I’m heading out in the morning to float the Potomac River upriver of Paw Paw, WV.  It’s a trip I usually make at least once a month between April and Thanksgiving, but due to the frequent rains this spring/early summer this will be my first trip this year.  It’s about a 2 1/2 hour drive one way, but has always been well worth it for both numbers and size.  Especially size!  I’m borderline giddy that the river has finally fallen to a manageable depth and flow.

Anyway, I declined an invitation to a cookout with friends, and when I told them what I had planned for the 4th they seemed genuinely stunned that I would drive that far just to fish and release whatever I caught.  So I’m wondering how far will you drive to fish someplace that you know provides a real possibility of catching a citation smallie (river or lake)?  And is it a trip you make regularly, somewhat regularly or just once or twice a season?

If the weather cooperates enough to make it worth it I will happily drive two hours to St Clair. Grand Traverse Bay is on my list and that’s about three hours so I don’t plan to do that until I can make it at least one overnight. Another set of lakes to the north of me is about two. That’s very manageable for me and I’ve done a couple early morning day trips up there for it.  

A lot of my fishing in the last 40 years involved driving between 300 and 700 miles and often then required flying a few hundred more miles. Smallmouth were only a part of what I was after. 

When I used to reside in N Canton Ohio I traveled about 2-2.5 hrs to Erie PA to fish for smallies. But we always stayed over night to fish more than one day. Now I fly from SE FL one or twice a year to Lake Erie to fish for smallies because I have found out I can't handle the withdrawal symptoms of not catching them. 

I drive an hour and a half each week to fish for smallmouth in NW AR.  

Less than 1hr to boat ramp.  Both places to fish locally.

There are a handful of lakes with in 90 minutes of me that hold some very respectable brown bass.  During peak calendar periods I will be on one of them as much as I can.   But when I'm not,  I surely thinking about it.  Smallmouth addiction is real.

A-Jay

I'm 90 minutes from all the prime water in the state. The only time go further is out of state or down to NYC to fish the water supply lakes with friends, which is about an 8 hour trip, so might as well be out of state. NY is a big state, full of lakes. 

I assume we're talking about a day trip without lodging at the destination.  2.5 hours is a haul one way towing a boat.

 

Mille Lacs is about 90 minutes for me one way.  That's about the furthest I'll go in one day.

6 hours ago, A-Jay said:

There are a handful of lakes with in 90 minutes of me that hold some very respectable brown bass.  During peak calendar periods I will be on one of them as much as I can.   But when I'm not,  I surely thinking about it.  Smallmouth addiction is real.

A-Jay

My kids tell me jokingly (I think 🤔) I’m addicted and should attend SA.  

27 minutes ago, OldManLure said:

My kids tell me jokingly (I think 🤔) I’m addicted and should attend SA.  

Been a card carrying member of SA for a while now.  The meetings are Awesome !

A-Jay 

 

16 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

Been a card carrying member of SA for a while now.  The meetings are Awesome !

A-Jay 

 

I’m picturing a bunch of enabling more than anything else in those meetings. 😁

The farthest I have gone in one day is 3.5 hours. 

I am very, very fortunate... I have the potential of catching a state record from either of two lakes inside of 20 minutes driveway to launch.

Sometimes 2 miles, sometimes 2 hours, sometimes 2 days 

7 hours 41 minutes.

 

Distance to Lake St Clair.

 

Tops on my bucket list.

Same.  I’m waiting for one of those deals when some outfit pays for my lodging while they try to sell me a timeshare. 🤫

Closest smallies to me are 2hrs, closest lake with potential 6+ lbers is a little less than 3 hours. 
 

I do both multiple times per month. Quite often days trips. 

Well I might have set a new record for miles driven to chase smallies. I drove from Juno Beach FL to Clayton NY a distance of 1220 miles each way. The drive was worth it as a caught my second 7lber while in my seventies. I told my wife I can't wait to get into my 80's as it might bring the ever elusive 8lber. LOL

I have driven 5 to 6 hours one way to fish Sturgeon Bay /Door County for a few days.  Any farther and I am staying a week.

Not far, 40 minutes to the best spot on earth.  

About 40 minutes to Lake Michigan for me.  

 

Door Co and Grand Traverse Bay are about 5 hours.  

I am less than 10 minutes from the ramp of an 8000 plus acres lake with smallmouth in it - yet they seem to top out at about 19/20 inches (looking at the past 20 years of DNR fish surveys that seems to be the top end on this lake, certainly there maybe be larger ones, my largest is 19 in., I have spoken to several people who have caught 20 in. smallmouth on the lake) - and within an hour there are a half-dozen or so lakes that have potential for smallmouth in the 20 inch range - I would have to drive to Mille Lacs (2.5 hours one way) or Leech Lake (3 hours one way) to find citation sized (my guess is that means over 20 inches/over 5 lbs ?) - For that type of drive/trip I most likely would look to leave early/drive up and fish all day/stay overnight/fish another big day/then drive home - Someday I will do that, but only being in my third year of fishing I feel like to need to get better at fishing first and then I will make those longer trips to find the bigger smallmouth    

@WaskaCrank12 surprisingly, there's not as many lakes with smallmouth that most people think there is in MN.  Most of our lakes here are "largemouth" style lakes.  It's often the bigger versions that have brown bass.

 

The nearest one to me is Mille Lacs.  It's 1.5 hours one way.  The last smallmouth survey done out there showed that just over half the population was 17 inches or bigger.  It has tremendous quality sized fish.  I never catch a lot when I go, but very few are small.

 

If you ever want to, you let me know.  I could meet you there with my boat sometime.  It would make for a long day given the distance you have to drive.  I mostly fish it prespawn in May/early June.

Day trip 1hr 45 min. Drive down to the Juniata river to wade. For good chance at big girls 11 hrs to Dale Hollow twice a year. And 4 hrs to the St. Lawrence once or twice a year.