Being a Smallmouth Bass is a little bit like playing second fiddle. You’ll rarely hear an angler mention Smallmouth without uttering “Largemouth” first – their more prolific and popular cousins. But, true fans of the sport will tell you these fish have earned their respect, because there’s a lot to be said for Smallmouth Bass fishing in its own right.
For one thing, these fish are aggressive. They’re going to give you all they’ve got, making them a top fighter pound for pound. That is, if you can hook one! Smallies are also known for their speed and agility, which means they put on a real show. Plus, they’re cunning. You can spend most of your time on the water just trying to get a bite out of them. Needless to say, Smallmouth Bass will keep any angler on their toes.
How to Identify Smallmouth Bass
Smallmouth Bass (Micropterus Dolomieu) are native to the Saint Lawrence River system, the Great Lakes, the Champlain Valley, the Hudson Bay basin, and the middle-to-upper reaches of the Mississippi River basin. They were first introduced to other waters in the early 1800s and have since been stocked across the country due to their popularity as a game fish.
Smallies typically reach 10–14 inches but can grow as long as 20. On average, they weigh 2–5 pounds, with trophy fish tipping the scales anywhere up to 10 pounds. Smallmouths in lakes often grow larger than those in rivers, so keep that in mind if you’re in the market for a trophy.
Smallmouth Bass belong to the Black Bass family, along with Largemouth Bass. Funny enough, these iconic Basses aren’t true Bass, but Sunfish! Anyhow, they often share the same waters and you can target them using the same gear, essentially doubling your reward.
There are some differences between Smallmouth and Largemouth Bass, however. You can mainly tell them apart based on the color of the fish and their markings. Smallmouths also behave differently from Largemouths. It’s true that both fish feed around cover, but Smallies often skirt around the foliage while Largemouths swim right through it. Smallmouth Bass are also known to prefer clear water, while, in rivers and streams, they position themselves in fast-moving eddies.
Best Smallmouth Bass Fishing Spots
It’s hard to know where to start when discussing where to go Smallmouth Bass fishing! This is a booming industry, with well-stocked waters all over the nation. Still, most of the top Smallmouth fishing spots are concentrated in their native range, where these fish have thrived from the beginning. Anglers down south and out west shouldn’t worry, though – several hotspots from other parts of the country rank among the best Bass fishing spots every year.
Lake Erie
This one is no surprise to anyone serious about Smallmouth Bass fishing. Lake Erie is almost always the first recommendation from avid anglers! You can land hundreds of Bass in a day here, and the local Smallmouths keep getting bigger and bigger.
The season picks up around April as these fish prepare to spawn. This is when you can target them on the flats, weed beds, and reefs close to shore using hair jigs and crankbaits. Later in the season, Smallmouth retreat to deeper water, where you might want to introduce live bait in addition to lures while jigging around structure like reefs and humps.
Regulations can get tricky when you’re fishing the Great Lakes due to multiple states sharing these waters, along with the US-Canada border in some cases. Local zoning also dictates seasons and bag limits. Make sure you know the rules where you plan on fishing.
Lake St. Clair
If Smallies are second fiddle to Largemouth Bass, then the same goes for Lake St. Clair. It’s smaller and less famous than the Great Lakes, but it’s not to be overlooked.
This lake is only about 10 feet deep on average, making it a unique environment to fish in. Here, you can rely on a typical live bait setup with minnows and nightcrawlers, but anglers also report a lot of success with spinnerbaits, tubes, and minnow baits in summer.
Again, regulations may differ depending on what side of the lake you fish on, so do your due diligence ahead of time.
St. Lawrence River
Yet another name you’ll hear time and again from Smallmouth Bass fishers is the St. Lawrence River in New York. As a tributary of the Great Lakes, it comes as no surprise that you can enjoy great Smallmouth Bass fishing here. Some of the best spots are located around islands and bays below the Moses-Saunders Power Dam.
On a good day during summer, you might catch dozens of Smallies that can top 4 or 5 pounds. Come prepared to fish in clear water conditions with a visibility of 40 feet in some places! Hair jigs are one of the most successful lures here.
Bass fishing on the St. Lawrence River is open year-round. However, possession is limited to one fish per day from December 1–June 14, with a minimum size limit of 20 inches. From June 15–November 30, the limit is five fish of 12 inches or more.
Dale Hollow Lake
Finally, a Smallmouth fishing spot south of the Great Lakes! Dale Hollow Lake, bridging the border between Kentucky and Tennessee, has made its way onto multiple top lists for the species, and for good reason! Most specimens here are in the 2–4-lb range, but you have a chance at catching some well above that. A good day will give you at least a dozen fish.
Spring is the key time to cast your line around here but the dead of winter isn’t bad either. As the local Smallmouths prepare to spawn, they’ll take anything from little grubs to jigs and crankbaits. This is the time of year when you want to target them on the shallow banks of gravel or clay, typically in 8–12 feet of water.
Dale Hollow has its own regulations shared by anglers fishing from both states. Anglers can keep two Smallmouth Bass and up to five Black Bass combined. However, any Smallmouth between the protective slot limit of 16–21 inches must be released.
California Delta
The California Delta continues to be one of the top-rated Bass fishing destinations out West. Clear Lake is another hotspot but conditions in recent years have been less consistent, making the Delta our top pick for now. With more than 1,000 square miles to fish and many, many Smallies swimming in those waters, you aren’t likely to go home empty-handed.
