Rock Bass Get No Respect

The poor rock bass gets no respect. Fish for smallmouth and often a rock bass will hit your fly or lure. You won’t get a jolt that a smallie can put on a line but a slight bump. Dare I use that word “nibble”? I’ve always thought of them as a warm water fish, so when they start biting the waters are warming, which should improve the fishing for smallmouth. So catching them is a good sign.

Rock bass like clear water with rocky structure. Don't be surprised to catch one when fishing for smallies.

One of the most active five minutes I’ve had on a river involved rock bass. I was fishing a stretch of the Chagrin River with my 4 wt. and came up on a small boulder near a bank. It looked like a “fishy” spot. Casting a small, chartreuse woolly bugger, I let it swing through the downstream side of the boulder. First drift and I feel that slight bump. Sure enough, a rock bass comes to hand. Second drift, same thing. I ended up pulling seven rock bass and one small largemouth from behind that boulder in the next five minutes. Sure, they weren’t smallies but I won’t pass up a chance to catch a fish. A fisherman cannot control what hits their fly or lure. Enjoy the activity. And, with ultra light gear, have some fun.

Go out and fool a fish!

May Has Given Us The Cold Shoulder, Until Now

A cold morning brought out the river fog. Trees are filled in and catching the early morning sun.

Up to now May has been unseasonably cool in northeast Ohio. Temperatures have averaged about 6° below normal. That seemed to have slowed down the lake-run smallmouth bite. There have been some reports of catches, but the river temps haven’t been able to rise to a level that would make them extremely active. If you’re an early morning fisherman it’s even tougher. I know that first hand.

The other day I hit the water after a two week layoff. The morning temperatures were forecasted to be around 50°. Boy, did that local meteorologist get it wrong. I was greeted to temps in the upper 30’s. Not going to get many, if any, smallmouth to chase a woolly bugger at those temps. The good news is the temperatures are going to spike into the upper 80’s for a few days. That should help to increase the smallies metabolism, if the forecast is right.

The last couple of times out I’ve noticed a drop off in the number of fishermen hitting the rivers. The end of steelhead season will do that. I hit a popular spot, looked upstream and downstream, and did not see another fisherman. I had the entire stretch to myself all morning.

What I also noticed was the greening and growth of the trees and bushes. Almost all the trees are full of leaves. This is the time of year when the trails along the rivers start to narrow due to the growth. Paths that only a month ago looked like a two lane highway are starting to shrink. In another month you'll need your elbows to push aside the growth.

Ground cover is starting to fill in, making the paths narrower.

Hats off to Cleveland Metroparks. This path at the North Chagrin Reservation was widened in the fall.

You gotta love summer!

Go out and fool a fish!

Smallmouth Season Is Heating Up

In northeast Ohio we are about a month into Spring and the trees are showing their initial burst of green fuzz. This lime-green growth will morph into a deep green color that will carry us through September.

Lime-green fuzz on the trees as die-hard steelheaders try to catch one more as the season winds down

Similar to calendar seasons, fishing seasons come and go, especially in our river systems. Steelhead season is just about done. Die-hard steelhead fishermen are still hunting the riffles and pools for any remaining chrome. They all hope to catch “just one more” before it’s over. As steelhead season winds down the rivers in northeast Ohio get a lake-run of smallmouth bass. This run can last through mid-June. It’s this period of time where some really large smallies can be caught before they make their way back to Lake Erie. It’s also a fun time of the year because you have a chance to catch a nice size smallie and a steelhead on the same day.

Smallmouth season is heating up.

It’s also about this time when the rivers get less crowded. It seems as though most of the steelheaders do not hunt for smallies, so there’s no need to rush to a spot. A fisherman can have miles of river to his or her own. I know there have been times I’ll fish for smallies and not run into another fisherman all day. Talk about solitude.

So, for bass fishermen, get your gear and head out. For the die-hard steelhead fishermen, see you in October.

Go out and fool a fish!

That Was Fast

It was just yesterday that I posted a story about anticipating the start of smallmouth season. Well, I didn’t have to wait long. And even though I was still targeting steelhead it was fun to catch the first smallie of the year.

I know that the lake run smallmouth season begins around this time but it was surprising to catch one where I did. The creek I was fishing doesn’t have a reputation as a hot spot for catching smallies, but these non-residents are only renting space for a little while. It must have found a logjam it liked, and settled in. I’m sure I was in the right place at the right time.

This logjam held a nice surprise this morning.

