# Tips for the GMR & LMR



## oldstinkyguy

Well lets face it, the best of the year is behind us and we all will spend more time thinking about fishing than fishing for the next couple months. Yeah I know some of us will hit the rivers every now and then but not nearly as much as earlier in the year. I thought a tip thread might be a good way to while away a bit of winter time. Its seems half the posters (at least) fish either the LMR or the GMR so why not start there....

A few of my thoughts-

Fish a jig,grub,tube more, theres more to life than a roostertail. Bigger fish await you

A minnow plug is not just a minnow plug, sometimes a sinking or suspending one can turn around a whole day

There's an awful lot of big fish caught by guys wearing those funny little flashlights on their hats

google maps or some other mapping service are amazing tools to find good fishing spots

So on any given day the fishing is completely different depending on what stretch of the river your fishing. That really showed in the fall when Bob Ross was catching mondo hybrids in the lower river while we were catching nice smallies up here in the middle/upper LMR. I saw a study where they electroshocked different riffles on the LMR, every riffle had a different assortment of minnows, darters, bugs in it. what worked for you in Kings Mills on the LMR might work in Miamisburg on the GMR the same day but then again it might not.


----------



## kingofamberley

Good idea Stink! Here are some things I have picked up from my first year really hitting the Miami rivers regularly, following my return to SW Ohio:
-A basic but something that I think a lot of new guys overlook: focus on riffle/run/pool areas, any kind of place where there is some sort of current structure. Fishing the big, slow, still areas (I.E. where a lot of public parks are) can produce fish but generally will not be as good. If you are looking for carp or gar though, maybe give slow pools a shot.
-For basic colors, silver based bates tend to out-perform gold based things for me. Silver/black, silver/blue, silver/green, etc. Maybe due to the color of the forage around here.
-Bass can be found in the faster riffles and runs during the hot summer months, but tend to move in to slower/deeper water as the temps drop in the fall
-In the late summer, catfish (both channels and flatheads) are aggressive wild cards that can and will hit anything, so set drag appropriately.
-Those big fish you see holding in fast runs in the summer are buffalo fish, which for some reason aren't interested in eating while they are doing this, so leave them alone and focus on other areas for fish that maybe you can't see.
-I've learned the hard way that you should NOT disclose your fishing holes on a public forum. PM's are one thing but don't do it in a thread where everyone can see.
-Use a backpack or satchel of some sort so that you can have both hands free to fish while you wade. Carrying a box in one hand is not good.
-Get waders, because wet wading in the fall doesn't feel good haha


----------



## zuelkek

I've learned that I'm not quite the fisherman some of the guys on here are. That's OK, I'm not competing with anybody. Being on the river is like a long conversation with an old friend. As long as I get two fish in, I'm happy. I always used to go out with a spinner on the line and an extra one stuck in my hat, and took pride in being a minimalist. But this summer I emptied my little chest pack of the fly fishing gear stowed in it and filled it with curly-tail grubs, tubes, spinners, lipless cranks, surface plugs, and a dandy bag of pearl colored Strike King Zulus. Here's few random things I discovered this year, or maybe already knew. Some is just simple observations, some are things I learned that helped me catch more fish this year than ever. May be common knowledge to some:

--Agreed: There's more to life than spinners. But the Mepps Comet has always been productive for me and I expect it always will be. Agreed, it has to be silver. Gold just does not work as well. In the summer when the water is warm, I try retrieving it as slow as I can and still keep the blade barely spinning and off the bottom. Often, it's that moment when it's just a hair away from collapsing that triggers a strike.

--There are lots and lots of rock bass in the LMR, but they only inhabit certain particular kinds of water, shallow, off the main current, and with maximum rock. They're dependable and don't seem nearly as sensitive to water temp and frontal systems. I almost never get skunked because I have a few locations I can hit and at least feel a rock bass on the line.

--Pumpkin green tubes are summertime smallmouth killers. Learn to fish with them! Takes some skill to get the hook set, which I'm learning.

