Turkey sandwich

Thank you! I'm sure I'd pick up a thing or two, also.

Lol, I love crankbaits in rivers! So, rivers... And we'll forget seasonal patterns, and just focus on the where and why. These are all general rules, and there are some pretty specific exceptions. Also, bigger and more complex river systems can shake this stuff up, but this is how I've grown to understand how rivers work. I've found the same rules hold up with most species of predatory fish and how to look at prime holds or prime lies. I'm sure i'll look back at this want to edit it the next time i can't figure fish out, and totally consider it a work in progress, but I kinda want to put this out there to see what you guys think. - Current is the food delivery system. It carries drifting baitfish, crayfish, nymphs, leeches, and every imaginable food item in between. Faster current, especially with riffles, will also be more oxygenated. The most aggressive and active fish will hang out here because there will be the greatest access to feeding opportunities and the oxygen to fuel their fast metabolism. - The thing about holding in current, is that fast current requires way more energy to hang out in. This means a few things. Predators will only hang out directly in the current when they're feeding actively, but will often hold at the closest possible current break or piece of structure. Think about boulders, fallen trees, ledges, wing dams, inside bends, undercut banks, weed beds, or in pockets along the bottom (current almost always flows fastest at the surface). These places will almost always concentrate active fish. - Some fish are likely to feed more actively, more often. Smaller fish are generally going to be feeding almost exclusively on larva/nymphs/press bugs/etc. These are the base of your food chain and will be super abundant in and around riffles and most fast current (can be quite shallow). This is where you'll also find lots of smaller bass, chubs, sculpins, madtoms, smaller trout (where applicable), etc feeding on the real little stuff. Because of this, riffles and immediate current breaks along them can load up with small smallmouth in the summer/fall because they need to eat tons and tons of nymphs to grow. Areas like these are the places where fish will strike almost recklessly and eat almost anything. "Oh, you bought the novelty spoon that looks like a twig and berries? Yeah, it'll catch fish here." - If there are small fish, you'll find very big fish close by. So, this is the topic of "prime holds". Some eddies, current breaks, weed lines, boulders, bridge pilings, etc make for the best hang out spots for predators because of their proximity to fast current, complex structure, or just ability to ambush without taking the full brunt of the water. These are the places most likely to hold the most dominant actively feeding fish in the area. The above ugh... "Silver Johnson rule" also sometimes applies here if these holds are breaks in or IMMEDIATELY adjacent to fast current. Prime holds will usually have a few common things. First, look for access to deep water. This literally means anything from a change of 6" or 6' so long as it offers slower current (think rest and digestion), protection from predators (birds, bigger fish, us, etc), and a comfortable combination of temperature and oxygenation (this is why deep buckets below or adjacent to riffles can be killer). Second, you want immediate access to a food source. This could mean fry, frogs, bugs, and baitfish in grass/weed beds (if they're green), schools of alewives or perch chilling behind bridge pilings or downed trees, or even the bottom of a run during a mayfly hatch. I cannot stress enough the importance of knowing what smallmouth are feeding on (even when they aren't being picky) if you're serious about consistently finding them. A good example... The Susquehanna is a smallmouth factory because it's a bug factory. It's common to see all kinds of hatches from giant dobsonfly/helgramites (bodies over 4") to mayflies and midges ranging from size 6-12 (white flies) to 14-18 (sulphurs and cahills) all the way down to 22 and 24 (midges, BWO). It's common to see runs of slow current in 3-6' of otherwise featureless water just explode before dusk. Why? It's below riffles (hatches happen where the bugs are in riffles and runs) and loaded with bugs, has comfortable current, and has everything from baitfish through small bass through huge pike and musky feeding in it. Once you figure this out, you'll realize you can fish using anything from dry flies through poppers or floating jerkbaits (to imitate the baitfish feeding on the flies/emergers) and catch fish. Understanding events like this is huge because they happen in the same types of places on most nights from spring through late fall. This type of event can effect the quality of holds because the massive abundance of food can mean almost featureless or seemingly uninteresting water for 20 hours of the day can become the place to be for two hours in the am and two hours at night. Third is the sciencey part. These holds need to provide water that is the appropriate temperature and oxygen level for the fish's activity level. Big, jarring changes are rough on fish, and fish will seek comfort in every season. Fish are cold blooded, so water temperature drives their EVERYTHING. Eating, being almost comatose, being super aggressive, making sexy time, digesting food - all of these things are driven by or at least timed around water temperature. Oxygen content can make the difference between a killer hold and the dead sea. Generally, more oxygen means happier, healthier, more comfortable fish. Riffles/fast current, wind, springs, and most green healthy vegetation will add oxygen to the water while decaying anything will remove oxygen. This is why active predators hang out around faster current or along green weed beds and tend to avoid brown, stagnant pools (most of the time). The 4th factor in determining the quality of a hold is security/safety. Is the fish easily spotted by eagles, ospreys, or herons over head? Is the hold leaving the bass exposed to larger predator fish? Does the hold offer camouflage/cover? Is the water clear and forcing fish to hold deeper or stained enough to protect them from overhead? These things will all effect how safe a fish feels in a particular lie. The trick to finding consistent patterns, even in rough conditions is find the spots that provide the best combination of those 4 things possible. A good example of a good mid-day 90+ degree, high sun, clear water, low flows. A lot of fish may be unwilling to even hang out in/around the fastest most oxygenated water because of high water temperatures or exposure to predators (poor lie) unless there are springs and a ledge immediately below the fast water to offer protection and comfort (prime lie). Another philosophy might be to fish deeper current breaks. This might be really slow fishing if those points/islands/whatever don't have a lot of food around them and will likely hold mostly resting/neutral-negative active fish. A better hold might actually be in shallow water even in the mid day heat if there's overhead cover/shade and structure/cover to allow ambush. Extra points if there are springs close by. I've caught a lot of surprisingly large mid-day smallmouth pitching 1/8-3/4oz jiggs into shade lines, laydowns, grass edges, submerged trees, and once even below an old sofa in these types of conditions. Basically, current + typically largemouth flipping spots + jig = fat smallies even mid day in the right conditions. Presenting in current is probably the next important thing after finding fish. Seasons are another big topic, but I'm focusing on the warmer months when most are on the water. Flow and water clarity are also too big to cover in this rant lol. If this is helpful for anyone as much as putting it out there is cathartic for me, awesome. Also, if this helps anyone, i'll gladly put out some thoughts on the other stuff.