After waiting out a rainstorm this morning I started throwing a chartreuse woolly bugger. I fished it through a few holes with no luck. I moved downstream, and made several casts towards a logjam. Each cast got me a little closer to the wood. On about the fifth cast I actually bounced the streamer off the log. I gave a quick strip to move the streamer away from the log and something just crushed it. At first I thought it was a steelhead, but the fish went airborne, and I could tell it was a smallie. It put up a good fight and gave my 8 wt. a good bend. A nice, fat, 16" smallmouth is a good start.

An early spring surprise. A nice, fat, 16" smallie.

Here’s hoping this is a sign of a good bass season.

Go out and fool a fish!

Steelhead Season – Closer To The End Than The Beginning

Early April brings mixed feelings for steelhead fishermen. We have been chasing steelhead since last October, and now realize that the rivers will be devoid of chrome very soon. Each rain event brings in smaller runs of fresh fish. Additionally, there’s been a noticeable increase in spawning activity with many catches being dropbacks. These fish have spawned, and are making their way back to Lake Erie. At some point the catches will dwindle to nothing, and another season will end. But for northeast Ohio this will go down as one of the best seasons in recent memory. Based on reports throughout the season the number of steelhead caught has surpassed previous years. In addition, there was an increased number of larger fish caught. These fish are considered 30/10, 30” and/or 10 lbs. In fact, there have been several catches of 15 lb. steelhead caught in the Lake Erie tributaries. This will be a season many fishermen don’t want to end.

This is short video my wife took on my last outing. Rated N for no fish caught..

For me, it can end at any time. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy fishing for steelhead, but a change of species and weather is welcome. I can replace two layers of socks, foot warmers, gloves, hand warmers, two hats, four top layers, and two bottom layers for a lot less. My 8 wt. rig with a strike indicator, split shot, and an egg pattern will be replaced with a 4 and 6 wt. rod that will be used to throw a streamer or topwater popper in search of smallies.

I want to duplicate this Rocky River smallie about a dozen times.

(Click on image for a larger view.)

The biggest thing I look forward to is being on the river at dawn, in warm weather. There’s something about being on a stretch of water with the sun just starting to make appearance. Beats messing around with iced guides.

This is a great morning to be on the water.

Can’t wait!

Go out and fool a fish!

You Can Laugh Too

I laugh at myself… a lot. The old saying “insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result” comes to mind. And I have it documented. A couple of days ago my wife wanted to go fishing with me and take a few photos. She was taking a movie clip of me and captured a sequence that shows why I laugh at myself.

To set up the scene, I’m standing on the edge of run with some trees behind me that I think will not present a problem. The camera was rolling when I made my second cast. Here it is in gif format.

My fourth cast produced this result.

My fifth cast made it to the water.

Go ahead, laugh. I will..again.

Go out and fool a fish!

It’s Small Creek Time

Fishing for steelhead in March is a wake up call for the fisherman and the fish. In Steelhead Alley, the fisherman realizes that the season is closer to ending than beginning. What started in September is probably going to end by late April. Sure, there will be some caught in May, but the big runs will be over. For the fish, the clock is ticking. Spawning instincts are in overdrive. These instincts push the fish deeper into the river systems. The small creeks become active with fish moving all around. I enjoy fishing small creeks for steel. If they are paired up doing their dance I’ll move on, and try to find some off-bed. This brings sight fishing into play, and I always enjoy seeing an opportunity.

Once again, a storm brought the water levels up. So, the only play was to look for a creek, as they drop much faster, and become fishable days before the main tributaries do. This morning I hit a creek and was surprised how fishable it was. I guess they clear even faster than I thought. The water had a slight stain but visibility was still good, in fact a lot better than I imagined. Now… find a fish or two.

Today, it didn’t take me long. I almost felt like I knew what I was doing. There’s a tailout right near the parking lot that always gets my attention when I wade in. If there’s fish in this stretch, one or two will be sitting in this tailout. Sure enough, I spotted one. This time of the year I always start with an egg pattern. On the fifth drift the indicator disappeared, and I set the hook. Now, that act has been my downfall of late. Set the hook, play the fish for a few seconds, then lose the fish. This time the hook found its mark. The chromer immediately took off downstream into the riffle. Thirty yards later the fish finally raised the red flag. It was done. The hen was beat up. Spawning was over, and she had the bruises to show for it.

This is one tough hen, and she has the scars to prove it. 

After all she went through she put up a great fight.

(Click on image for a larger view.)

Within the next 20 minutes I had two other hookups but once again the hookset didn’t hold. After that, the sun and wind seemed to shut down the bite. Glad I got out early.

Go out and fool a fish!