So I've been actively fishing for smallmouth in a narrow river with very little success

[fishwizzard]

I bank fished a small river this week and managed to get a few smallies by throwing a wacky 4" Ocho worm into every deep pool or cut bank I came across.  I like the 4" Ocho a ton, it addition to being short it is far thinner and lighter than most other 4" stickbaits and has great action on the fall.  However, the lightness does make it hard to keep it in the right spot in much current so I am going to dry to use a very light (1/16 or 1/8") drop shot rig next time to see if that helps.  In the calmer pools I was able to vertically jig the worm in place and got almost half my hits that way.  Some times it took like 30-45 seconds of movement to get a bass to dart up and grab it.  

So far I have yet to bust out the waders, but that time is coming soon.  As all the bass I have caught so far are on the edges it will be great to be able to fish both sides at the same time by wading up the middle.  

[DoDFire]

Location, location,location........It happens here on the little pigeon river, they are in different parts of the river during certain conditions and seasons. The hunt is the fun part, we smoke their hind ends on a Zoom fluke (Arkansas shiner) Rebel wee craws (brown orange) and tiny torpedo (green back yellow belly with a little orange) This time of the year they pull out of the shallow little pigeon and hit the French Broad  which is a little deeper river. If the water you fish dumps into another deeper river or deeper pools  I'd bet they have migrated down stream to the winter pools. I always did well casting up and across stream and working the lure down the current seams. The current seams where the water runs slow and meets the faster moving water was always the ticket during the warmer temps for me. Learn to read the current and you can just about point to the spot where you will stick one on the next cast. I bet if you found the deep holes right now and slowed way down (Ned rig, hair jig) you could put a whoop'n on them.

[fishwizzard]

That is interesting.  I fish another small river right about a mile long pool caused by an old dam.  I have never caught anything in the pool before, but can do quite well in the shallow upper area.  I might try fishing the pool over the winter. 

[DoDFire]

I fished places in the Piegon River that were waist deep at the deepest and it was always in June-July when we would fish it and usually between 4 pm till dark. Most of the fish we caught came out of knee deep water  and they would lay right in the seam of the slow moving water where the faster water would meet the slow. They would lay there and wait for something to come down stream to them then run it down and kill it. There was always deep (waist deep) water near by so it was a nice little set up on this stretch of the river. If we didn't catch them in the shallow runs we would catch them in the deeper pools but there had to be something like a boulder or shopping cart (no kidding) in the hole. If they were hiding behind the current break we would do a controlled drift and make the fluke swing towards the back side of the structure, as soon as the fluke would start to swing into the spot they were all over it. That stretch of river was always good and just about 1\2 mile long stretch. That was the only place I have ever caught 40-45 smallmouth in 3-4 hours of fishing and did it several times a month. I'd say it's been 8 years since I have fished it.... man I miss that place. I never fished it in the fall or winter but I know they move out of that area and head down to the deeper holes in the winter. There are a couple of guys that I have heard about that fish tournament's in the winter (Tennessee River) and they run from the dam  for an hour or so to the French Broad river. They take the bass boat as far as they can go till they can't go any further up stream and fish the deep pools they can get into.I've heard checks were cashed from the spot and I have heard it's the "monster" smallmouth that helped cash the checks. The water we fished on the Little Pigeon dumps right into the French Broad and I bet all those deep spots have some fish in them right now........See what happens when you don't get to fish and have to talk about it on a forum. I guess you can tell I don't know how to shut up when it comes to a silly brown fish. Anyways..........A river, some brown fish, cold water, and a few deep holes with a slow presentation I think it would be game on. I'll hush now till the next person brings something up about a smallmouth. 

[Snipe Hunter]

OhioGuy,

I don't know the Little Miami but I do spend a good bit of time chasing smallies. To me smallies are kind of like bluegill, hungry. You just have to find them and not spook them. You said a couple things in your first post the have me thinking... including the picture. One of the reasons I like to fish for them, particularly in creeks and rivers is that they are usually where they're supposed to be. In holes, downstream of big rocks or structure, tailraces and below rapids etc. I also target them in fast channels near rocky areas. Fish are sitting in those areas to ambush their prey. Concentrate on those areas. You said you can see the fish. That means they can see you too. Back off the fish, make long casts above where the fish should be so when the current takes your lure to the target area it's to the depth of the fish. Tie your lures directly to your line, ditch the swivel. It doesn't look very appetizing and it probably adversely effects the action of your baits. You can tie a palomar knot in less than a minute, 30 seconds with practice. Maybe it's the way the light is reflecting off your line but it looks heavy. Drop down to 6lb mono. I'm old so I still use mono and still catch fish with it. It casts well with spinning gear.

