I'm heading to north alabama this weekend for a family reunion and I've heard there is some small mouth fishing. Being from north louisiana, I've never fished for smallies. any ideas on what I should bring as far as tackle. I've got just about every soft plastic and hardbait style on the market. just curious what to bring.

This time of year will be post spawn moving into summer patterns. Think jigs with crawl trailers, senkos, paddle tail swim baits, & drop shot presentations of 4-5" baits of your choice. The smaliies will probably be near bottom near rock or weeds in deeper water. I have never fished for smallies in the south but plastics should rule. Deep diving jerk baits & crank baits are another option. Good luck with your trip.

Yep, Dwight pretty much covered it. Basically, if you are a largemouth fisherman, just downsize your lures and equipment a little bit.

Be prepared, if you catch some good smallies, you might just hooked for good, and those ugly "green bass" will just be a nuisance. Just kidding... those green ones are fun too.

Berkley Flicker Shad, awesome crankbait for smallmouth bass! Berkley has a good assortment of sizes and colors for all occasions and depths.