How do you fish for SM bass on the French in the Fall

[bigcreekdad]

I've been fishing for muskie on the French in September, and sometimes October, for close to 20 years. While lunge is my target, as my body gets older I like to take breaks from the non stop casting hardware and try for some bass. However, I'm never as successful as I am am in July and August when I throw topwater poppers and wacky worms.

 

Anyone have any advice?

[BillM]

Smallies are most likely chasing giant schools of shad (They are spawning now)... Suspended out over open water. I've been fishing this pattern for about 2-3 weeks and have been laying a beating on them. 20-30 fish evenings are the norm for us. Find the current areas and you'll find the fish.

Edited August 28, 2014 by BillM

[OhioFisherman]

My experience on the French River has been limited to about 3-4 hours of fishing time. We were staying at Pointe Au Baril one summer and a very close friend and his family were staying at the Lunge Lodge, one of his kids is now part owner of it. We took a day away to visit and fish with them.

 

They had been going there since the 70's, and seemed to have this notion that you weren't going to catch any largemouth of any size? I didn't seem to have the same problem, but I was fishing for largemouth in areas I thought they should be.

 

I like topwater fishing, the explosions are cool! but it is not always the best way to go about catching largemouth or smallmouth.

 

If I was to target smallies there? My first choice would probably be a tube in a bit deeper water than for largemouth, a smaller jig with pork or plastic, drop shot, a diving crankbait, a slow rolled spinnerbait in deeper water.

 

If baitfish - shad are present? a white tube has worked well for me, some people don't bother to throw them.

 

They have an annual fall bass tournament now for guests there, it is usually a tossup on which species of bass will take big bass.

 

 

 

[fishindevil]

From about mid September till season closer we will dropshot them and stand on them with tubes & swammers and we do amazing with them when they start schooling up on shoals & dropoffs !!!! Deady technique !!!! one if about 30 smallies caught last year late October just standing on them with a xzone dropshot !!!!!! It was hammer time )

[Joeytier]

Yep, drop shotting a slammer or a gulp minnow on a jig head would be my go to technique in the fall, especially around deep pools in higher current areas. Walleye also move into high current areas in the fall to feed big time! Forget about those big stinky muskies

[Old Ironmaker]

Have been successful in late summer early fall with tubes and dropshoting Smallies. Get as vertical as possible. I also like drifting a Lindy Rig with a larger Gulp Leech or whatever live minnows are natural in the river. I go as big as I can get for live bait now until November.