Smallies this spring!!

[Sagittarius62]

Well I have learned about a small(30 to 40 feet wide, 2 to 8 feet deep) river near home that allegedly teems with smallies in May and June. I have never fished for river smallies on purpose with tackle or a fly rod so I am pretty much in the dark. I have been told that the preferred lures are various Mister Twisters(sounds like Wooly Buggers might be a good starting point). My question is do you try for dead drifts? High stick nymphing? Do you do the downstream swing? Pitch and retrieve? All of the above? What tactics work for you guys?

[Micropteris]

All of the above. Woolies in white, olive, brown, and black are a great start. Big nymphs, streamers, and surface baits like poppers and sliders all work great too.

Smallmouth are great fun on regular gear and fly gear.

[FK]

Try all of the presentations you describe and let the SM tell you. Seriously, the presentations will change with bottom structure, water level (spring run off vs. dry weather) and where you are standing relative to the current. I have fished a pool with nothing happening,,,,taken a few steps down or upstream and suddenly they start hitting.

Smallmouth bass are my favorite river fish and are much smarter than trout. The SM will recognize a color or type of fly quickly and you should consider changing often if the bite is off.

Regards,
FK

[Fly_Line]

If you want to catch smallies, this book is a great resource.
http://www.smallmouthangler.com/index.html

[Danny Gober]

Just get out as much as possible. Spring smallies usually are very aggressive. Beadchaineyed wooly buggers, gurglers, flashdancers, streamers. Plus don't stop because summer comes, smallmouth just tend to be more selective and smaller. Dan

[speck]

Unfortunately in most of Ontario we have to wait until the end of June before we can target smallmouth. This makes the catching of the larger bass a bit more difficult. They can't just disappear however and must hold in some of the deeper slower flows. I hope to spend a fair bit of time this summer seeking out those holes in my new kayak.

[hoboflyfisher]

Speck the best of luck to you in your quest for SM. I love Ontario Canada and have been there many times.
I have fished both the upper and lower of the French River, Georgian Bay area, Lake Nippinising (sp), Finger Lakes, along with many other waters over the years. Great friendly folks, fishing, and adventures to be had in Ontario.
Hobo

[Sagittarius62]

Thanks everyone for the your help. I am getting very jacked up thinking about spring. Maybe the snow is starting to get to me.

[speck]

Hobo,

All the waters you have mentioned are connected to Georgian Bay. I have canoe and kayak/camped extensively throughout the area and have paddled the French from Nipissing to Georgian Bay. (Hey, I'm a teacher and I almost spelled Nipissing wrong!)

Over the years I started going into the Moon River basin area which is about 100 miles closer than the French. About 10 years ago the province turned the Basin Area into Massassauga Provincial Park. Now we have to pay to camp and preregister sites so a lot of the fun has gone out of it for me. I love to move where the spirit (and the fish!) moves me and don't enjoy the lack of freedom under the new rules. I will still go there but it's not like the good old days. I used to have to portage in. Now you can drive. Fish are still there though at least most of them. (Can't catch the big walleyes much anymore!)
The first kayak/camp/fish trip I took my son on (He's 22 now was 16 then.) I had to paddle like hell to maintain leadership as he took to it very naturally and was paddling beautifully. I was very proud of him and even moreso when he caught an 8 pound smallmouth. I used to call myself smallmouth until I lost my password and changed my handle to SPECK.
I'm interested in getting up to Quetico Park someday. I turned 60 last summer and am a bypass surgery survivor but I'm in pretty good shape and would still like to be able to handle the odd portage or two. Trouble is all my friends are not that physically fit and the thought of portaging gives them heart palpitations.

I'm also quite interested in getting down to the Southern States some time to experience saltwater yak fishing. If you can make it up here from down in Texas I should be able to get down there as well. Have you ever driven up to Ontario?

[rzh]

I'm realitively new to the fly world, so just out of curiosity, what size flies are best for smallies.


Ron