Teach me how to small mouth :(

[jmwhosh]

Okay, been a trout dude for forever, every now and then I accidentally catch a bass but this year I've actually tried to hit some warm water places and focus on bass. I started easy going to Utah Lake and catching white bass, and that seemed pretty straightforward. I hit Deer Creek and catch some small mouth along the banks next overgrowth and such. But then I tried Hyrum Reservoir and Jordanelle.

At Hyrum I fished along the shore and in the growth the same way I did at Deer Creek and I didn't get a single hit. I fished from about 9am intermittently until about 4pm using 3"-4" curly tails in a lot of different colors, grubs, crawfish immitation, and even tried a small spook but got nothing.

At Jordanelle I fished from a paddleboard from 4pm-8pm off and on using the same things varying between 1/16 oz head and a 1/8 oz head. I fished off the bank some and then next to the rocks by a dock and then in overgrowth weed/bushy area. didn't get a single hit there either?

I thought I read that bass like the warmer water and that they like structure. But in both of my cases I didn't find that successful. Do they go deeper if it's too hot? Or is it just normal for to get skunked (please oh please say it's not normal). How do I improve fishing for small/large mouth. I tried rigging a jig wacky style and then normal. I tried using two jigs at the same time. Do any of you experts have some tips or ideas? Mostly I'm just because I felt like the places I was fishing at Hyrum and Jordanelle 'fit' the typical bass habitat with plenty of structure. maybe there was 'too much' structure so I couldn't get to them? Thoughts?
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[Cowboypirate]

Wish I was an expert and could help ya, but still working on my skills in this area. May I suggest you go visit krakenbass website. He is a local angler who has a great set of videos and reports on how to catch bass in our local waters. You can also find him on youtube but I like his website cause he has a great file structure to find the water you are intrested in quickly. It will be worth your time if Utah bass is on your game plan
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[atothedub]

Hey Man,

When it get's hot smallmouth will head to deeper water. When trying to figure out the best spots for bass I always go back to the basic things they need to survive. Food, Oxygen, correct water temperature and structure. In the summer time, the bass will dive deeper during the hot days but come up early mornings and at night. So those are your best times to fish for them. You can still catch them shallow during the day but they most likely will be smaller bass.

Have you tried using a drop shot, ned rig or shaky head? Those solid option for targeting smallies. I would recommend going early or late and trying and or trying one of these techniques. You will be sure to get one some more fish.

Hopes this helps!
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[fishnate]

There are so many possible variables to your experiences that it's impossible to begin to assess the reason for your trouble. Largemouth and smallmouth bass are completely different animals. There are often several different reasons for their different behaviors in different water bodies. Habitat availability, forage options, water temperature, oxygen, pH, water clarity, competition with other species, boat traffic, fishing pressure, etc, etc, etc. I've been bass fishing in Utah for over 35 years and I've run into many new challenges this year that I've never faced before in northern Utah and I'm still trying to sort them out for my next trip.

Generally largemouth like shallower weedy areas less than 15', if it is available and smallmouth prefer rock and wood 5' to 20' deep.

in each body of water location is everything. You can't catch fish where they aren't. Once you find the fish, you have to figure out what is drawing them there. Are they neutral to negative and just holding in a comfortable spot and occasionally feeding or are they actively hunting a concentration of prey. Most of the time summer bass are just hanging out, but they will strike with the right presentation of lures placed in their strike zone. Morning and evening are the more likely active feeding times during hot summer days when water temps are near 80+. Water between 70 and 80 I think bass can be shallow or deep based on their desires.

As a general rule use fast moving lures and topwater lures in the morning and evening and slow down and go deeper as the sun climbs. Also watch for shade lines from overhead vegetation, docks, submerged weedlines etc. A good 10 to 15 mph wind can be prime time!

Also deeper is relative. One lake I fish is only 15' deep and that's where I find summertime bass, but in Hyrum, DC or other deeper waters they may be 20 or 30' down at mid day. however, I can guarantee you there are LM bass in less than 5' of water all summer, all day long. SM bass are almost always deeper than LM bass. Just have to find where their needs are met.