Almost everything you own for largemouth will catch river smallmouth. Ned rigs, tubes, grubs (think 2 1/2-3 1/2" most of the time), in line spinners, and senkos are all great numbers baits. More important than the bait being used is learning how to read and present in current.

Whoa. Also, why isn't 13 bleeped out anymore?

Not at all. Where in PA are you? There's a lot of great bass water that isn't dominated by pickerel.

Oh, man, this can be a really wild list. I'll throw out names like Lefty Kreh and Bob Clouser. They're both primarily fly guys, but they've both invented patterns that have caught virtually everything in fresh and saltwater and have some amazing stories in their books, interviews, etc.

It's a blast. Are you chasing largemouth or smallmouth? For bass, I'd strongly recommend a 7-8wt, though a 6 or 9 will also work. A bunch if trout patterns CAN work (i caught my first smallmouth this year on a size 22 zebra midge) but most of your patterns will be bigger streamers, heavy flies, and tricky to cast poppers. Fly fishing for anything (that'll take a fly) is ridiculous fun, but requires a good bit of practice in the yard and on the water. Welcome to another money pit. ?

This is a really killer crash course on summer smallmouth. - Pay attention to the flow charts or water levels of the river. It's really a good idea not just for safety reasons, but it's also important to note that water level and clarity can have a big impact where (specifically) fish will be holding (think about "the spot on the spot" when combined with the way Scott F explained prime lies in his post). - Don't ever ignore grass or vegetation on a river, ESPECIALLY if it has depth of 2' or more with good current. - Smallmouth tend to be active when they can see the best - clear water and bright sunny days, which are generally the opposite of the conditions most favor for largemouth.

I'm in Philly and run into similar issues getting on the water sometimes. If i were near NYC and can get away for weekend trips, I'd be all over the middle and Upper Delaware, and the Susquehanna. Both are awesome fisheries (in addition to flowing through some gorgeous places) and I get to spend a lot of time on both river systems.

I fish braid to leader on all of my casting gear. Most of it uses some variety of microguides and i rarely have problems. Getting good at a doublu uni, albright, or blood knot pays huge dividends. This by far allows me the most versatility without having to buy and swap out reels for most conditions.

Man, it's funny how predators work. My first smallmouth of the year came on a size 22 red zebra midge nymphing for brown trout. Similarly, I've had 17" browns demolish 6" streamers. Odds are good if a bait 1) matches the predator's food source and activity level or 2) really, really irritates the crap out of the predator, that predator is going to make sure the bait knows not to do it again.

Where are you? Without knowing where you're at and the conditions this spring, it's really hard to give you any meaningful advice.

Cheers! Way to have a day!

They're pretty much a standard any time I'm fishing T-rigs and don't need to get down fast, want a slower descent, or don't have to punch it through any kind of vegetation. I'm not fishing lakes as much these days, but in the past 1/8-1/4 oz bullets were probably the most versatile weights I'd throw. Keep in mind you can also use them with beads for rattles and build a light C-rig with them, too, if you're fishing around shallow finicky fish or around the spawn.

