Best. Smallmouth. Day. Ever.

The weather everyone in northeast Ohio has been waiting for has finally arrived. A string of hot days was missing until this weekend. A lot of people ran for the beaches and parks. I ran for one of the rivers because the hot weather brings warming water temperatures, which makes the smallmouth bass more active. What I didn’t expect was almost non-stop action on the water.

Wanting to hit the river early before the sun starts to bake everything, I set the alarm for 4:30 AM. After downing a quick breakfast I made the half hour drive to one of the prettiest stretches of the Chagrin River. Early arrival guaranteed access to any pool I wanted. Settling in, I carefully waded to a spot that has always been productive. At this point I slipped on a rock, and thrashed around trying to keep my balance. While I didn’t get soaked I did think the pool was toast, but decided to try it anyhow. That was the first correct decision I made on the water. Fortunately, it wasn’t the last.

Nice smallie fooled by the Root Beer Golden Retriever. The fish couldn't resist it today.

The second correct decision was on fly selection. During the summer I rig up two rods. One rod is for a streamer, and a second rod for a topwater popper. For the streamer, I tied on a Root Beer Golden Retriever. This is a streamer I have only found in one fly shop in Virginia, Mossy Creek Fly Fishing. Tied with a No. 10 hook, it is basically a brown color with some crystal flash. Today it was deadly. Within the first 15 minutes I hooked into five smallies. Maybe I’ll thrash around the water more often.

Only 1-1/2" in length but it's an ideal baitfish imitation.

Moving down the pool I switched to the topwater popper. It’s actually a Sneaky Pete, which has rounded head. It displaces the water by sliding instead of popping, and creates enough disturbance on the water to attract fish. It was like a magnet today. I made a cast to the opposite bank and gave it a strip. On the pause a smallie came to the surface and sucked it in. A nice fight took place but in the end the bass found the net. Topwater strikes are the best part of fishing for smallies. I found they don’t sip in the popper, they attack it.

The rest of the day I alternated between the streamer and the Sneaky Pete as I made my way through the park. When my day ended I was into double digits in smallies. But the highlight was catching a creek chub on the Sneaky Pete. I always thought chubs were bottom feeders but one of them couldn’t resist attacking the Sneaky Pete.

This is an above average size creek chub. It couldn't resist the Sneaky Pete.

Now for the downside of the day. You may wonder how could there be a downside when the action was constant. Well, I missed another six strikes, mostly by not paying attention. And, the biggest smallie got off at the net. I stretched to get the net under him but missed. I must have put some slack in the line as the smallie spit the fly and quickly swam off. Oh well, I guess you can’t have everything.

Go out and fool a fish!

Nothing Beats Wet Wading for Smallmouth Bass

A great morning to be on the water.

The weather has been hot, and so has the fishing. Even with water conditions being low and clear, the smallies have been active. They’re not picky either. They are taking streamers and topwater with equal enthusiasm. Add the fact that the waders are put away for awhile, and it makes for a great day on the water. Wet wading in the summer makes up for all the times during steelhead season when you need four layers of clothing.

This smallmouth inhaled the Sneaky Pete. Look close and all you can see is one of the rubber legs sticking out of his mouth.

(Click on image for a larger view.)

I've been rigging two rods. One will have a baitfish imitation, usually a Golden Retriever. The other rod will have a topwater fly, and my go to topwater fly has been a black Sneaky Pete. I don’t feel a need to switch to something else. It’s working in both low water and deep pools. Why change? I’m amazed at how even small fish attack this popper. I’ve had rock bass and small, smallies inhale it. They must strain their mouths to get around the hook. I like it so much that I had to rescue it today.

Even a small rock bass wants that popper.

I was fishing a big slow pool, and had already picked up a couple smallies when the quiet water was interrupted with a splash. A smallie surfaced and attacked the popper. I set the hook and the line goes slack as a knot gave way. Looking at the water I noticed the Sneaky Pete surfaced. Thankfully, the water was barely moving. I was able to get downstream and using the net, grab the popper. After I grabbed the popper I realized that the Sneaky Pete was the very first fly I purchased when I took up fly fishing six years ago. Now I’m superstitious and sentimental.

Go out and fool a fish!

Resident Smallmouth Fishing Is Picking Up

Beautiful morning at Helen Hazen Wyman Park on the Grand River.

(Click on image for larger view.)