--Surface plugs and poppers are an absolute blast! My most memorable fish from this summer was a 15" smallie that erupted on a popper and almost cleared the water doing it. I have a feeling we would all agree that the pugnacious temperament of the smallmouth bass is what makes us love it so much. 

--channel cats hit hard, and will hit anything, including up near the surface. They are top-notch eating.

--drum are another wild card, and they are not rough or trash fish at all.

--the Zulu. I got them late in the year and only used them once--on a slow day. Can't wait for next year. I expect to have them on the line a lot.


----------



## Dandrews

Off the top of my head, I may think of more later.
Of course, some of this may be common knowledge:

The speed that you retrieve your lure at plays a huge role in your success; you want to change up until you find the speed that their mood/metabolism is at (cold water/slower, warm water/quicker&#8230;etc.). Also; the current doesn&#8217;t run at a uniform speed through a hole so you want to keep that in mind and adjust to it. 
If you watch how a fish swims; they usually make a few tail beats, coast a little, make a few more tail beats and so on...but not always. You at least might want to give that a try on your retrieve, I do this far more often than not. In fly fishing; when you&#8217;re stripping in a streamer, your fly automatically makes a similar motion.

When I get a new lure I like to play around with it where I can see it. Watch how it sinks; watch how it works when I retrieve it at different speeds&#8230;etc. The very first time I used a wacky rigged Senko, I cast it maybe 20&#8217; &#8211; 25&#8217; in front of me to watch it sink and a 15&#8221; smallmouth came from out of nowhere and nailed it. That first time I rigged the wacky I thought, &#8220;No way is this going to catch a fish&#8221; obviously I was wrong.

If possible you want to aim your cast past the point that you think a fish is going to attack your lure. You don&#8217;t want a big splash to scare the crap out of your new PB smallie. You want your lure to sink to the right depth and work the way it&#8217;s supposed to once it gets to that spot. If I can get away with it, sometimes I'll try to hit the opposite shore. Sometimes I'll cast at the dam and let it roll down; this can be tricky though, you might end up with a giant tangle.

Sometimes color seems to make a difference and sometimes it doesn&#8217;t. Some days it&#8217;s easier for fish to see color than it is on others, depending on the conditions. My rule of thumb is; Bright shiny day - bright shiny color, dull day &#8211; dull color. I guess under some conditions fish see movement plus flash/reflection/color and other days fish see movement plus contrast/silhouette . A couple years ago though, my son and I had a contest to see who could catch the best fish on the dumbest looking color. I really don&#8217;t remember who won but we were surprised at some of the fish we caught on some dumb looking colors(dumb looking to us). Our contest was over the course of a summer so we lost track, but it was fun though and that was the real point behind the contest anyway. So what we took from that was that presentation is more important than color. I actually learned a lot myself while teaching my son about fishing.


----------



## QueticoMike

Fish as often as you can. 
Try to learn something new everytime you go out.
Fish as many different locations as you can to figure out where fish are and where fish are not during different parts of the season. Eliminate the bad water.
Learn what structures hold fish.
Learn to read the river, eddies, riffles, pools, points, weeds, logs, man made structures.
Learn to match the hatch. Are they hitting minnows or craws?
Learn what lure to use to match the hatch.
Learn how to present that lure to the fish so they are attracted to hit and want to eat it.
Upgrade your fishing gear if possible.
Tie a good knot and change your line as often as you can. A fisherman is only as good as the equipment he uses and the knots he ties. Use bad line or tie a bad knot and you are going to lose fish. A good knot and good line are like insurance.
Always buy a fishing license, you don't want to get popped without one.
Read as much as you can, watch others, watch fishing shows, knowledge is power.
If you have questions, ask them.
The most important tip is to have fun! Don't get discouraged if you get skunked, have the drive to know you will do better in your next outing, don't give up....don't ever give up


----------



## Dandrews

oldstinkyguy said:


> Fish a jig,grub,tube more, theres more to life than a roostertail. Bigger fish await you


Youre going to hit a lot of rocks and snags when you fish jigs. I would recommend carrying a hone/file to sharpen your hook, Id check it every few casts at least.
Theyre very productive but be prepared to loose a lot of them.


