Feeding Habits Of River Bass Vs Lake Bass

[RiverFisher13]

In an article i read on here a little while ago, it talked about how bass will roam edge lines to find pray rather than ambushing it. I will under stand this for lacks and ponds, but what about your rivers (especially small ones) that don't have this long flowing structure to patrol. Will they hold to cover o roam piece to piece?

[Sam]

Fishing the tidal rivers in Virginia the bass will do a number of things:

1. Take a position facing the moving water and hide behind any structure they can find to grab an easy meal passing by.

2. Go into the grass/pads and backs of creeks and coves at high tide and feed along the shoreline and udner the pads and in the grasses. When the tide goes out they will move into deeper water as the shallow areas lose water.

3. Cruise the bank.

4. Cruise the creeks.

5. Go into an area where there is no moving water so they can rest out of the current.

When we fish the tidal rivers we always throw to any wood, grass, pads, boat docks, piers, moored boats, duck blinds and any structure we can find. The bass will hold to the structure.

Falling tides are the best as the bass will be forced out of the grass, coves and the backs of creeks.

Slack tide is the worse as the bass will not usually feed during this time.

Rising tides are OK but the bass will have more places to hide as the water rises.

Try to throw your baits so that they flow with the tide direction. Remember, the bass will face the flowing water and if your bait runs with the tide there is a greater probability that the bass will hit it.

We also throw to and from the bank and parallel to the bank and grasses until we can establish the pattern.

Good luck and let us know how you do.

Happy New Year!

[grimlin]

Fishing the tidal rivers in Virginia the bass will do a number of things:

1. Take a position facing the moving water and hide behind any structure they can find to grab an easy meal passing by.

2. Go into the grass/pads and backs of creeks and coves at high tide and feed along the shoreline and udner the pads and in the grasses. When the tide goes out they will move into deeper water as the shallow areas lose water.

3. Cruise the bank.

4. Cruise the creeks.

5. Go into an area where there is no moving water so they can rest out of the current.

When we fish the tidal rivers we always throw to any wood, grass, pads, boat docks, piers, moored boats, duck blinds and any structure we can find. The bass will hold to the structure.

Falling tides are the best as the bass will be forced out of the grass, coves and the backs of creeks.

Slack tide is the worse as the bass will not usually feed during this time.

Rising tides are OK but the bass will have more places to hide as the water rises.

Try to throw your baits so that they flow with the tide direction. Remember, the bass will face the flowing water and if your bait runs with the tide there is a greater probability that the bass will hit it.

We also throw to and from the bank and parallel to the bank and grasses until we can establish the pattern.

Good luck and let us know how you do.

Happy New Year!

Nailed it! Follow this advice and remember it. I did and did very well this year.

[ctf58]

Not meaning to hijack, but what about larger "interior" rivers like the lower Ohio River and tributaries that are large enough to barge traffic like the Green River in KY or the Walbash River in Indiana? Are they even worth the effort to fish?

[Sam]

Clint, may I suggest checking with your state's game and fisheries department regarding the bass population in the rivers you mentioned.

You may also want to check local tackle shops as they may know which rivers are productive.

We fish the historic James River east of Richmond and we have barge and ocean cargo ship traffic and the fishing is very good. Same holds true with the mighty Mississippi.

So do some homework and if you get postitive responses give 'em a try.

Happy New Year!

[McAlpine]

Not meaning to hijack, but what about larger "interior" rivers like the lower Ohio River and tributaries that are large enough to barge traffic like the Green River in KY or the Walbash River in Indiana? Are they even worth the effort to fish?

Clint,

There are a ton of fish in the Ohio.....if you know how to fish it. It's going to be pretty tough to catch a trophy but you can catch largemouth, spots and smallmouth all day long. The best part is you can also catch sauger, walleye, white bass, stripers, wipers, drum and some of the biggest catfish in the country. There are plenty panfish in the creeks too. If you have fished lakes your whole life, then it's different and takes some trial and error but you will eventually be rewarded.

[roadwarrior]

Fishing the tidal rivers in Virginia the bass will do a number of things:

1. Take a position facing the moving water and hide behind any structure they can find to grab an easy meal passing by.

2. Go into the grass/pads and backs of creeks and coves at high tide and feed along the shoreline and udner the pads and in the grasses. When the tide goes out they will move into deeper water as the shallow areas lose water.

