Pocket Smallmouths
Finding smallmouth bass this summer may be easier than you think!
I was fortunate enough, last week, to have been invited to a small lake north of Huntsville by, Kevin Swinscoe. The lake, which can only be accessed by surrounding land owners, shimmered enticingly as I approached Kevin’s dock and waiting motor boat.
Before we left in the boat, Kevin introduced to me the equipment we were going to use:
- A six weight fly rod and reel rigged with a Messinger Frog (photo right)
- A ‘standard issue’ spincasting rod with a Berkley Sabertail Grub (green)
I took a quick look up to the driveway where my car was parked. My own equipment was there occupying the entire back seat. If you listened carefully enough, you could have heard my favorite blue Rapala cringe, in it’s plastic prison, as Kevin said,
“You won’t need your equipment.”
When Kevin started the boat and we drove away from the dock, I hoped he was right about his assessment of my equipment.
Kevin’s plan was simple and effective. We would start at one end of the small lake and allow the wind to drift us down one side of the contoured shore. The motor was only used to make minor course corrections.
As we started our silent drifting, Kevin, reminded me to cast into the ‘pockets’ of weeds and shore structures that were prevalent along the lake’s banks. This proved key to our success as bass began to annihilate the top-water Messinger frog on the Kevin’s fly rod. The smallmouth bass were also hungry for my sub-surface offering of the frog-like Berkley grub.
One of my favorite times to fish for smallmouth bass is during the golden moment after a supper BBQ and the sun begins to set. Usually retreating with the sun - is the wind. A small wind factor can help the angler to make some pinpoint casts while casting for pocket smallmouth.
At this time of the evening (at least in my experience – and Kevin’s) bass move into shallow water and occupy weed, dock and structure pockets along the shore.
Pockets are formed when any portion of weed beds and shore structures collide and create open ambush points for bass to sit and wait for incoming prey. I realize what I am saying should be obvious to most, but I have included some photos below to help illustrate what I mean. I have put red fish icons some of the places I would call pockets for bass. The splash seen in the middle photo (with the tree) is from one of the bass that made hammered Kevin’s frog fly.
Pay attention special attention where rocks, boulders, and trees interface with the water from the shoreline. These create fantastic ambush points – especially when in close proximity to docks. You don’t need a boat to capitalize on bass pockets. Find the nearest dock that has weeds on either side of it. Where the dock pasts the weeds and continues past them – that is a bass pocket!
After the smell of the BBQ is whisked away by the light evening breeze into the setting sun, look for smallmouth pockets along the shore of your favorite lake. Turn off your fish finder and forget fancy presentations. As Kevin says,
“You won’t need it…”
Now THAT is a Great story!! Thanks for commenting, AR.
I found a flat-bottom alum. boat adrift a number of years ago. So many, my son wasn’t thot of yet. The kicker at the time was the huge bass box left in the boat. I took the boat to shore and turned it over for safe keeping in case the
owner came looking for it. I took the tackle box – nearly big enough to sleep three – home, for safe keeping also.
By the time Ian had reached old enough to hold a pole, out of the blue one day he says, dad, let’s go fishing….. I remembered the old tackle box from nearly ten years prior and told Ian the story of finding it on a lake, abandoned.
“I don’t know what any of this stuff is, Ian, but there’s a lot of it and I bet we can figure it out. Let’s get outta here.”
My little pole-gripper is nearly 30 years old now and last night he and a friend were slaying ‘em from our favorite spot. The last time he and I were there together, we started off the water to go home and call it quits but the bass wouldn’t leave us alone.
Any time we get in proximity of the lake, we look at each other real keen-like and that grin on each others’ face – shall we? The memories alone are enough to have for dinner. Bass fishing is the wildest time a feller could have.
Gotta go… I think the grandson is ready to use that box now.