Temperature Change

[Smallieaddict]

Hey guys, first post here in smallmouth forum. I was wondering if anyone could help me out with a question. I fish a small river for smallmouth bass, and the water temps last weekend were 57 degrees according to USGS air temps were in 60s wind was terrible 30 mph gusts. I managed about 20 smallmouth mostly smaller fish in the 12-14 inch range. Well the weather forcast for this Saturday is saying air temps in the 30s lows in the 20s and snow. Was wondering if ya'll had any ideas on the effect the cold will have on the smallies and what might be good to throw at em. I was thinking pointer 78sp, jig with trailer, maybe a grub, tube. any help or experience ya'll have will be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot guys. By small river I mean a two cast river. Its supposed to rain as well tonight and tomorrow. I know conditions are probably gonna be tough , but I work a lot and have to fish whenever I can, so I gotta go when conditions aren't always perfect. Was also wondering do the fish suspend in these conditions or do they hug the bottom?

[Mobydick]

The first thing you'll wanna do is slow down, then once you think you've slowed down, slow down some more. I have fished those exact conditions many times on local creeks. Find deeper pockets and eddies and take your time fishing them. I have always had luck working tubes and hair jigs slowly in these areas. The jerkbait wouldn't be a bad choice either, id drift it through pockets. Even with the air temp dropping significantly, since the water temp was 57 last weekend its still gonna at least be in the mid to upper 40's.

Hope this helps! Good luck!

[Nick S]

16 hours ago, Smallieaddict said:

Hey guys, first post here in smallmouth forum. I was wondering if anyone could help me out with a question. I fish a small river for smallmouth bass, and the water temps last weekend were 57 degrees according to USGS air temps were in 60s wind was terrible 30 mph gusts. I managed about 20 smallmouth mostly smaller fish in the 12-14 inch range. Well the weather forcast for this Saturday is saying air temps in the 30s lows in the 20s and snow. Was wondering if ya'll had any ideas on the effect the cold will have on the smallies and what might be good to throw at em. I was thinking pointer 78sp, jig with trailer, maybe a grub, tube. any help or experience ya'll have will be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot guys. By small river I mean a two cast river. Its supposed to rain as well tonight and tomorrow. I know conditions are probably gonna be tough , but I work a lot and have to fish whenever I can, so I gotta go when conditions aren't always perfect. Was also wondering do the fish suspend in these conditions or do they hug the bottom?

On my local river when the temps drop and the water is muddy and rising it's time to go fishing!  If the water is muddy and rising pick a dark colored jig or soft plastic and fish it slow tight to cover in slack water areas. If the water isn't rising or muddy yet from the rain I'd  stick with the jig or soft plastic maybe in a lighter color and fish it slow closer to the current seams. 

 

In small rivers I don't think smallmouth "suspend", most of the time they are hugging the bottom and feeding down, jigs, tubes, crankbaits etc work best. When they are looking up and chasing baitfish those are the times,to throw jerkbaits, spinnerbaits, topwater ect. 

[Smallieaddict]

Thanks a lot for the help fellas..

[Zachary Nute]

Go grab yourself some hair jigs and throw those. They wont let you down. Match that hair jig up with your favorite smaller trailer bait, the Reins Ring Craw is an excellent choice. But anything smaller in profile will work well for the hair jig.

If that doesn't work, I would throw the obvious, which would be a jerkbait. With the drop in temperature, those baitfish may go into shock and a jerkbait would perfectly imitate them.

lastly, I would pick up a bait that's very overlooked. The Super fluke. If the water temps don't drop too much I would either throw that on a shaky head or I would throw it weightless.

Hope this helps, good luck!