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mswaterfowler

I need help!

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Yeah, so I am moving to this new house, and it has this really nice stream behind it. Its mostly mud bottom, but there are also some rock walls. Its a pretty decent sized stream, about 25-30 feet across, and, from what I can tell, probably 5-10 feet deep in the channel. I was looking forward to getting in there and trying to catch some smallies. Being as this is my first experience with smallies and streams, I need a few tips. I need to know:

 

A ) What flies will i need?

B ) What are some basic tools/supplies i will need?

C ) What are some of the techniques i should try and learn?

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A few of my favorite smallmouth patterns are

 

(1) Maddonna type-streamers

 

(2) Wooly Buggers

 

(3) Feather-winged Decievers

 

(4) big bunny leaches

 

 

I personally like going after smallies with a 5 weight, but I have heard of people using 7 and even eight weights.

Most of my smallie fishing is in lakes, so I use a sink tip, but in a stream a regular weight-forward floating line should work fine. Smallies are like drugs! Good luck

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I would sling a small 2" minnow pattern behind a small # 10 bugger so you can search it better and find what they are in there especially this time of year.

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Up until this last cold front came through I was still whompin' on em' with Gilly (props to the locals) Minnows, Block head poppers, buggers (partial to black with a hint of crystal flash), hopefully the top water action with pick back up this week as the afternoons warm back up. Mallard flank type minnow patterns similar in appearance to the float and fly minnows the plug chuckers use, clousers, deceivers, Murdich minnows (they suspend well in mild current), and if you are lucky small 1.5" to 2" craws if you are still in the South (darker than in the summer, ours go from dark olive to tan to dark brown before they go back into the mud) might still fly. I use a 6 weight because I only have one rod but, soon will be purchasing a nice Redington 5-weight. Good Luck.

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I fish a lot of bait fish imitations over mud bottoms as well as big nymphs, especially if the mud bottom has a lot of leaf litter. But the Col is right, bait fish/minnow imitations, craws, and poppers. Try your fly selection in flies sz 6 to 4 and move to larger sizes if you notice the size are "notable"...good luck and post some pics!!

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mswaterfowler,

 

For smallmouth I fish a 9ft 8wt medium action rod. The rod has a pretty slow action and it is a pleasure to cast. I'm using weighted Murray's Hellgrammite & large weighted nymphs. (Whitlock's Red Fox Squirrel Nymph for ex.) sizes 2-10. Clouser minnows sizes 2-6, EP Fiber baitfishes around 1 1/2 to 3" long. Also deerhair bass bugs in size 1 & 2. Large Salmon Dry flies like the Wulff's & Bombers (Partridge Wilson code 01 sizes 4-8) for skating & dead drifting. I also have a 9ft 6wt very fast action rod that I will use. The flyrod you are using will determine for the most part the size flies you throw. Obviously there are a lot of flies to fish, all the flies listed by everyone are great.

You might want to pick up Harry Murray's book, "Flyfishing for Smallmouth Bass" or his video. It will give you alot of info on everything, flies, tools, techniques & etc. to fish for Smallmouth Bass.

One word of warning:::::once you catch a smallmouth, it can be quite addictive.

 

Steve

 

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another great book for small stream bass is "Small Stream Bass" by John Gifford from Countryman Press. Covers all aspects of small stream fishing, but is a great little tactics and gear guide, including patterns for the lfy rod and when, where, and how to fish them. A must have for anyone who is seriously fishing for the smallies is "Flyfishing for Smallmouth" by Bob Clouser. A GREAT book! Coffee table quality with great pics and even better information. Now, if you want to get really "old school" Check out "Bass Fishing" by Jim Gasque, circa 1945 and a comtemporary of the famous Ray Bergman. I have a first edition that was a gift to my grandfather who , in turn, passed it on to me when I was about 9. I love this book and have read it cover to cover literally a 100 times. Great info that has stayed with me into my adult fishing life. Almost the entire book is fly oriented. Antiquated, but the tactics and tips are still worthy.

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I am a stream smallmouth addict.....I use either a 6 or 8 weight, depending on wind conditions.....both 9 foot.....Favorite flies are clouser minoow, size 2-6, with weighted dumbell eyes, I have a pattern I tie, it's on here...Shad Clouser....check it out...it's killer where I fish....Lefty Kreh said, if it ain't chartreuse then it ain't no use...a good searching pattern is a white and chartreuse clouser.....emerald shiners are almost everywhere.....Decievers, divers, bass bugs, wolly buggers in olive and brown work well, they can imitate hellgrammites or crawfish...crayfish pattens dead drifted work great, 55% of a smallmouth's diet is crayfish....in the fall I throw bigger patterns, mainly size 2 and up...before winter they are mainly feeding on baitfish, a slow jerky retreive works well.....nymph patterns also work well dead drifted....Smallmouth like structure.....points, in front of and behind rock piles, they don't like to be directly in the current, they are ambush predators, so cast ahead of where you think the fish is, then strip into it.....they sit along bridge pilings, near fallen trees, anything that will break the current....check current seams, you can look for foam lines, or areas where fallen debris gathers, those are good spots for feeding fish, back eddies, the tail end of riffles.....have fun....fly rodding for smallies is addictive.....

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Smallies? In Mississippi? Outside of Pickwick Lake I doubt there are any there. I'm just sayin'.......

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