TnRiver46

I reckon they are more common on the eastern end of the river. I only had to go back to July 23 to find the most recent one in my photos, I catch a good many yellow perch in the TN river so I guess it's a little different habitat this far upstream. I also watched a scott martin video on YouTube fishing below wheeler dam with David something, a big time smallmouth tournament angler and guide. Apparently he catches a lot of 5-6 lb meanmouth and some even bigger.

Nice fish, they are also common in the Tennessee river nowadays

Got a nice smallmouth this evening fishing a deeper flat on the river (8-10') with the rage tail menace. Water temp 75 and current pretty swift

Gotcha thanks

Nice fish thanks for the pics. Smallmouth are not horrible eating. I can understand being concerned about water quality but smallmouth bass is excellent food

Are you seeing any white bass busting out on Melton hill?

I fish some that are over 100' deep straight down, just throw a tube up against it and let it sink while watching the line. If your line stops it's definitely not because it hit the bottom so set the hook!

Wind is brutal 99% of the time but big fish live there, usually takes over 20 lbs to win a tournament year round

Getting hot again, don't abandon summer pattern yet

They lower the two lakes upstream from my house 30 ft starting this time of year. All that water comes gushing down the holston and french broad rivers and forms the Tennessee river. Sometimes when the water is raging I like to throw something huge and/or noisy that the bass will be able to find amongst a million gallons of water going by at 2-3 miles an hour. Buzz baits and frogs up under the overhangs are my favorite but a lot of folks swear by a spinnerbait in fast water. Suspending jerkbait can also be good if you can keep all the grass off of it. If I was bank fishing (which can be somewhat advantageous in heavy current), I would use a jig or worm on bottom in all the swirling eddies. If the grass is fouling everything Texas rig a big soft plastic with a belly weight hook or throw swim jig. Swim jig in shallow grassy current just makes me all tingly inside

I lost an 8 lb bass off a metal clamp stringer that I was going to mount when I was 14 yrs old. I couldn't fish the rest of the day and I fish as much as anyone on the planet. I was fully recovered the next day though

Nice fish and report as always but that top picture is exceptional

Nice fish! I was out there yesterday myself got 3 non keeper largemouth a smallie and some white bass and a catfish

If that's your first ever smallmouth you might want to retire! Excellent fish

I was about to say what Neil just said, I know some guys that troll crankbaits to get them on soho. No surprise that they hit the spoons you trolled, I can't count the number of times I have struggled to even catch a dink and started catching lots of good ones when trolling. It gets the baits way deeper and they stay deep. And they are moving so fast the fish can't hardly stand it. Another option for suspended bass is dead sticking but it's painfully slow tactic. But they will eat it

I would guess you are getting bites from small rock bass. They hide under the boulders and come out to chomp through a whole bag of soft plastics. They chew on them like crazy and rarely get hooked unless you downsize the lure

Wow!!! Sounds like you've got some healthy soil. I do also like the scissor trap (especially for the deep tunnels). I could use your help in TN!

This is true, to a point. At some level it takes two to tango

Cool photo, I catch moles for a living (among other nuisance wildlife). They way to get them is with harpoon traps and there are way less than you think in your yard. Dozens of tunnels usually means 1-2 moles. Whole yard eat up with tunnels could be 4-6 moles

Caught several of all 3 species on the Tennessee river only a couple miles from downtown knoxville last night after work

The fed kills the weeds on the Tennessee river and it doesn't directly kill fish but it ruins the habitat for sure. When they leave the grass alone people weigh in 5 fish limits over 40 lbs. when they kill it, that weight drops by more than half

I vote for easter. He is risen indeed!

I have never bought one that costs more than $40 and cheap fishing rods are surprisingly tough. I have never bought an ugly stick either. Most of what I get is between 15 and $20 and will last a couple years

Every lake in Tennessee has both I would guess, definitely in East Tennessee. Watauga would probably be your best bet for trophy smallmouth and lots of decent spots right now. Parksville on the ocoee is where they keep breaking the spotted bass state record but not as many smallmouth. Nickajack in Chattanooga has big smallies and spots (and LM), the smallies and spots seem to stay closer to the top end of it for the most part. Cherokee and Norris have a decent population of both species

Largemouth have a black stripe running the length of their body. Smallmouth don't