 

Somebody mentioned a Rebel Craw. It's a great smallmouth bait on light line. I don't use them much because I never caught a big SM on one and at this stage of my life, I'm looking for bigger fish and honestly, I'd rather not fish with treble hooks when I can avoid it. But when I'm fishing with a rookie, I'll tie one on his rod. He's going to catch something... The rock bass will eat them too.

 

A bait that gets overlooked a lot for SM are spinner-baits. I throw spinnerbaits probably more than any other lure for fast water smallies. For a coupe reasons. One, they have flash and vibration so the fish can find it. Two, they're easy to use and I can manipulate the depth without too much trouble in moving water and three, I can feel the bottom without hanging up. Big blades for slow water and smaller blades for fast water. Most of the time, it will have a chartreuse skirt. The rest of the time it will be white or a combination of both. I use big ones because I'm looking for bigger fish but I fished smaller ones for years and did well with them. Don't be afraid of painted blades on your spinnerbaits for SM.

 

I also use a cheap, home spun lure which I have been fishing over 30 years which is a safety pin spinner on a jig-head and a white or chartreuse grub. It's just a poor man's variation of the old Beetle Spin. I buy all of these pieces in bulk at bass-pro and keep a lot on hand. There's been many times when I caught fish on those when I would have otherwise been skunked. Again, I can feel the bottom without hanging up with this lure. I'm usually fishing just off the bottom, year round. I've also caught red-eyes (rock bass), crappie, bluegill, LM, Walleye and even channel cats on the Potomac with this lure.

Here's a picture of them. They're easy to put together, cover lots of water quickly and they catch a lot of fish and they're cheap so you don't break the bank if you loose a few. What's not to like?

 

And lastly, try a texas rigged or slider head rigged 4" Berkly Power worm. I've done best with "punkinseed".

 

All these tips are high percentage lures and should increase your catch and they all can be fished with 6lb mono on a spinning rod. Once you start catching more fish and getting a better feel for the fish, start up-sizing for bigger fish.

 

[BigSkyBasser]

If it's a smaller river then I generally think of downsizing all of my applications accordingly. Usually fish and they're bait will grow to accomodate the size of their niche. You may find this easier by investing in a nice 6'6" spinning outfit and some light 4-6 pound test flouro. This would be much more ideal for the Ned Rig as previously mentioned as well as any other finesse techniques which would likely be more productive where you are. How troublesome do you think fishing a dropshot would be in these waters? It's my go to for smallies anywhere I fish, including stained/muddy rivers of any size.

[Beckie Gaskill]

I agree with others that a Ned rig would be a good option. Also a small tube or a smaller arkie style hair jig. And definitely lose the swivel. It looks totally unnatural and I would think it would scare away any potential dinners. Smaller line diameter can help, too. I am not familiar with the water you're fishing, but if its stained water, something like a copper copolymer (KastKing has some very reasonably) disappears in the water - at least it seems to - or clear if the water is clearer. But, fir lures, don't be afraid to go a bit brighter - sometimes that helps. 

Target ambush points - places where smalls can hide and wait for a meal to float by on the current.

Good luck!

[Sam]

As stated above, scale down and lighten up.

 

And try the Bitsy Jig in black and blue.

 

Good luck.

[fishnkamp]

Guys he is running a St Croix Premier 6 foot ml spinning rod and a good reel.  He can easily change to 6 pound test and he will be set. That rod is fine in fact very good. I used to chase smallies on the Susqy with several Premier rods.  My suggestion to add to what he already has been given is to fish the small baits that have been listed but also add a swim bait like the Reaction Innovation Little Dipper on a belly weighted swimbait hook. They can be fantastic. When I did fish the Potomac and Susqy rivers for smallies the most successful lure for me was a homemade twintail grub ( like a beetle spin body).  We throw them on 1/8 ounce ball jigs.  Check out the Uncle Bucks lineup for something similar.

