One of the hardest parts of river fishing is line management. (Moon Phases, Seasons, Baits). If that bass is cold as ice, you should slow down your fishing. You can still catch wintertime smallmouth bass but the bite will be a good deal slower. On full moon nights, some bass may feed off and on all night long. Literally imagine a pizza cut in half. Smallmouth bass hang out around rocks, rip-rap, and timber. This is also a good time for smallmouth bass fishing in streams and rivers, trolling in the Great Lakes for trout and salmon, and perch fishing on Green Bay and the Winnebago System. The smallmouth bass will face upstream angled towards the current but be resting in slack water to the sides called the eddy. Finesse will still work but in warmer water, I think you’ll be better off with faster baits. For a complete breakdown of the best time of day for largemouth bass fishing, check out the article I wrote. Oftentimes, they have much better reduced-light vision than the prey they readily prefer including crayfish, shad, shiners, insects, and frogs. Shad aren’t that hardy and usually don’t survive capture long. Give the crankbaits a fast retrieve mixed with complete pauses. You will find aggressive bass on cloudy days for sure. As water temperatures drop, fish will be actively chasing down prey — and this lure mimics their food of choice perfectly. Click here to read my full review of Mystery Tackle Box. They are my favorite. For a comprehensive breakdown of the best rods, reels, electronics, line, and baits for both largemouth and smallmouth bass fishing, check out my. Don’t just cast your lures as far out from shore directly in front of you as you can. When the water temperature rises, topping 50 degrees, smallies are on the move. I cannot stress enough to you the importance of using sharp hooks. Look for any feature that breaks up the current. The truth is smallmouth bass feed all day long when food is available but these are simply the conditions when smallmouth bass will tend to be most active hunting and feeding. Even though I feel the morning is the best time of day for smallmouth bass to be caught under most conditions, mornings immediately following the full moon can actually be quite slow as a lot of the bass won’t be hungry. These conditions are ideal because they allow bass to emerge from protective cover where they seek relief from the bright sunlight in the shade. how to fish rivers with strong currents for bass, best time of day to catch smallmouth bass, how to catch big bass in the mddle of the day, best seasons to use crawfish patterns to catch bass. What gives Michigan its edge … If you choose to go with shad, you will more than likely be using dead shad as bait. In order to locate smallmouth bass and effectively catch them, you must first understand current and its intricacies. The best time of day for smallmouth bass fishing is either first thing in the morning from dawn until a few hours past sunrise or in the late afternoon a few hours before sunrise until dusk. Once you catch a bass, pay attention to what temperature the skin of that fish feels like. Change up your color or lure style until you get bass that engulfing that lure. A great time to fish is right before a sudden change in the weather. (Moon Phases, Seasons, Baits), link to Ice Fishing Holes: Diameter, Distance, Patterns, Target Fish, I really like the Deeper castable fish finder, complete guide to catching bass during the summer and in warm weather. all time best smallmouth bass lures, ... already caught several crappies and smallmouth bass when a big fish started ... . When combined, it gives smallmouth bass very good reduced-light color and perception vision. During this season, smallmouth bass will be trying to gorge themselves on shad and other schooling baitfish in preparation for the winter when their feeding will slow down. Right before a rain event or cold front, fishing can be incredible too. I grew up fishing for anything that swims but really cut my teeth fishing for trout, chain pickerel, bass, and bullheads in my teenage years. I really like pumpkinseeds, browns, maroons, and greens. (Moon Phases, Seasons, Baits). Even full fish will be interested in an easy-to-catch dessert item. To learn the importance of quality hooks an see my, Smallmouth bass will bite all day but generally speaking, the best time of day to catch bass are in the reduced light hours or early morning and late afternoon. The moon phase can play a big role in determining when bass feed. These are areas with a heavy baitfish and crawfish load that attracts bass. During the middle of the day, you can still catch bass but you will need to be a lot more deliberate with your casts and slow down as bass will be less likely to chase down moving baits. Don’t bother trying to catch winter smallmouth bass at night. Lake Erie, Sandusky Ohio. You have to know which lure is best for the situation. The number of bass caught can be outstanding due to the higher concentration of bass in those areas. This can make for extremely slow fishing conditions and a slow bite in general. Will Salmon Bite at Night? One category are fish that spend almost their entire year in deep water. Smallmouth bass are one of the hardest fighting and most