----------



## j777extra

I had a lot of luck with channel cats this year on the LMR using Sudden Impact dip bait on a drop shot rig with a #6 treble. Almost within the first ten minutes I had a cat, or a bite. It stays on the hook really well. 


Posted using Outdoor Hub Campfire


----------



## 9Left

Tip for the GMR: Dress in full camo and quietly follow behind queticomike while taking notes!

lol!.... just joking.. seriously though.. quetico, thanks for all of your posts, tips on lures and willingness to share knowledge over the summer on this forum.. i learned a few new tricks. much appreciated


----------



## co-angler

I wish the caliber of fishermen on this board today would have been posting this thread (or something similar) 6-7 years ago when I was getting back into fishing again!!!

My 2 cents goes as follow's (and probably echoes much of what has already been stated)

Most of this is pertaining to fishing a texas rigged worm or tube as this is a very popular and inexpensive summer pattern. There are plenty of other styles of fishing but if you want to catch bigger bass, it's tough to beat!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Carry more than one rod and reel for efficiency sake.

Learn how to use a baitcaster. It's not a must to fish with one but I have had better hookup rates with one than with a spinning combo.

Smallmouth have tough jaws unlike those fat, lazy largemouth. Remember this when setting the hook especially if using those tougher tube baits.

Upgrade to MH action rod. Lots of guys like to use a limber rod because its fun to fight those smaller smallmouth with them but let me tell you, I have lost plenty of bigger smallies using a wimpy rod due to ineffective hook sets.
There's a time and place for those limber rods and throwing a roostertail (i feel) is one of them

Retie, retie, retie!!! One of my favorite rigs is a heavy slip sinker with a tube bait in the summer. This keeps the line and bait in the rocks where it tends to get severely worn and or snagged. I lose alot of rigs using this style of bait but have found that a tube bait or worm, sinker and hook cost around 75 cents total. No, it is not free but it easier to lose this set up more so than a 7 dollar crank. Also, retying is not near as bad as you might think. Nowadays, I can clip off and retie in under 30 seconds. I like to reward myself for doing so with a drink of gatoraide, water or watever I am packing on those hot days and rehydrating is always a good idea. If you smoke, reward yourself with a smoke or even a bite of some kind of food.

Purchase some line clippers on a lanyard you can hang around your neck or attach to your backpack. Your teeth and your dentist will thank you.

kingofamberly mentioned a backpack. I have carried a backpack for years. As a matter of fact, mine is red and black. If you see an ugly, 40 some y/o guy wading down a river with a bag looking like this on his back and a rod and reel stuffed in it, it's probably me! 
A backpack is priceless IMHO. It affords me to carry an additional rod (hands free) PLENTY of tackle for those days that you need to figure them out on, food, camera, scale, tape measure, water and it serves as a tripod when you want to take a pic of that pig you just pulled from that swift riffle.

On those hot summer days, freeze a bottle of water (after you drain a few ounces out of it) and shove it between your shoulder blades between you and that priceless backpack. It will keep you cool on those broiling days and once it melts will keep you hydrated. Once you drink it, find where water has leeched from an island or some such similar place( it'll be around 52 degrees here) and refill the bottle and return it to your shouder blades.

Stand downstream and cast upstream. This is the most natural presentation and smallies are ravenous feeders. The bait falls where they are hiding and natural instinct takes over. 

Learn to decifer a hit from your rig tapping off of rocks.

Hooksets are free, if it feels different in any way, swing for the fences.

Learn how to tie a palomar knot.

Lie to passerbys about how your doing. If your having a great day, tell them it's going OK not "GREAT"! Unless you want to return to your spot to find those folks catching "your" fish!!!

Play any and all fish when pretty females come canoeing by. It may not get you a phone number but you look cool reeling in a fish for an audience. But then again maybe not......

