Drop Shot for smallmouth in summer

[juicebass]

I can find smallies all season in the spring in big numbers! Theyre always by the flats where the boulders/rocks and weeds are. Once summer arrives i cant catch them in their spring spots and i have yet to learn how to DS or fish deep and slow..

 

From what ive read it seems like fishing drop shot might be the best way to catch them.. I have a Garmin so i can locate structure and locate fish on the graph.. What would be the best places to look? i am on a big body of water, theres lots of grass and there is a channel also.. should i be looking for deep holes or humps? deep drop offs? Holes with rock or boulders? would the channel be the best place to look?

 

I have yet to fish deep and would love to learn where i should start looking.. I imagine drop shotting is the best way? Also how long should i wait before moving on if i dont get a bite in a location??

Thanks!

[SWVABass]

I live in the sw and our water temps will get into the 80's on the surface. I usually catch them on points, humps, and along the main lake shore on the first major drop. Usually in 10-15 fow.

[stk44]

Spring is all about the spawn, so once the bass are spawned out, some may stay and most will go (but not all with go far). On clear lakes, I've had success drop shotting on main lake points and humps in the 15-17 ft range but you may be fishing much deeper depending on the body of water.

 

Only you will know when it's time to move on to the next spot, but I would say no more than 30 minutes per spot without a fish. I fish mostly from a kayak, so I typically don't have the energy to hit the same spots multiple times on bigger lakes, but you have that luxury in a boat. 

 

Once you get on fish, if the action dies, try a different bait, presentation, etc. If you don't have any luck, let them recharge and hit another spot before heading back to try again. The drop shot isn't always the best choice. 

 

I'm newer at the deeper water thing because most of the lakes I fish have active fish in less than 10fow in all seasons but winter. Don't let the depths freak you out, think of the depth you are fishing based on the size of your boat (e.g. even if you are in 40fow, that may only be 2x the size of your boat.) 

 

Good luck.

[J Francho]

I fish a big body of water for smallmouth - Lake Ontario.  It's all about locating bait fish, not bass themselves.  Bass can be scattered on seemingly uninteresting structural components, but if there are bait fish, and I mean carpets of them, there will be feeding bass.  On the graph, it almost appears like they craw out of the woodwork to take your bait.  Use the 200 mghz setting for a narrow cone, and get the sensitivity dialed in to be able to see your weight and the worm clearly.  You'll see the fish approach, and shortly after feel them take the bait.  Reel into them with a light snap set, and it's on.  Good luck.

[Dwight Hottle]

Like John said you need to look for bait fish in the 20-40 foot depths. On Erie they can be found as deep as 50-60 fow. 

[juicebass]

On 2017-11-29 at 9:41 AM, J Francho said:

I fish a big body of water for smallmouth - Lake Ontario.  It's all about locating bait fish, not bass themselves.  Bass can be scattered on seemingly uninteresting structural components, but if there are bait fish, and I mean carpets of them, there will be feeding bass.  On the graph, it almost appears like they craw out of the woodwork to take your bait.  Use the 200 mghz setting for a narrow cone, and get the sensitivity dialed in to be able to see your weight and the worm clearly.  You'll see the fish approach, and shortly after feel them take the bait.  Reel into them with a light snap set, and it's on.  Good luck.

Does bottom structure matter at all then or should I just give all my focus to finding the bait fish balls?

 

Like in the spring finding the gravel/rocky/boulders is where are the smallies seem to be. 

As for looking at where to start on the map, I’m guessing hit all the main lake points and humps to locate the bait fish?

 

are bass usually on bottom or suspended?

 

Also does water clarity matter for fishing deep? There’s some really clear water and really muddy water where I go out. Would fishing in 15 feet plus dirty water just be more difficult?

 

 

[J Francho]

Bottom structure matters.  You're looking for smaller interesting elements in much larger elements.  Look below.  I have like 50 waypoints in this area.  Some are catches, others are definite things like rock piles, boulders, or sink holes that the map won't show.  There's a even a patch of weeds that used to grow back every year.  It hasn't in a while.  All those waypoints describe a a path that bait and predators use.  Find a large area like this, and start to define your search boundaries, and it becomes a little less confusing.  I pretty much use 25-30' line as my "beach."  I'm thinking that you'll probably scale that down, but the idea is similar.  Fish are sometimes suspended, but usually very close to the bottom. If you can find that breakline between muddy and clear, and there's bait around?  You're going to destroy the smallies, lol.  Good luck, hope it helps.  We got all winter ti think about this!

 

[juicebass]

11 hours ago, J Francho said:

Bottom structure matters.  You're looking for smaller interesting elements in much larger elements.  Look below.  I have like 50 waypoints in this area.  Some are catches, others are definite things like rock piles, boulders, or sink holes that the map won't show.  There's a even a patch of weeds that used to grow back every year.  It hasn't in a while.  All those waypoints describe a a path that bait and predators use.  Find a large area like this, and start to define your search boundaries, and it becomes a little less confusing.  I pretty much use 25-30' line as my "beach."  I'm thinking that you'll probably scale that down, but the idea is similar.  Fish are sometimes suspended, but usually very close to the bottom. If you can find that breakline between muddy and clear, and there's bait around?  You're going to destroy the smallies, lol.  Good luck, hope it helps.  We got all winter ti think about this!

 

great advice thanks!

[Crestliner2008]

J is correct on all counts. You must know what structure is and how to located it on any given body of water. Not all structures you find will hold bait however. It's just a starting point. Once you locate structure that is also holding bait, then you've got the right place to fish. And locating these structure in deeper water after the spawn, is the challenge. On some lakes it could be at 25' and others 40'. You just have to put your time in on the water, eliminating structures as you go along.

 

And if you check out a structure and it doesn't show bait or fish, don't give up on it. Smallies like to roam. Check & re-check structures each time you go out. Pretty soon you'll establish what I like to call my "milk run".

[DropShotHotShot]

What is the forage? If they eat crawfish, I have had luck using side imaging to find isolated bolders in 20-25 fow.  Once found, position yourself directly above the bolders and drop on it.  Try and keep the weight stationary while moving the bait.  The bigger bass relate to these bolders and will bite. 

[webertime]

Find the bait and the fish will be there.  If there is current in the lake/river you should take note when you catch them of where they are in relation to the structure and the current.  IE current flowing south to north and you are on a hump, did you get them on the front (south) side or on top or on the back (north) side, etc.

 

This year I ran a tournament and my buddies brought in 25lbs (5 of which was a LM) the other 5 SM were from 82ft eating Alewives.   Smallies really can be anywhere, it's all about the bait

[Crestliner2008]

Fry - Forage is anything the bass eat. Mainly here referring to roaming bait balls of smelt, shiner and/or perch. I've never found bait balls and/or bass on the sonar over open wastelands of ope water. Some say they do - especially in the huge expanses of the Great Lakes fishery. I've always look first for structure and then for bait. I've never focused on the bass themselves. Been pretty successful doing it too. You must first know what structure is and how it shows up on your sonar. That only comes with time on the water and study.

 

In order to better comprehend what structure truly is, I'd recommend reading Elwood "Buck" Perry's book entitled, "Spoonplugging for Bass". Do a search to find it easily.