[patred]

5 hours ago, fishnkamp said:

 but also add a swim bait like the Reaction Innovation Little Dipper on a belly weighted swimbait hook.

 

For most of last year, I used TRD Finesse worms (Ned Rig) and the Reaction Innovations Little Dippers. Maybe 75% of the fish I caught were on those two.  I mainly fish the Upper Potomac and a smaller "river" near my house.

 

Pat

[fishnkamp]

Those swimbaits just plain catch fish and they really do not have to work them any special way.  Throw them out, let them swim along and then occasionally let them die.  The way they flutter down around a log, rock or whatever cover might be there is amazing.  Just be prepared to get bit!

[fishwizzard]

Added a pack of the Little Dippers to some an ebay order this evening.  I use the Keitech Impacts a lot in small rivers but they get destroyed so quickly.  Hopefuly the RI lures are a little more durable. 

[fishnkamp]

They may get destroyed but are they getting eaten? I have heard goods things about the Keitech but have only used the RI Skinny Dippers. I have a 6 foot BPS Extreme ML baitcaster that gas either a little dipper or a skinny dipper tied on at all times. It gets put on my deck almost before any other rod.  They work in super gin clear rivers, lakes all the way to dark tannic tidal water. I also like that you can fish them unweighted, belly weighted or on a swimjig head. That means from shallow  to mid depths to over 40 feet deep. When you get the chance to fish them let me know how you like them compared to the Keitechs. that will be interesting. 

[fishwizzard]

The Impacts are getting eaten but even a little 9" smallie can wreck one.  They ususly maybe last two fish at most.  They are fragile enough in rivers, but in small ponds a lillypad "V" will rip the tail off of one before I even notice it's snagged.  They are cheaper then the Fat Impacts but still a bit pricy. 

 

In general, 3-4" swimbaits were some of the first lures I ever really had a lot of success with, but last season my attention wanded away from them.  This comming year I want to find ones that work well and really learn them. 

[patred]

3 hours ago, fishnkamp said:

Those swimbaits just plain catch fish and they really do not have to work them any special way.  Throw them out, let them swim along and then occasionally let them die.  The way they flutter down around a log, rock or whatever cover might be there is amazing.  Just be prepared to get bit!

 

Sometimes don't feel like a true fisherman using them.  Cast out, reel in steadily so they swim just below the surface.  Catch fish.

 

Bass Pro Shops makes a "Sassy Sally" which looks almost exactly like the Little Dippers, but they don't have quite the same action.

 

Pat

[fishnkamp]

Most things BPS copies fail to equal the original. If you look in my tackle I own very few BPS house brand products. Now I buy tackle there, just not the stuff they have copied.

[Angry John]

Spinners and a swivel i say yes.  I get the smallest size ball bearing swivel and snap that they sell at BPS or Cabellas.  I have never had an issue with catching fish with them on and no line twist issues after using them.  They are tiny and do a great job.  I like in line spinning baits with french "mepps" or Colorado type blades.  They start up and stay going a lot better than teh willow blades that the normal rooster tails use.  I like a #1 most as they are a good indicator bait and you can catch everything on them from gills to rock bass to trout.  I will upsize if i catch them on the small #1 to a 2.

My top 3 river baits.

1.  A kvd square bill in bluegill in size 1.0

2. A dean rojas cane tumper worm in 4"

3. Small brush hawg in green pumpkin.

 

Any small worm will work, Brush hawgs are great anywhere all the time and the SK square bill does not get hung up as much, works and is not very expensive.  Some 2.0 ewg or round bend hooks a few weights 1/8yths and a coulple squarebills and you should be off and running.  If your in love with the idea of a snap but dont need a swivel like on the crankbaits owner makes a great welded snap that i use a lot and are great.  The smallest size will work well in a river situation.  I always tie direct for plastic presentations.

 

[PatrickKnight]

I fish the Great Miami a ton and there isn't much difference between the two rivers. Tie on a green pumpkin 3-4 inch curly tail and fish the spots where fast water meets slower water and you will catch fish.