Help me out smallie guys

[Jig Man]

I am fishing on Table Rock lake.  It is a 40,000 plus acre lake with 1000 miles of shoreline.  I am fishing in the upper James River arm 40 to 50 miles from the dam.  I fish a 5 to 10 mile stretch several several times per year.  I catch lmb and spots regularly.  There is a river channel with gravel roll offs, standing timber along the channel, and lots of chunk rock and bluffs.  The deepest water is around 30’.

 

I normally fish the bluff sides with jigs, worms, and Ned.

 

I haven’t seen a smallmouth in months.  I rarely catch any until December through March.  Do they migrate and are just some place else or am I not looking in the right place?

 

Any insights will be appreciated.  Thanks.

[Fishes in trees]

It has been years since I've been on Table Rock.  When I fished BFL's in the Ozark division, at the time Table Rock was a twice a year stop.  Anyway, what I remember from research I did at the time, small mouth were much more prevalent on the major points close to the dam and then a little less so down into Arkansas.  I don't ever remember hearing about guys catching very many small mouth in the James arm of the lake.   Where you're fishing in the James is a ways from the dam.  That would be my take, that there just aren't that many small mouth there.

However, you fish Table Rock alot more than I do, so you probably have more recent information.  Good luck finding them.

[TnRiver46]

If they were in the area, you would most likely catch them mixed in with the spots and large mouth. They all eat the same things 

[Bluebasser86]

All those beautiful broken, chunk rock and boulder banks on Table Rock, but most of my smallmouth come off boring gravel or sand banks that look pretty plain. I fish in the James a lot around Aunt's Creek to Hideaway Marina when the family goes camping down there.

 

This one was from the shallow, gravel banks at the end of the point where Camp Barnabas is. We caught several off that point on a spinnerbait, dropshot, and grubs. My oldest was wearing them out swimming the trusty 4" smoke grub.

[Jig Man]

Blue I’m more than 20 miles above Pt 10.  They show up in pretty good numbers in the winter but are awol the rest of the time.  I guess I will have to start fishing more of that gravely stuff and see if they are hanging around it.

[Bluebasser86]

Yeah, I'd still check out the gravel/sand banks. It's still where I've caught them at from the dam, Schooner, Big M, Viola, Big and Little Cow, Indian, Mill Creek, and Shell Knob. They seem to switch to the steeper, bluff, stair step type rock when the water temps drop.