sought after gamefish in North America. A smallmouth faces upstream in the current. They will feed on crayfish too in order to supplement their diet but fish will be their chief food. Therefore, most nights of the month with less than a 3/4 moon won’t offer very good bass fishing. Any slack in your line will be drug along by current and make it harder to move your baits and deliver quality hooksets. Cold bass don’t like moving fast. because it offers good data, can be cast from the bank, boat, or dropped through the ice, and it is built very tough. If you really want to catch bass on these mornings, fish with smaller baits and move your baits very slowly. If you fish a reservoir, head to the dam where you’ll find rip-rap rocks. After spawning they move out to deeper slackwater areas, adjacent to the swift currents in pursuit of forage. The best time to catch bass around rain events is in the hours before the rain and right up through the 1st half of the rain event. In particular, I’m referring to the middle of the day and nighttime. They will need quick reaction times to grab your bait as it flows by. As a result, most smallmouth bass won’t feed at night unless prey swims right to them. When that battle ended, I had a 6 l/2-pound smallmouth at the boat. Big baits catch big bass. That said, there are definitely times during the day when the bite slows way down and bass become very hard to catch. This is my favorite time to fish for smallmouth bass with crawfish imitating lures. I recommend you invest in a good lure retriever or two. Crankbaits can be great wintertime baits as long as you fish with natural colors. With bellies full of shad, frogs, and other bait, the bass may be very docile and uninterested in food the following morning. But eddies and current breaks allow bass to relax and wait for food to blow by in the current. Go with natural muted colors. But having high-quality hooks isn’t that far behind in importance. They are also locations where you stand a great chance of snagging your lures. Winter Strong current means bass have to exert effort. Best Fishing Times. I also find it the best time of the year on a river to catch numbers of big smallmouth bass. Smallmouth bass can feed all day and all night long as long as there is a good supply of food that is easy for them to catch and consume. For whatever reason, I always catch more bass on cloudy or overcast days than I do on blue-bird sunny days. Instead, fish them more like a finesse worm or flutter spoon. Smallmouth bass will head to shallow bays with weeds or rocks where they can hunt prey. Wear a good pair of polarized sunglasses. To provide insights into this bite on different rivers, I enlisted three top smallmouth bass guides on … Smallmouth bass will continue to bite well during a steady rain but as soon as the rain stops, they will often hold back tight to cover and become docile. What Conditions are Ideal for Smallmouth Bass Feeding? Meanwhile, go with bolder reds or oranges in muddier water. These reduced light periods afford bass a tactical advantage over prey like shad and crayfish which don’t see as well during these time windows. There are generally two categories of big smallmouth bass. If you still want to fish ponds, learn. Go for baitfish presentations. You’ll get a specially curated box of bait mailed to your door every month that you can’t find in stores. When fishing with tube jigs, go with a muted natural color. Selecting lures with some sparkle or flash is great for bright sunny days. EARLY MORNING. In the springtime, smallmouth bass will be emerging from deep water where they spent the majority of the winter. Now on full moon or near-full moon nights, the upper layer of the water can be illuminated by the moonlight which can result in pretty topwater and shallow-water smallmouth fishing. If you are catching big bass, you want the best hooks. The time of day you’re fishing should narrow down you bait choices. They will see your lure coming as you move it so I recommend you cast upstream. You will need patience and a good location, but you can draw in smallmouth bass and other gamefish for hours to come. These will really help you locate fish and visually fish them. During the fall, the best time of day to catch smallmouth bass is the mid-morning and late afternoon. Big smallmouth bass are very smart and hard to trick. Presence or lack of grass. © 2020 Copyright Freshwater Fishing Advice. I have also read a ton of fishing advice from other bass fishermen on the topic. You will be able to see what fish are reacting to and where you should place your bait. If you are fishing in very clear water, you should go with finesse. Instead, cast your bait at angles. Tighter wobbling crankbaits where the wobble is very subtle are best for cold-water fishing. When it comes to smallmouth bass fishing, there is debate among serious anglers whether the early morning or the late afternoon is best. Pumpkinseed, browns, maroons, and dark reds will be your best option. They can cover a lot of ground and help you locate fish fast. There are basically three times during a 24-hour period that are usually the best time to fish for bass. Most ice fishermen don't put a ton of thought towards the diameter of their holes, how much