylon)? It seems like the reviews are good. I went with a guy who had no idea what he was doing. He was using 12 lb test and clear water, and was catching as many as I was. I wonder if fluorocarbon is even necessary.

I have gotten into smallie fishing on Lake Erie this year pretty hard. I am having trouble deciding what type of line to use. I had success with 8 lb mono, but someone who has fished for them for years on the great lakes recommended fluorocarbon. I used all different types (p-line, seaguar, p-line fluoroclear) and experienced significant break offs. Much more than mono. I have researched braid, and most recommend a fluorocarbon leader, which puts me back where I am now, with more breakoffs. Is there something I am missing out there? I have read where some say they use braid without a leader and do not notice a difference in the number of bites compared to using a fluoro leader. I fished the fingerlakes with p-line fluoroclear and did not have any breakoffs in 3 days. I had 3 breakoffs when I got back to Lake Erie in the first hour.

Last year we fished the lower niagara in our kayaks the first week of October and did well. We want to go back again this fall, but we're having a hard time choosing a date. We will fish the Coast Guard drift right at the mouth. I do have a couple questions as I'm still learning this river from 3 hours away. 1. Is now until October a good time to fish that stretch? Or does it get better into the late fall? 2. I know we won't have to deal with a blown out river generally, but what about wind? When we were there last year it was really calm. What wind in that stretch of the river would be miserable for a kayaker? 3. What size dropshot and tube weight do you recommend for that area? Thanks again.

Basshunter, I have not fished near Rangley, but from my experience, most of the lakes in Maine are similar. They are pretty clear, and have rocky bottoms. You'll find largemouth near the weeds, and smallmouth in the deeper parts near rocks or rip rap. The beauty of many of these lakes (at least the ones I have fished) is the lack of pressure. No matter what I throw seems to work. The water temp is cooler than here in Ohio, and you'll find the sun rises and sets earlier as well. I have had better luck with topwater with LM than SM.

Maine has some awesome smallie lakes. And you don't catch small Cuyahoga River smallies you catch Lake Erie sized ones. I fish this lake in Boothbay I don't even know the name of. Nobody fishes it. 100 fish days are common. I have also fished the lakes in Acadia and have slammed the smallies, too.