I could go on and on, but I won't because I need more specifics to be more accurate in my advice. Good lick and keep learning each day on the water. And keep asking questions.
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[Therapist]

Right now the two hottest places to catch SMB are Rockport and Echo. You can use a variety of baits, grubs/curly tails, small swimbaits, dropshot rigs, ned rigs, etc. Your paddle board would be a great help. Fish the upper ends of both reservoirs where the Weber flows in. Start in about 6-8 fow and work deeper till you locate the fish. For a newbie, I would recommend you start with a 4" Senko, texas rigged with no weight ( greens, browns mostly). Second, use a dropshot rig, 1/4 oz weight, with 4" baits. The Berkley 10X dropshot shads have been very good. Lastly, if you want to get fancy, whacky rig your Senko with a nail weight in the nose. To many different baits and techniques to use, but we have been having 30-50 fish days up there for the past month. Average size is 10-12 inches, with some 14-15 inchers thrown in. You will also catch some perch, so if you want some fish taco's, keep the perch. You won't hurt the fishery if you keep some of the 8-10 inch bass, but release the rest. Have fun !!!

[jmwhosh]

Thanks for the reply and thoughts. I'm excited to try and figure this out.

One question is when fishing deeper, does that mean 'drop shot' specifically?
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[jmwhosh]

perch are for fish tacos huh? Never caught perch, I'll have to try that one out.
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[Gemcityslayer]

3.8” keitech swimbait on a 1/4oz darter lead jig head.

Can’t fish it wrong.
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[Freakyfisherman]

Work rocky shorelines at Rockport, Echo, Pineview, Jordanelle, Starvation, and Deer Creek. An easy technique is to use a gulp minnow on an octopus hook like a gamakatsu without a sinker and cast out and let the gulp sink. You can give it a twitch once in a while, and let sit and you work it back in. If the line straightens out, just start reeling. The fish will hook itself. I have had many multiple bass catch days that way.
Gabe
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[Fritzfishin]

all you need is some 2.5" maniac cutter bugs, or 3" maniac minnow both in changable craw, cant be beat!
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[Ceedubber]

Saturday I had one of my best smallmouth days on Jordanelle that I have had for several years. Conservatively caught over 30 fish in the 15 to 17-inch range, and countless in the 10-14 inch range. I was fishing black senko's in 10 to 25 feet of water, wacky and ned rigged. There were a lot of perch in the vicinity. In fact, I hooked a modest perch on one pole and allowed it to just fight behind my tube for maybe 20 or thirty minutes. There were large smallies engulfing it and running off with it every minute or less. I just kept tossing into the area with my senko's and landed quite a few from that experience. The smallmouth are very active right now. Look for areas that have been inundated with water this year and where windblown smaller baitfish congregate. Look for diving birds that feed on fish.
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[Bassin_Blitz]

Fishing with a live perch is illegal. No way of rationalizing what you did and you posted it on a public forum.[crazy]
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[Fishhound]

[quote Ceedubber]Saturday I had one of my best smallmouth days on Jordanelle that I have had for several years. Conservatively caught over 30 fish in the 15 to 17-inch range, and countless in the 10-14 inch range. I was fishing black senko's in 10 to 25 feet of water, wacky and ned rigged. There were a lot of perch in the vicinity. In fact, I hooked a modest perch on one pole and allowed it to just fight behind my tube for maybe 20 or thirty minutes. There were large smallies engulfing it and running off with it every minute or less. I just kept tossing into the area with my senko's and landed quite a few from that experience. The smallmouth are very active right now. Look for areas that have been inundated with water this year and where windblown smaller baitfish congregate. Look for diving birds that feed on fish.[/quote]

Perhaps you should have a look at the 2019 UTAH FISHING GUIDBOOK - Available online at

https://wildlife.utah.gov/fishing/fishin...tions.html
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[doggonefishin]

This is in reference to Jordanelle.

In spite of some tactics of dubious legality discussed in the thread, there is a lot of truth when bassin Jordanelle that when you find the perch, you find the bass. After about the first week of July, that will be away from the rocks. Look for weedbeds, channels, stick ups, and interfaces between aquatic grasses and open water. The perch will be in the cover, the smallies around them, nearby. I usually prefer dropshotting, but anything that approximates a perch minnow will be successful. Guys make the mistake at Jordanelle in thinking that they need to pound the rocks all summer, and then are disappointed that they catch few fish and they are all dinks.

I was there this morning for a few hours and did great (legally) for a good variety of sizes of smallies, along with some perch. All the bass in every size class were barfing up perch minnows onto the tube.
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