I would search the threads here on basic structure fishing. A swim jig might be the most versatile thing you can soak. Do you have questions about where and when to use them? Is it more about the size/type/trailer? Or are you just looking for a swim jig 101 you're looking for?

They'll absolutely take them most of the year. What kind of waters are you fishing?

There's some good stuff here! One note I didn't see mentioned with the spoon - they can often cause line twist and are often better fished with a swivel to leader connection. Yeah, the swivel and knot may catch some muck, but a weedless spoon is still really versatile. Also, with weeds, it's important to distinguish whether you're fishing matted vegetation, weed beds, or just pulling in green muck from a super fertile pond or lake. They all lend themselves to slightly different approaches. Also, I think a few guys hinted at it, but learning to "feel" your way through weeds with a T-rig, C-rig, or jig is an important skill and is probably one of the most effective ways to fish through or around nasty stuff. If you want more info on that, do a search for T-rig or jig fishing. I feel like if you condense what's on here, @Catt has written several books on fishing heavy cover with jigs and soft plastics and that would be where I'd start.

$%#@ ! I left for work and came back to... nothing.

Congrats!

Seasons and conditions will indicate how active the fish SHOULD be. ("Should" is a 4 letter word in fishing) If you mean reaction baits to locate aggressive fish weather, season, water clarity, and the structure/cover they're hanging out on is going to determine what your best options are going to be for any given day. If you can effectively fish a crankbait, spinnerbait, a jig, and top water like a walking bait or plopper you have the basics more than covered.

Wearing the buff without a shirt is like throwing the finger to convention. I love it. I've gotten to be a big fan of UPF long sleeves (all year, I'm terribly pale) and the buff on sunny or windy days.

Some hooks are offset to the side intentionally to help with hook ups. They can work well with wider, thicker bodied soft plastics (think T-rigging a thick beaver or creature type bait). The idea is that the off-center hook is more likely to catch tissue on a hook set. I have no idea how the science plays out, but they do work. Generally, my preference is keeping the hook in line with the eye 99% of the time, so I rarely go away from the standard worm hooks other than extra wide gap or straight shank (to best fit the bait). They're definitely worth playing with, though, and they'll still catch fish.

Has anyone brought up the idea of a Bass Resource North fishing trip recently?

Welcome to the forum! Inline spinners are super old school, but they still work great. They should still be a go to lure when fish are tight lipped. The OP's question- The best way to stay on fish this time of the year is figuring out where they are through their spawning process. As water warms, their metabolisms are going to speed up right into the spawn. Their metabolism is largely going to be driven by water temp, and they're going to be gorging themselves the closer they get to the spawn. The thing is, they can't expend the energy to justify hanging out in most runs or riffles yet because of the current speed around them. Right now, I'd look for larger current breaks in moderate current, or immediately adjacent to fast current. These types of conditions occur at points, inside bends, heads and tails of islands, below grass beds or ledges, near bridge pilings, near the mouths of feeder streams (especially this one), etc. As the season moves closer to the spawn, bass will move towards those areas. Look for protection, relatively shallow, moderate to slow current, and suitable bottom composition than can range from sparse weedbeds to gravel (ideally). General water clarity may effect depth of spawn, but aggressive pre spawn fish will be located at the best feeding location near these spots. You'll find fish stacked on the closest structure change to the spawning areas as the spawn moves along. You'll find them near their favorite forage - crayfish, madtoms, schooling fish like perch and alewives/herring/shad, etc. Just pick a lure that mimics (whatever any of those food items happen to be) that you can present best well in those conditions and you should be catching fish. Pre-spawn smallmouth are not notoriously picky, so most stuff will work. Jigs, tubes, jerkbaits, grubs, Senkos, and all of your other standard smallmouth stuff can be in play. Spring can be tricky, but this is kinda my crash course on figuring it out. Other stuff like high or low water events, the first full moon, the tendencies of that particular river, and a handful of other stuff can play big roles this time of year. This is where I would start. Hopefully at least some of this helps. (Steps off soap box)

Great fish and spot on advice. Water levels and water clarity are going to be two of the biggest consistent influencers of fish behavior in a river that effect fishing year round. If you can catch a river rising, it's a great time to fish. @bassnleo is spot on. I would recommend beginning with high or flooded areas that offer protection from current. Find things like current breaks, foam trails, etc. Do you remember that boulder towards the side of the stream that was only partially submerged last week? It's probably holding fish this week. As for baits, I like stuff that creates a lot of commotion like spinnerbaits, bladed jigs, lipless crankbaits, prop baits, etc. The water is going to have less visibility and the current means faster feeding windows for fish. Reaction baits are the way to go. Also, when you find them, odds are good you'll find them stacked up. Good luck!