Flyfishing for Smallmouth

By Coltin Gresser

The Setup

The rod should be anywhere from a 5-weight to an 8-weight. The lighter the setup means that

you will have to finesse the fish without strong-arming it around. If you are a beginner at

flyfishing for Smallmouth Bass, I suggest you go with a heavier rod. It will give you the wiggle

room you need to help you fight and land these mean bronze-backed fish. With the heavier rod,

you can pull and lift that fish around without the worry of breaking off or having him spit the

hook and losing your fish.

As for the leader, you will need to be using a 4x-5x size. This is going to help with hiding your

line and a more natural presentation for the fish. The line you will be wanting is anywhere from

4-7 pounds. Line size is dictated by the weight of the rod, so be sure to check the line weight on the

rod before loading your reel. The tippet I use is the Rio Power Flex or the Rio Fluoroflex Strong.

This is also going to be a 4x-5x which is about 4-7 pounds. I have seen firsthand how well this leader and Tippet

perform in the field and feel confident with suggesting it to people. If you want to use another type

of line, monofilament 5-7 pounds works just as well for a tippet/leader.

The Flies

Streamers, streamers, and streamers. Oh, did I mention Streamers? These feisty,

small, jawed fish are mostly going to be feeding off medium to larger-sized minnows, crawfish,

and aquatic insects. If you are targeting smaller juvenile fish, then nymphs will be the ticket, but the

main colors that I look for in streamers are black, blue, brown, red, orange, and white. Large

stonefly or hellgrammite nymphs work very well. Just like using conventional tackle, moving

and twitching the fly is your best bet.

When the top water bite comes into season. They can be seen eating grasshoppers, dragonflies, and

many other insects that land on the surface of the water. So, when you see this make

sure you try and match what they are naturally foraging on. If you want to throw something fun,

get yourself a mouse, a frog fly, or a gurgler. I suggest you use the heavier-weight rod and reel (7-

8 weight) when throwing these. You are going to be pushing these flies through the tops of weeds

and lily pads, and need more of a stiffer rod to pull these fish out from the grassy areas.

Where to Fish in a River

During the spring and early parts of the fishing season target the deeper water. This is

where the fish will be stacked up after making their runs up and down the river. Target areas where

there is a shelf in the river or a shallow bottom that starts to drop off. These fish will be traveling

through the runs and will target the drop-offs for food. These shallow areas are great for the top

water bite that will come into play later in the season. When the water temperatures hit 60

degrees Fahrenheit, look back towards the deeper water. The fish will be looking for cooler spots

to hide away from the sun’s heat. Hard woody debris and rocks are great habitats for these Small

Mouth Bass to hide in and under.

Where to Fish in a Lake

The same method of fishing applies to lakes as it does to fishing rivers. The deeper areas

of the lakes during the pre-spawn season. When the season starts continuing and the

temperatures start to increase. The drop-offs will still produce fish and the shallow feeding flats

will start to be hot during the early mornings and evenings. When the water hits 60 degrees Fahrenheit.

The fish will start looking to deeper cooler water.

The top habitats to target when fishing are going to be boulders, rock shorelines, drop-offs, and submerged rock structures.