Early Spring Smallmouth Bass Fishing - Locating Pre-Spawn Smallies!

By Gregory Jackson

Locating early spring smallmouth can be somewhat of a challenging task. However, once you learn and understand a little bit about their migration patterns you can greatly increase your odds of locating smallmouth bass in early spring. If you are thinking about doing some early spring smallmouth bass fishing, check the water temperature, and consider these facts.

The pre-spawn smallmouth bass period can be broken down into 3 phases based on water temperature. These phases are not carved in stone but will give you a general idea of where to look for and locate smallies during pre-spawn which takes place in early spring. The 3 phases are temperature dependent and the fish behavior and location are different for each

Phase 1 - Water Temp. 46-48 degrees
As the water temperature rises into the mid 40's smallmouth bass will still remain in deeper water but will begin moving closer to their shallow water spawning area's. When the water temperature reaches 46 to 48 degrees they will start to disperse and begin filtering into shallow water, usually less than 10 feet deep, in search of food and/or nesting sites. Keep in mind that crayfish spawn during this time so lures that imitate crayfish are a good option during this phase.

Phase 2 - Water Temp. 48-52 degrees
When the water temperature approaches 50 degrees, both male and female smallmouth will be in a full-fledged migration pattern. Most of the fish will now be in shallow water aggressively feeding, moving, and searching for nesting sites. Cover such as rocks, weeds, fallen trees, docks, or any shallow cover in water 3 to 8 feet deep can attract fish.

Phase 3 - Water Temp. 53-55 degrees
As the water temperature approaches the mid 50's, aggressive behavior starts to take a downswing. The males will begin sweeping out nests in shallow gravel, rocks, sand or other suitable bottom composition depending on the features and structure of the lake you are fishing on. The females will move back out to deeper water close to drop offs at this time and wait until they are ready to spawn before moving shallow again. Males can be caught in very shallow water at this time. You will need to move to deeper water to catch the females during this phase.
On your next early spring smallmouth bass fishing adventure, check the water temperature, consider these 3 phases, and you will increase your chances of locating those pre-spawn smallies.

Have you been wondering where the best place to catch smallmouth bass is? Visit early spring smallmouth bass fishing at http://www.squidoo.com/smallmouthbassfishing to find out.

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Sturgeon and Smallmouth Bass on the Snake River!

Fishing For Smallmouth Bass In Rivers

By Trevor Kugler
There are few things that are more enjoyable than fishing for and catching smallmouth bass in rivers. Smallmouth bass, sometimes referred to as "bronze backs", are widely known as one of the hardest fishing species of fish that can be caught in freshwater and when the current of a river is added to the mix smallmouth can give you a "fight" the likes of which you may have never experienced. There is little doubt that fishing for smallmouth bass in rivers is extremely enjoyable and is something that every angler needs to experience.
The term "rivers" is a broad one as rivers comes in many shapes and sizes, but for the purposes of this article I want to focus on the type and size of river that can be waded and fished effectively. Although larger rivers obviously contain smallmouth bass that can be fished for, I like to fish for small mouth's in smaller rivers that I can wade and fish in much the same way that many people fish for trout. This is the type of fishing that I'm referring to when I refer to fishing for smallmouth bass in rivers.
The first thing to point out is that you will more than likely be wading when fishing for bronze backs in this manner. A technique known as drift fishing is an excellent technique to use to catch hungry smallmouth in the flowing water of a small to medium sized river. This simply means allowing your bait or lure to drift naturally with the current of the river that you are fishing. Drift fishing can be done with live bait, spinners, or minnow plus and is a technique that anyone fishing for smallmouth in rivers need to employ.
Smallmouth bass are voracious predators and live baits such as live worms, minnows, leeches, and crayfish are all effective. The easiest live bait to find and carry with you (especially while you are wading) is live worms. No matter what type of live bait you choose to use when fishing for smallmouth bass a key is that you rig that live bait in a natural, yet effective manner. In other words you want your live bait to appear to the bass as it would in nature as much as you can.
When it comes to spinners brands such as blue fox, rooster tail, and panther martin are all effective choices and many smallmouth fishermen like to use color patterns that resemble either a crayfish or a frog. As far as sizes are concerned, you should stick with spinners that are ¼ to ¾ of an ounce when fishing for smallmouth bass in rivers. Minnow plugs are pretty self explanatory with Rapala floating minnows that are from three to five inches long being the perfect choice for many smallmouth fishermen.
The bottom line is that fishing for (and catching) smallmouth bass is rivers can be as fun as "fishing" gets and many times is as much fun as a person can have with their clothes on. If you have never tried it, I would suggest you do sooner, rather than later.
Trevor Kugler is co-founder of JRWfishing.com and an avid angler. He has more than 25 years experience fishing for all types of fish, and 15 years of business and internet experience. He currently raises his five year old daughter in the heart of trout fishing country.
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Dead rolling

Found this technique totally by accident, while fishing a lake in Southern California. I was fishing with a good friend in my boat and he had gotten snagged, so I set my rod down on the deck without reeling in. It had a silver spinner bait on it, that was now just laying on the bottom of the lake. I helped my friend get UN-tangled and turned around to grab my rod and start fishing again and it was about to go over board! I quickly grabbed the rod and proceeded to reel in a nice 4lb plus large mouth out of about 30' of water. My friend and I got a chuckle about him biting a dead spinner bait. So I thought well why not try this again, so I threw the same bait out and let it sit there, in less then a minute the bait was picked up again! This time a slightly smaller bass but, it proved that they would hit a dead spinner bait. My friend then tried the same technique and he caught a nice 3lb bass within minutes also. We used this new bass fishing technique the rest of the day and caught and released well over a dozen bass before the sun went down. So if nothing else is working give this technique a try. By, Todd Inman