Take a kid fishing and put them on fish, I guarantee when that kid is fifty, he or she will remember that day vividly!

Fish every inch of water you can. My best Whitewater River smallie came from a stretch of river that was previously historic for not producing. Void of cover, sandy and shallow. Not my idea of productive water, but for some reason, on this day, there was a nice fat smallie swimming along and picked up my zoom worm. 
This is where that second rod comes into play.

Fish the outside turns of the river for deeper water. I have never regretted fishing these parts of the river. Absolutely every species in our waterways frequent this kind of water and some real beasts can be found here!

Read every word that the fine anglers whom post here report on this thread. You simply will not be sorry.

Enjoy being out of doors!


----------



## DLarrick

co-angler said:


> Play any and all fish when pretty females come canoeing by. It may not get you a phone number but you look cool reeling in a fish for an audience. But then again maybe not......
> best tip on the thread yet lol, never hurts to get a nice smile from a pretty lady when her goofy boyfriend is in the canoe with her.
> 
> for real tho...great thread and alot of helpful tips. thanks guys i can honestly say this site has made me a better fisherman.


----------



## kingofamberley

Co, I think you are the only Miami river angler that i have heard advocate multiple, medium heavy, baitcasters. I tend to think of those kind of setups as being for largemouth from a boat in a lake. Can't argue with your results though! Just goes to show how if you are confident with something, you can do wonders with it. I like to use a medium-light spinning setup, which is versatile and effective for all of our local fish, but then again I only wade with one rod. How exactly do you put your second rod in/on your backpack? When I go wading, it involves a lot of hiking and trekking through some rough wooded country, so I feel like a rod protruding from my back just may not be possible. The backpack though is a must. I have thought about switching to a messenger style bag, but if you are out there for hours with all that weight on one shoulder, it would make for a painful back.


Outdoor Hub mobile, the outdoor information engine


----------



## Dandrews

Ive got a Coleman backpack w/a hydration bladder; actually I have 3 different sizes with hydration bladders. When its filled with ice water on a really hot day, its pretty awesome.


----------



## 9Left

As far as tips...I'll re-iterrate some previous advice again.... ADAPT to the conditions.. over the summer i found myself in a couple situations wher fish just werent interested in ANY lure in my arsenal.. i switched gears and caught a few live crawdads...the fishin was fantastic for the rest of the day! Match the conditions your faced with on the river


----------



## FishermanMurph

This was my first year fishing both the LMR and GMR and have learned alot. First, GoogleEarth is a good resource for launch spots/access points and which sections to focus fishing on. Spring - mid summer I've found wacky rig worm and minnow baits work great with tube jigs and curly tail grubs taking over late summer - fall. Top location on rivers is usually where faster current empty into deeper pools and small isolated pools also worked great. I've caught very few fish in big long pools. Shallow currents also worked good but normally seem to catch smaller fish in those shallow areas.


----------



## co-angler

kingofamberley said:


> Co, I think you are the only Miami river angler that i have heard advocate multiple, medium heavy, baitcasters.


I don't advocate multiple MH baitcasters. 
In the summer (when most of my fish are being caught) I prefer a MH baitcaster with the "T" rigged tube. 
My second rod is usually a spinning combo for lighter presentations or buzzbaits etc...
A good baitcaster is kind of a pain in the rear end with lots of sand around but I cannot argue with the hook ups and landing of hooked fish!

I carry an Oakley "bookbag" (for lack of a better term) I won it at a silent auction several years back and love it for this application. When I need to replace it, I will follow Dandrews lead and get a rig with a hydration pack.

My bag has adjustable shoulder straps. These can be loosened to let the bag "hang" or tightened to get it snug to your back. This is key to storing a pole with but not an absolute necessity. 

I shove the handle of my second rod between my shoulder blades and then lay the rod down so the handle goes through both shoulder straps across my shoulders. It can be turned in either direction as needed as to your handing with regards to how you cast or which side the bank is on (to keep it from fouling up in the trees and underbrush) If I'm standing in the middle of the river and nothing is above me, I stand it straight up like an antenna.

