can be caught early and late in the day on topwaters and cranks. “This is the time to put on your swim trunks and learn how to waterski,” Galbraith chuckled. As the summer inferno wanes and the cooler fall months beckon, the bite comes back. “The early fall bass tend to stay off shore in the cooler water. Mid to late September and early October is a good time to get back at it,” Gal- braith claims. “Small finesse drop shot rigs off points will work as well as “popping” rattling baits off the bottom. Shad and craw col- ors are best on the plastics while shad or ghost minnow patterns are the way to go on hard baits.” “Winter months can be cold here, but fishermen need to re- member that smallmouth bass are more of a cold water fish than their largemouth brethren,” John said. “Wintertime water temps may dip down to 50 degrees, but this is not a deal breaker on the fishing. These wintertime smallies are actually considered in a pre-spawn mode and can be taken in the 10-15 foot range on a variety of deeper diving hard baits like the Staysee 90DD, LV500’s and other small bodied deep divers. Silent baits in Char- treuse Shad, Shad, and Pearl White tend to do the best,” John says.
Spring 2012
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