Bass Fishing in Cold Water Made Easy

By Allan Simons It is always a very fulfilling experience when you are going fishing. It's the sheer joy of catching a fish every time that makes taking all the pain worthwhile. You don't mind fishing in the sun, rain or moon. You are even ready to go bass fishing when it is somewhere around 45- 50 degrees!I agree it is good fun, but you need to take care of a lot of things while going fishing in that cold. Here are a few guidelines that will help you go fishing for bass at night. The first thing that you should keep in mind is that to keep things slow. Bass like it slow, their metabolism also slows down so you need to give them time to eat the bait. As an angler, you must keep in mind the little changes of behavior of the bass in the cold. You have to be patient, wait for the fish to take the bait; this could make you wait for quite sometime. The key here is not to lose patience. Bass like things to be dramatically slow. Care has to be taken when you are choosing your bait. Jig and pig baits or the jigging baits are the best suited for cold water. Crank baits and spinner baits that are slow moving is something you can use. You have to pick bait that you can keep it in one place at the bottom. To make the bait even more effective, you can add a bit of garlic scent to it. Fishing for bass at the deep. Ends of long points, creek channels and steep bluff banks are a good spot. You cannot expect to expect to get a lot of bites; you just have to wait for it patiently. Paying attention holds the key to bass fishing in the cold. Any smallest movement in your line could mean that there is a bass at the end of it. If anything feels different about your line, be ready to set the hook. It should be mentioned here that you should use an ultra sensitive rod. A tiny jump, the slightest pressure on your line is an indication that you have a hooked a bass. Keep an eye on the recent fishing reports to get an idea of the current scenario of bass fishing in the cold water. These reports will tell you what kind of baits you can use, what temperature ideal for bass fishing, what places are best, where you will find more fish etc. When you are out there fishing in the cold water, make sure you are dressed for the occasion. You possibly cannot fish if you are cold on your feet and miserable. Warm clothes are a must. Layering these clothes will also help in keeping you warm and comfortable. You might want something that can stop the wind and also keep away the rain. Fishing for bass in the cold water requires a lot of adjustments; mental adjustments mainly. You need to be confident that you are here to catch some bass and would not go back home. Being slow and precise in lure presentation is going to help a lot. Plan your fishing day or night, to be more precise well ahead of time and include various techniques to try. Cheers! You are going fishing for bass at night. Allan Simons is an accomplished writer from Australia. He writes about fishing reports and bass fishing in the country. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Allan_Simons Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6638800

Largemouth Bass Fishing Tips and Strategies By Carolyn Anderson

If you love freshwater fishing, you may find that largemouth bass is one of the popular fishes that you may want to catch and fish. In fact, they are great species to catch as most often, they put up a good fight just to get off the hook and that makes them exciting fishes to catch. If you are a fishing enthusiast and you want to learn how to catch this type of fish, you may find these largemouth bass fishing tips helpful. Choose the best bait and lure for your bass fishing One of the important things you may want to take note if you want to learn how to fish largemouth bass is to learn how to choose the bait and the lure. You can actually choose from different baits but of course, a wise choice of bait is one thing that can help you get a huge catch. Among the best baits that do well with largemouth bass fishes are live baits. The bass is a type of fish that loves baits that are alive and moving. Baits that work on largemouth bass may include sand eel, prawns, crabs and small fishes. However, it is important to keep in mind that different baits may have different effectiveness depending on the season. During the winter, the bass fishes may not grab on your baits, making you get lesser catch. If you went fishing on a winter, you may want to make use of artificial baits like plastic frogs. Choose those that move like real frogs to attract more bass. Frogs are effective baits not only during winter but in the summer as well. You can also choose floating worms as a good option in largemouth bass fishing. You can also find baits that can also attract bass by creating motion in the water. Choosing the best time for bass fishing One of the largemouth bass fishing tips that you need to keep in mind if you do not want to end up getting nothing especially during a fishing tournament is to learn when is the best time for bass fishing. Indeed, there are times that are best for largemouth bass fishing and if you are interested in this type of fish, you may need to go fishing early in the morning. Another best time is early at night just right at the time when it is not too dark. Techniques and strategies Master casting accurately. Of course, the best lures and baits may not be that effective if you do not know how to cast accurately. You may also need to learn how to position yourself and your boat well if you are casting your bait out there in the water hoping to catch these exciting fishes. You have to stay as close to what is 'natural' for them. If you are fishing in unfamiliar territories, you may want to learn from the locals and study the area to make sure that you have known the best places to find a good population of largemouth bass and not just go out there and leave everything to chance. Another important largemouth bass fishing tips that you may also want to learn to make a good catch is learn everything you can about the behavior of these fishes. This way, you will also master how to catch them based on how they behave in their natural habitat. The more you can also mimic their natural foods, the better would be your chances of getting a good catch as well. Carolyn Anderson loves to share resource you can use to enhance your hobbies. If you are a fishing enthusiast who wants to explore largemouth bass fishing, check out Largemouth Bass Extreme. Also check out Better Bass Fishing a great guide to help you catch bigger bass. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Carolyn_Anderson Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6154073