SM and LM inhabit same places?

[Scorcher214]

Im not a small mouth guy but today i was fishing an area that is known for smallies. I only caught one fish there and it was a 17in LM. Today though i caught a 16 in smallie on a white spinnerbait, right as it hit the water he smashed so hard i thought i had a big pike on!

Anyways, i continued fishing and didnt catch another one the whole day. Im think that they were heading into deeper water because it the sun was starting to become right on top of us.(caught at about 11am)

I have a few questions though...Tomorrow im goin out again at 6:30am and im hittin that spot first. Its an area that ranges from 4.5ft-6ft and there are some weeds about 2ft-4ft up. it goes from sandy bottom(2ft) to that area of weeds i just described, then into some deeper weeds in about 10ft of water.

Any tips on how to fish this area for i am new to smallmouth fishing? Thanks fellas!

[Bassnajr]

Hey..

If you are going out that early start out with a topwater...smallies love topwater. As a matter of fact keep a topwater on all day. If you see baitfish busting...you know what to do.

Use a small tube (2.5 or 3.5) on a ball head jig vary the weight until you get bit. Don't forget, tube is a bottom bait...drag or hop it. Where the sand drops off into deeper water should be a nice spot. A grub on a ball head is also a good choice. Vary color and weight.

Good luck!!!

Alan (bassnajr)

[NateFollmer]

Look at the color of the smallie when you catch them. If they are dark with very dark stripes, they were against wood. If they are just dark with faint stripes, they were near rocks or a muddy bottom (smallies hate muddy water!) If they are light, they were near sand and if they get a green tint, they were in grass.

Smallies will stay shallow all day if the water stays cool enough (current is your friend in shallow water). They are a coldwater transitional species so they can live in warm or cold water (they will die in very warm water, while a largemouth may be able to tolerate the same temp).

Smallies tend to hold near rocks and sand more so than wood or grass (if its available) but they can be found in any cover. If there's current, cast upstream and bring you lure down with the current.