3. Cruise the bank.

4. Cruise the creeks.

5. Go into an area where there is no moving water so they can rest out of the current.

When we fish the tidal rivers we always throw to any wood, grass, pads, boat docks, piers, moored boats, duck blinds and any structure we can find. The bass will hold to the structure.

Falling tides are the best as the bass will be forced out of the grass, coves and the backs of creeks.

Slack tide is the worse as the bass will not usually feed during this time.

Rising tides are OK but the bass will have more places to hide as the water rises.

Try to throw your baits so that they flow with the tide direction. Remember, the bass will face the flowing water and if your bait runs with the tide there is a greater probability that the bass will hit it.

We also throw to and from the bank and parallel to the bank and grasses until we can establish the pattern.

Good luck and let us know how you do.

Happy New Year!

WOW!

I have nothin' to add!

[Colton Neal]

It all depends on current. In warmer months bass will sit in eddies created by water flowing over points or behind objects that provide a current break like logs, boulders, or depressions. When the water is slack bass will move around a little bit more and chase bait fish in open water. In colder months though, current is BAD. River fish will generally be shallow all year long if there is lots of current. Look for places like sloughs or backwaters, but make sure there is depth nearby, marinas are good places because they usually have some good depth to them and are usually out of the main river current.

[waskeyc]

Will they hold to cover o roam piece to piece?

Based on my observations in small creeks near me, the bass are usually either holding position in slack water, or roaming around. Many times I have observed fish just hovering in slow to moderate current, sometimes behind an obstruction, sometimes just near bottom. These fish are usually harder to catch, especially if they can see you, so this may be their "resting between meals" habit.

One of the few times this year that I targeted a specific smallmouth, he was cruising. At the tail of a fairly large pool, just above some rapids, I saw him swim by in shallow water, then dissappear in the deeper water further up the pool. I thought I had spooked him, but I just sat on the bank and watched. A minute or so later, he swam by the same path again. I watched for about 20 minutes before casting, and he was making circuits about every 1 minute 20 seconds at the lower end of the pool. Once I was confident I hadn't spooked him, I waited for him to pass, then dropped a nightcrawler at the bottom of the pool where he had been passing. When he came around again, he picked it up, then broke me off. I got another nightcrawler and waited for him to pass by again, then dropped it in the water behind him. When he came by, he picked up my second nightcrawler and I was able to land him. It was very obvious to me that this fish was on the hunt.

[ctf58]

Thanks for the answers guys. I was referring to bass fishing. I've talked to Fish and Game in the area and he did not have a clue? He said he did not fish much.. I figured there were bass in the lower Ohio river but it stays so muddy I was not sure. I would love to even have a real bait and tackle shop within 50 miles. Instead we have Walmart and Gander Mounain, and both of them are employed by the average person that does not know anything about the outdoors. I'm going to give the rivers a shot in the spring!!!

[McAlpine]

Come up by Clarksville and we'll go to BPS and you can try the river upstream a bit.

Bass in the Ohio will be either in creeks or tight to structure. It can be a fast river with a lot of volume.

Hit the creek mouths with small spinnerbaits and small jigs where different current meet -- smallmouth. Also, any bank that gets current and has alot of rock like an outside bend--jig--smallmouth. Fish around parked barges and any shallow wood in slower sections of water....you will get tons of spotted bass this way. If you have any marinas near you, standard gear for largemouth. When the water is stained to muddy white/chartruse is a tough combo to beat. There is not a lot of grass on the main channel but if you see some there will be fish in there...it's just your job to get them out.

Good luck, you may just find you have a great fishery in your backyard.

[McAlpine]

Also, don't give up. The river can be tough to learn but once you fins some spots where fish hold it seems like they are almost always there.

[ctf58]

Thanks a ton!! Now you have my hopes up. I live at the junction of the Ohio and Green Rivers. About a mile upsteam from the ramp on the Green River is a old town called Bluff City. It is called that because the river cut into a rock bluff about 75 ft high and large boulders (size of small cars) and rubble cover a stretch of the outside bend about 100 yards long and just down from that is a old coal conveyor belt that collapsed into the river 20 years ago!!! I've caught catfish as a kid there but never thought about bass.

[McAlpine]

If there are catfish there, especially if there are big ones, it's because there are baitfish. Everything follows the baitfish. Sounds like a great spot.