distance is between each, their pattern, or what depth of water they position over. Smallmouth in rivers will hit any lure being an aggressive fish. There is no better or more reliable food source in fall than shad and other schooling baitfish. Smallmouth bass have very good color vision in low light and also depth perception. For winter fishing, go with a shad or craw pattern with a tight wobble. You can catch smallmouth bass in small rivers and lakes but if you really want to chase down big smallies, you need to fish big water. On full moon nights with plenty of moonlight, they will definitely feed but on most nights, their eyes cannot absorb enough light for them to see prey. They only get one shot at food before it passes by or another bass beats them. Among the most common bass fishing tips is the recommendation to go fishing during the lowest light hours of the day for the most bites. What is the best time of day for striped bass? The best Largemouth bass fishing on Pickwick lake is generally between mid-March to May. If your water is muddy, a gold blade can also be a good idea. Smallmouth bass feed all day and potentially all night long so I can’t say there’s ever a time of day when smallies stop feeding altogether. During the winter, smallmouth bass seem to slow their feeding efforts way down. That said, during the late spring and early summer, striped bass will often feed heavily on dark nights on baitfish spawning at the surface. He says from now to March is the best time of year to hook a monster bass here and expects to catch some of the biggest fish of the year. But when bass school up in early spring before the spawn, you will have young buck males swimming alongside big females. Season. MID-PRESPAWN. Always be the most prepared and equipped angler on the water. Fallen trees, rocks, and buoys are classic examples. With a glide bait, you can actually elicit a reaction strike from big bass. You could look into castable fish finders that will cost far less and deliver comparable data. The ideal conditions for smallmouth bass to feed are cooler water temperatures with reduced overhead sunlight and even rain or heavy cloud cover. 12_0.jpg. When combined, it gives smallmouth bass very good reduced-light color and perception vision. These freshwater favorites inhabit Lake Texoma year-round. The best smallmouth bass fishing of the entire year is in the spring on Lake Erie’s nearshore reefs, harbors and tributary streams. While they will eat them … Mid-October through late spring is the best time of year to catch large smallmouth bass in these reservoirs. The nighttime is usually pretty slow for bass fishing since smallies have a hard time seeing in the complete darkness but full moon nights can provide enough moonlight to allow them to hunt successfully in the water near the surface. My personal opinion is that early morning is consistently the best for me. Repeat this process the whole way back to the boat. Want to Know the Best Time of Day to Fish? There are more bait, more bait options, and more space to grow big. Football-head jigs area great smallie bait, especially for cold-water fishing. Light conditions. These will be out cruising for food and will be willing to chase down moving baits like lipless crankbaits, medium-diving crankbaits, spinnerbaits, squarebills, and jerkbaits. Fish a little faster to make those warmer bass bite. In the hours before a rain event, bass fishing can be some of the hottest you can find. This is because smallies will be following schools of baitfish closely and will attack the fish all day long in order to pack on weight. These big baits are dynamite for monster bass, especially in winter and late spring/early summer. Bass dwell in the shoreline and remain within easy casting range in the summer months and springtime in the state. Feel free to check it out for yourself, Underwater fishing lights can be a great way to catch bass at night. In colder water, bass really slow down. While August can be tough and hot in the South, the fishing up North is awesome. Squarebills are a tremendous option for bass anglers here. The fish have finished spawning and feeding heavily. I have caught numerous smallmouth bass in life and also fished during the wrong times of day got skunked more times than I’d care to admit. That said, the best time of day for fishing bronzebacks is early in the morning from dawn until 2 hours after sunrise and in the late afternoon from 3 hours prior to sunset until last light at dusk. This site is owned and operated by Eric Matechak. In clear water, you will want lures with very realistic “natural” looks. They feel comfortable in deep water and that’s all they know. A full moon can provide enough moonlight as to illuminate the upper few feet of the water column to silhouette prey against the night sky and allow for some nighttime feeding to occur. Bass will strike your bait once they deflect off rocks. I really like going with a natural craw or shad pattern. FreshwaterFishingAdvice is compensated for referring traffic and business to these companies. It also affords them the ability to close-in with the prey and position themselves without being seen into ideal ambush sites. 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