River Fishing Or Lake?

[Brent Christian]

What do you prefer and why? Like to have a good thread here...

[flyfisher]

Both but for me it depends on what species I am wanting to target that particular day.  For largemouth I hit the lakes and for smallies i am hitting the rivers and creeks.  There is also the time allotted to fish as ell.  There are a few river access points pretty close that i can do a paddle up and float back i na few hours where the majority of lakes i like to fish are about 45 minutes away.

[Catch and Grease]

For largemouth I like lake fishing way more than rivers...

[RoLo]

I do both, love both, and allow the 'target species' to select the ecosystem.

 

Stream fishing can be more challenging than lake fishing because of the incessant water current.

On the other hand, streams are a blended ecology with a higher nutrient turnover

and higher tolerance for water temperature change and weather change.

 

In the main, feeding periods on a power reservoir will be closely tied to hydrodynamic generation (water release schedule).

In contrast, the feeding periods on natural lakes are random and unpredictable.

 

Roger

[WVbassin87]

I fish rivers mostly. smallie are abundant here, the river is 20 minutes away too so that helps. as someone without a boat, i feel rivers offer me the best chances for catching fish. if bass go deep fairly far out in a lake, i stand zero chance. but even in summer here, you can fish relatively shallow and still fair pretty well.

[Chris9999]

I definitly like river more, I like it because I love bank fishing and wading and getting close to those eddys and slayin em.

[Balshy Fishing]

River fishing for sure, not even a question! Nothing better than throwing into a current, bringing your twister outta' the rapids and getting slammed by a smallie. 

[Brent Christian]

I fish rivers mostly. smallie are abundant here, the river is 20 minutes away too so that helps. as someone without a boat, i feel rivers offer me the best chances for catching fish. if bass go deep fairly far out in a lake, i stand zero chance. but even in summer here, you can fish relatively shallow and still fair pretty well.

we have a placew on greenbrier river I love it up there its amazing fishing

[Brent Christian]

Well guess I can answer it now, I love river fishing but I fish the Ohio River so its a pretty good size river. Don't get me wrong I love lake fishing but if I had to choose it would be river..

[Scott F]

Lakes for pre-spawn fish, rivers the rest of the year. When the heat of summer drives bass deep in lakes, they are always shallow in the rivers I fish. The hotter the river water, the easier the fishing. Even through the fall, smallies are soooo much easier to get in rivers. Access in rivers isn't easier, but if you can float to them, you can get them.

[USMCKoontz]

Love fishing creeks and Rivers myself. Of course growing up fishing almost nothing but rivers and creeks helped. I honestly hve only fished a lake around 10 times, and that was 10+ years ago. I hope to change that when I get my boat though.

[everythingthatswims]

Rivers are definitely my favorite, I can read a river WAY better than I can read a lake. I get along well with current and clear water (99% of the river fishing here in the summer). Also, (maybe it's just me) I always catch nice, chunky, healthy bass in rivers, in lakes and ponds you can catch a chunk on one cast and a fish that looks like it is going to die from starvation on the next!

[DILLY07]

I like both. I like fishing in the river cause each time it floods, It changes the field such as new tress, new laydowns, everything that it was NOT there before. 

[midgastumpjumper]

I like fishing the rivers herevfor shoal and spotted bass. I like being out in nature and u don't have to fish so deep. I like to fish lakes as well though, just going out and chilling on the boat is nice sometimes

[iabass8]

Slow, gradual rising large river systems are something I would fish every day.

[starcraft1]

Hard one to ans. Lakes, Lake Oroville is out my back door unless it's low then it's the west branch of the Feather river. Rivers, I grew up on the San Jaquin side of the Cal. delta.

[Catch and Grease]

I'm surprised so many people prefer the rivers, I thought this would be a close poll not a blowout! Haha

[CTGalloway21]

I fish from a kayak and nothing beats moving water and fishing shoals like in a river.  I am talking smaller rivers though where boats can't go.  haha

[Master Bait'r]

Lakes if I had to choose.  

 

 

But I'd say some of my favorite stuff is the lakes in the area that are formed alongside rivers.  Kind of like river tidepools, they keep the water fresh and the fish...  Well, there could be anything in there.  Complete with pads, coves and tons of laydown...  They act like catch-all for dominant fish.  Tons of fun to go to those places.  

[NathanW]

Lakes for pre-spawn fish, rivers the rest of the year. When the heat of summer drives bass deep in lakes, they are always shallow in the rivers I fish. The hotter the river water, the easier the fishing. Even through the fall, smallies are soooo much easier to get in rivers. Access in rivers isn't easier, but if you can float to them, you can get them.

Totally agree. Prespawn is difficult on our river systems but once its over the smallies are always biting. Statement right on the money.