By mid-June the lake run smallmouth bass season is just about over. Oh, there may be a straggler or two in the northeast Ohio rivers, but for the most part they are back in Lake Erie. Now is the time of year that fishermen can have a section of the Grand, Chagrin, or Rocky rivers all to their own. The water is heating up, and so is the fishing for resident smallmouth bass, carp, rock bass, and bluegill/sunfish. Match the rod and line size to the fish you’re targeting and even a small fish can be fun to catch. And, the catching has been good.

I have had good success this year whether I’m throwing topwater or a small streamer. The resident smallies have been especially aggressive, hitting all colors of small baitfish imitations. Throw in a couple of nice topwater takes on a Sneaky Pete, and it makes for a fun morning.

Yesterday, on a stretch of the Grand River that only two months ago was elbow-to-elbow with steelhead fishermen, I had the river to myself. It ended up being one of my best days fishing these rivers. I probably had over 15 hookups, landing most of them. Even though most were small, I had a blast. Using a 4wt with light tippet is ideal for the resident smallies.

Smallmouth bass sem to be hitting just about any color streamer. 

This one fell for a chartreuse woolly bugger.

The interesting part is the smallies liked any presentation. It didn’t matter if the fly was swung, stripped, or just hanging at the end of a drift. They were on it. The topwater action I had with the Sneaky Pete was when it was moving. They had no interest in a motionless slider.

Very typical size for a resident smallie. It's  fun catching them on light tippet.

This is a great time to be on the water. If warm weather, solitude, and a chance to catch some fish is what you are looking for, get out there.

As an update to the previous post on the banana superstition, I’ve had three excellent outings since giving up bananas as a fishing snack, and I’m now a full blown superstitious fisherman.

Go out and fool a fish!

The Rivers are Back

If you live in Ohio then you know how much rain we received during the Spring and early Summer. For the most part, the rivers in many areas have not been fishable. Even if you have a kayak or canoe it’s been difficult getting out. Well, the weather finally broke in northeast Ohio and the rivers are now in good shape. In fact, as with all spate rivers that get their flows from weather fronts, we could use some rain. The flows and levels are quite low.

I had one of those weeks when I was able to get out three times. As much as I like steelhead season nothing beats this time of the year. Warm temps, early sunrises, and empty rivers make ideal conditions. I fished three different spots on the Grand and Chagrin rivers and did not see another fisherman. I’m sure they were out somewhere, just not where I was.

During the middle of the summer these rivers have a variety of species for an angler. For the panfisherman, there’s crappies and bluegills. On light tackle or a 4wt fly rod they are fun fish to catch. Smallmouth bass provide a fight for any fisherman. The resident smallmouth, while not the size of their lake run brothers, will not give up when hooked. Finally, for those fishermen looking for a bruiser there are bottom feeding carp. I’ve not hooked one but word is they will run you into your backing very quickly.

Smallie caught on the Grand with a black wooly bugger.

(Click on image for a larger view)

 

Most of the fish caught this week took several different colors of wooly buggers. White and chartreuse have been my best colors but now I’ll have to include black. In the past, I’ve not had much success with black but that changed this week. Several fish came to the net dangling a black wooly bugger out of the corner of their mouth.

I've also been throwing some terrestrials with some success. The bluegill below took a beetle pattern.

This bluegill grabbed a beetle pattern only seconds after it hit the water.

 

This morning I hit a stretch of the Chagrin, and using a white wooly bugger hooked into a nice size smallmouth within the first ten minutes. A few casts later another one grabbed the fly but I must have not set the hook well. It was off after a brief fight.

Moving downstream to a deep pool I switched to a topwater Sneaky Pete. This has a size 8 hook which may be too big for most of the fish. Over the course of 20 minutes I had about six hits but missed the hookset on all but one. It was time to downsize. I pulled a red and white popper from the fly box that is designed for panfish and two casts later a smallmouth attacked it. I played it for a bit but close to the net it got off. Fishing on the surface is so much fun!

This smallie fell for a white wooly bugger. It put up a good fight.

 

Walking back to the car I realized that I may no longer be a beginner. I’ve been fly fishing for five years and looking back at where I was two or three years ago there’s a big difference, and it is not only because I’m catching more fish. There’s a comfort level in knowing where the fish may be holding. Learning how sunlight affects the fish and the rivers has me looking at areas to fish differently. There have been many outings when I would catch a couple of fish early before the sun hits the water only to lose the bite once the sun makes an appearance. Find the shade and you will find the fish. This was true today as well, concentrating on shaded areas of the river I was able to extend the bite.

Can’t wait to get out again and learn something else.

Get out and fool a fish!