Smallmouth Fustration

[MCTFisher9120]

Once again I went down to the Lake O harbor in Oshawa to do some smallmouth fishing off the Pier...on the right side of the Pier was lot's of smallmouth but they were deep down..I saw lots cruising around in the 1-3lb range but none(except 1) would commit to any bait I was throwing at them. I was told by a person that they were there chasing baitfish around...so I tried a green tube for awhile, then chartreuse, then a white X-Rap shad...then a spinner, then a chigger craw, then...like I tried a bunch of baits and a Glass Shad Rap was the only thing that got the fish to look at the bait...and that was because I moved down the Pier to shallower water, they would get right close...twitch...twitch...then nothing, and this was after i let the crank bait fall for up to 30seconds.

 

Any suggestions for tomorrow morning down there...I thought about a drop shot off the Pier with a 5" Gulp Leech.

 

Thanks for any help/suggestions.

Edited July 14, 2009 by Mike The Bass Fisher

[Toronto_Angler]

Honestly I find worms work best on Urban Bass. The can seem to resist a good old nightcrawler when nothing else is working. Guess its the fact that they've probably seen everything thrown at them in terms of artificials.

[Marko]

About 95% of all the bass i got in my life were on worms, problem with using worms is that little fish will eat it as well so expect to have bunch little nibbles and little fish

[BITEME]

Catch the minnows in the area and use them

[Guest ThisPlaceSucks]

i would suggest that if you can see the bass, they can see you. don't stand where you can watch the fish checking out your presentation.

 

secondly, i would suggest a very small diameter fluoro tip, smaller tackle, slower presentation when fish are slow. this could mean using jigs with very light jigheads...possibly STARTING with these presentations before you go throwing large tackle in front of them that may just spook them.

 

that, and as suggested, sometimes live bait is still king.

[lovemyprovince]

drop shot. or weighted wacky.. something they never saw before.

[I'mHooked]

spear gun should do the trick.

[diggyj]

I'd try a Hollow Belly Swimbait. If shallow rig it weedless and retrieve slowly. If they are deep rig it for open water with a weight and treble hook.

 

Dirk

[craigdritchie]

Fish in urban areas like that have seen everything. Gotta agree with others, live bait might be your best bet. Go major stealth with light fluorocarbon, a really small hook (no. 8 or 10), the smallest split shot you can get away with (positioned at least two feet up the line from the hook) and either a small worm or a leech hooked once through the nose. I'd go with the leech personally, as worms tend to bring on the perch and gobies in a huge way.

 

Never met a smallmouth anywhere that could resist a leech, especially in mid-summer.

[ecmilley]

I have caught lots of smallies off the piers in the area, slow and natural colours always worked for me, with all the gobys a brown/purple strink king coffee tube dragged slowy on the bottom, carolina rigged senko styles baits, sinking cranks like a cc rattlin spot have produced for me in that area for years crankem in let them fall reaction strike on the fall .

and as mentioned it's hard to beat live bait on these pressured fish, also there is many different bait fish spawning in the shallows right now the fish most likely have had a full belly and not intrested in a meal

[Burning Babies]

You might try an ultra-aggressive retrieve. Something like ripping a jerkbait as hard as you can in eight foot sweeps, or ripping a very heavy jig off the bottom and letting it hammer back down.

[Rich]

Lipless crankbait in the most natural color you can find. Whip it out as far as you can, rip it back fast. When you think you're reeling fast enough, speed up!

[MCTFisher9120]

Lipless crankbait in the most natural color you can find. Whip it out as far as you can, rip it back fast. When you think you're reeling fast enough, speed up!

 

I tried a Berkley Feeding Frenzy lipless and got nothing...i was reeling it in fairly slow to get it to go deeper in the water...even tried popping it up of the bottom...still noting, I'll try this ultra fast thing though, and well I don't got any untra light gear so noting I can improve on there...going to try the drop shot first though with both gulp night crawlers(look exact same) and those leeches...

 

I'll update after I'm done out there tomorrow...hopefully with a picture for you all. Thanks for the tips and such.

 

MTBF

[Kenny G]

I always do well for smallies with a white "Power bait" grub 3"

Actually this past weekend even the largies too.

Kenny G.

[CLofchik]

Could just be the time of day too, I've been casting off piers for salmonids and seen schools that were in the hundreds. Would only eat right at daybreak, once it got past 06:00 they wouldn't touch anything.

 

Then there's the days where's there's been a good onshore breeze for a few days, tons of warm murky water. Trout are all gone but you can't keep the bass off baits. I don't know how pressured they are, there's hardly anybody out there fishing during the summer. Clear calm water is just hard to turn neutral fish.

[Twocoda]

why not try something against the grain....

 

EVERY SPRING for the rainbow run when im running spawn bags the bass are actually a hindurance to the fishing for stealing bait or hookin them out of season....so why not tie up some bags and give it a shot?.....If you do ...and it works out for the better ....give a shout out to the administrators that TWOCODA IS A FISHING GOD!!! Please give him the member status....lol...( obviously no mosesty in my family...)

 

IF only i knew how to change it ...i would do it myself...

 

Luck got nuthin to do with it !

[charlied]

live minnow just off the bottom should work!

[Rich]

I tried a Berkley Feeding Frenzy lipless and got nothing...i was reeling it in fairly slow to get it to go deeper in the water...even tried popping it up of the bottom...still noting, I'll try this ultra fast thing though, and well I don't got any untra light gear so noting I can improve on there...going to try the drop shot first though with both gulp night crawlers(look exact same) and those leeches...

 

I'll update after I'm done out there tomorrow...hopefully with a picture for you all. Thanks for the tips and such.

 

MTBF

 

Talkin' bout a fish that will swim up from 25fow to hit a spook.. Trust me dude, big difference with the fast retrieve. Smallies love to chase their prey. Don't give 'em time to think about it!