Smallies

[TBone66]

So i recently found out that a creek near my house has some small mouth bass in it. Being that i have never fished for small mouth before, i was wondering if some of you experienced anglers can give me some tips and get me headed in the right direction.

[bamabassman]

where are you tbone? smallies in a creek? man..........some folks got it made man. try downsizing your baits. 3-4 inch worms and smaller cranks. how wide is the creek and so forth. calrity and such. that'll help us to help you pal.

[TBone66]

im in central illinois, The creek is on average a couple of feet deep and the width varies quite a bit. A friend was tellin' me about it. He used to walk the creek and find holes and fish them for a while catch a few then move on. I thought it would be pretty cool to try it but not sure on how to start.

[TravisRush]

tube baits, lipless cranks, drop shotting, shakey heads, topwater, jerkbaits, stick baits...just try to find out their forage and match it with these techniques

[TravisRush]

by the way...you're LUCKY!

[Mac2]

In the spring, a two hook silver and black rapala fished on the outer bends of the creek....floating, twitching, pausing or a moderate retrieve will all work at various times.

Tiiny torpedos will work topwater well and tubes and worms underneath......generally smaller hardbaits are the way to go, including some of the rebel tiny craws in natural colors. For tubes,

I also suggest dropshotting with a wacky rigged zoomie.....that's a zoom speedworm body minus the tail. Dropshotting will get it down in the pool's current well and an occasional twitch or two will work well.

[BigBassin144]

A lot of people will tell you to downsize for smallies. I normally won't if they're biting good. Last year in the river that runs through Toledo, people were catching big smallies on tubes that you'd think only a bucketmouth could eat.

That begin said, not all LM baits will work great for smallies. Bottom baits like jigs, tubes, craws, etc are great because they mimic craws. Around here, the goby bite has been hot. we fish them on a jighead or dropshot. Crankbaits for great for smallies as well. Oh, and topwaters, smallies like topwaters.

BB

[BigBassin144]

Oh, I forgot to add, when we dropshot in the current (in the Detroit River) we use 1/4-1/2 oz dropshot weight as opposed to the lighter 1/8 and 3/16 you'd normally use.

BB

[Bassboss]

Ok, never caught more than one small mouth in my life, but I do know something about them and fishing clear water! Try using a rapala shad rap, shallow diver, since the creek is clear, rapala cranks will be great since they have no rattles! Also try things that mimic craw dads such as jigs tubes cranks, etc!

Good luck and good fishing!

[Bender]

If they are in the mood for topwater that can be the best. Don't be afraid to try it any time of the day and try spooks and pop-Rs with varying retrieves. Some days they just won't go for it.

[woody]

Welcome to the site Tbone!

Besides finding smallies in those deeper holes and outer bends, look for them feeding at the exits of chutes(fast water). The smallies will be waiting there to ambush baitfish swept down the chutes.


~Mark

[TBone66]

Thanks a bunch for the tips. I think i might go give it a try this weekend.

[3dkicker]

I've fished a bunch of streams and small rivers similar to the one you described. They are a lot of fun in the summer when the water level drops and you find them in the pools. We use Yamamoto spider grubs most of the time and they work well. Small tubes and 2" or 3" grubs would work too. Any crawfish imitator should work. Turn over a couple stones and see if you can see one or two and try and match the size and color. Small crankbaits will work also. I'd try a fluke or small super fluke.

[CCbass]

He is fishing a creek, think like a trout fisherman, small plastics, light line, going with the current with the bait. If there are still pools yes other mentioned baits might work but if its a small creek, think like a trout fisherman.

[North Branch]

We fish a couple of creeks that feed the Susquehanna river. Surprisingly, Mepps and Rooster Tail spinners work very well. So does a Rebel Tiny Crawl.

[66KingFisher]

I grew up fishing clearwater creeks and streams and the first thing I learned was to fish smaller baits.....not just for the smallmouths, but for the other species as well.....goggle eye, rockbass, pumkinseed, and even largemouth....just smaller versions than what you normally find in rivers and lakes.

Small craw colored jigs and tubes are great.....i've caught a zillion creek fish on Beetlespins.....most any small crankbait will produce fish....just keep them shallow running since most creeks are just a few feet deep anyway. Don't forget to throw an inline spinner occasionally....they are always good for some creek fish.....any bait that'll look like their forage food....small crawfish, madtoms, hellgramites, minnows, grubs, etc

Have fun......Wading a stream is some of the best fishin in the world.

[bassboy11]

you can use alot of things like some small rapala's or really any soft bait will work