The fish only average 1–3 pounds around here, but the sheer number of them makes up for it. Locals like to say you can catch anywhere from 40–70 Bass in a day! And it’s not just Smallies, but Largemouth and Stripers, too. Bass fishing runs year-round, with a peak season for Smallmouth between May and October. Crankbaits and live bait are the name of the game in these parts, unless you’re partial to fly fishing, which takes this sport to a whole new level.
Bass fishing in the Delta is open year-round. There’s a bag limit of five fish per day and a 12-inch minimum size limit.
How to Fish for Smallmouth Bass
Anglers who fish for both Smallmouth and Largemouth Bass will tell you that Smallies are the harder-fighting fish, despite their smaller size. The trickiest part of catching them, however, will be finding them in the first place. Smallies are fairly unpredictable, known to be here one day, gone the next. Instead of relying on a go-to spot, you’ll have to learn how to identify the conditions they’re drawn to.
For starters, seek out clear water. Smallmouth Bass have keen eyesight which is what they rely on to hunt. People often think they prefer open water, but that’s not necessarily true. Smallies like structure as much as Largemouth do, but they tend to ambush their prey around contours along the bottom of a lake or river rather than hiding beneath foliage. This makes rocky rapids or current breaks near humps and holes into prime feeding grounds for them.
They’ll often sit just below a drop-off point, then propel themselves upward to gobble any prey that floats overhead. To mimic unsuspecting prey, cast a topwater lure toward the shallow side and run your bait back over the drop-off where Smallies are waiting.
There’s much more to Smallmouth Bass fishing than casting, though. Vertical jigging is another common technique, as well as fly fishing. The small but mighty fighting power of these fish makes them a great target on the fly.
Smallmouth Bass Fishing Gear
The easiest thing about fishing for Smallmouth Bass is that you can catch them on the same gear you use for Largemouth Bass. That’s super convenient, since you can often find both in the same waters.
For live bait fishing, jigging, and casting, you can take your pick of spinning or baitcasting gear. Spinning rods are more versatile and beginner-friendly, whereas an arsenal of baitcasting rods gives you greater control in various situations. Either way, you can get started with a 7′ medium-light action rod that’s paired with a matching spinning or baitcasting reel. To go beyond the basics, see our guide to the best Bass fishing rods.
Next, you’ll want to consider your fishing line. Monofilament offers a lot of stretch, which can help beginners reel in an aggressive Bass. Meanwhile, braided lines are built for bigger fish and snag-prone areas. Fluorocarbon is a great choice for Smallmouth because it’s virtually invisible and is the most likely to go undetected in clear water. Smallies have even better eyesight than Largemouths, so remember that!
Some of the most common Bass fishing rigs to complete your setup are the Texas rig, Carolina rig, drop shot rig, jig head rig, and Ned rig.
Of course, fly fishers have a completely different setup to consider. Get started with a 9′, 7 wt rod. Use a floating line for dry flies and a full sinking line for streamers. You should be fine with a 1x–3x leader and tippet (opt for fluorocarbon over mono).
Smallmouth Bass Fishing Baits & Lures
With a basic setup ready to go, it’s time to enter the world of Smallmouth baits and lures. Once again, you can catch them using pretty much anything you’d cast or Largemouth Bass, though you might want to downsize some of your larger baits.
Common live baits are minnows, nightcrawlers, shrimp, and crayfish. Popular lures include swimbaits, crankbaits, spinnerbaits, jerkbaits, buzzbaits, jigs, plastic worms, and various topwater lures such as poppers and stickbaits.
Marabou hair jigs are an especially popular Smallmouth Bass fishing lure. You usually want to fish one of these in shallow water using a straight retrieve. Aim for the middle water column rather than pulling it along the surface or the bottom. For more insight on the best Bass fishing lures and when to use them, read our full guide.
And that’s not to mention Smallmouth flies. These range from nymphs and streamers – such as clouser minnows and woolly buggers – to dry flies like poppers. Exactly what pattern to use will depend on whether you’re fishing still water or river currents. You can fish wet and dry flies in both scenarios, but every angler develops their own preference and it will also depend on conditions that day.
When to Fish for Smallmouth Bass
You can fish for Smallmouth Bass year-round, provided local regulations allow it. But, the best season for Smallmouth Bass fishing is spring, when these fish prepare to spawn. Partial to cool temperatures, they tend to get active ahead of Largemouth Bass. The bite may pick up as soon as the first warming trend after winter, when water temperatures reach the mid-40s.
Fishing stays strong through summer and some anglers view fall as a second peak season after spring. Though winter is rarely considered the best time to go Bass fishing, it’s not out of the question. Even in areas that freeze over, you may manage to catch Smallmouth Bass while ice fishing.
Early morning and dusk are the best times of day to fish for Bass, due to the fact that they hunt in low light. You can expand that timeframe by fishing on a rainy or overcast day.
Smallmouth Bass, Big Reputation
Smallmouth Bass may seem second best but anyone who’s been fishing for them for a while will remind you not to underestimate them. In fact, Smallies have eclipsed Largemouth Bass in many anglers’ eyes due to their sheer ferocity. So, don’t think of them as an addendum – these are a sport fish in their own right. Whether you target them on the fly or light tackle, expect a hard, acrobatic fight and enjoy the show!
Are you a keen Smallmouth Bass angler? Where do you like to fish? Any tips and tricks to share? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below!