You are right about bushwacking though, you still need to carry the rods in your hand thru the woods to avoid snagging every tree and limb. 

I hope that wasn't too confusing, it's hard to explain but easy to do!


----------



## kingofamberley

Interesting Co, I'll have to try that double rod wade. Any reason why you like a MH baitcaster over a MH spinning? I have very little experience with baitcasters, and they don't seem to have much advantage over their spinning counterparts from what I can tell, but please change my mind 

I use a Northface backpack, it has a waistbelt built on that I usually don't use, but if the bag is loaded heavier than usual it really helps in taking a load off the shoulders (and can be a useful attachment site for a net, etc.). I also like that it has side pockets which are perfect for water bottles.


----------



## oldstinkyguy

zuelkek said:


> . That's OK, I'm not competing with anybody. Being on the river is like a long conversation with an old friend.


I actually enjoy fishing most by myself. The thing I like least in fishing is being competitive. The funny part is I usually do better by myself. I end up playing around more, experimenting, or maybe catching a big fish because I wasn't worried the other guy caught three little ones. Plus you know me, I like to take alot of pictures or spend a half an hour watching birds. The only numbers I ever keep track of thru the year is Fish Ohio fish but my posts are usually full of "I caught five or six bass and a couple saugers" because honestly if I catch more than a couple I lose track. How many just isn't a big thing to me. I think thats why I'm a river rat instead of a lake guy, on the river you get to see the deer or get in the water with the fish and turn over some rocks and see whats crawling around down there.


----------



## oldstinkyguy

kingofamberley said:


> Interesting Co, I'll have to try that double rod wade. Any reason why you like a MH baitcaster over a MH spinning? I have very little experience with baitcasters, and they don't seem to have much advantage over their spinning counterparts from what I can tell, but please change my mind .


I dont wade with two rods, I feel thats why good spinning reels come with extra spools. But there are a few occasions I'll use a baitcaster in the river. A half dozen times a year, Ill camp on the river. Then I always bring a spinning rod and a baitcaster. I'll smallie fish till dark, build a fire, then a big bait goes out on the baitcaster with the clicker for a shovelhead and nightcrawlers on the spinning rod for channels, buffalo and drum. Another dozen times or so I might wade a pool I know really really well at night. Then I'll throw things like a safetypin spinnerbait, a topwater or a bigger lipless crankbait on baitcasting tackle trying to catch a bigger fish. I'm sure several of the guys that really get into the hybrids in the lower LMR and GMR use baitcasting tackle alot. Fish a farmpond once where nice sized bass are really nailing a half ounce spinnerbait with a good baitcasting rod and you will be sold on the accuracy, hooksets, and fish fighting ability of a baitcaster.


----------



## kingofamberley

I do want a baitcaster, but I think an ultralight and maybe a better fly rod might be higher on my priority list 
Another Miami river tip: there is no better place to learn to fly fish, especially when the white bass are running.

Outdoor Hub mobile, the outdoor information engine


----------



## oldstinkyguy

kingofamberley said:


> I do want a baitcaster, but I think an ultralight and maybe a better fly rod might be higher on my priority list
> Another Miami river tip: there is no better place to learn to fly fish, especially when the white bass are running.
> 
> Outdoor Hub mobile, the outdoor information engine


Once upon a time I used to fish alot more than now and I own an obscene number of fly rods from six or seven different makers including a few high end ones like loomis and orvis. that being said I own five St Croix middle priced fly rods and they get fished as much or more than anything. Give them a serious look before you buy anything else. Oh and cast a triangle taper fly line by Royal Wulf Products its the ultimate river smallmouth line, it roll casts like a dream but I can cast the whole line with any decent 5 wt rod.


----------



## 9Left

kingofamberley said:


> I do want a baitcaster, but I think an ultralight and maybe a better fly rod might be higher on my priority list
> Another Miami river tip: there is no better place to learn to fly fish, especially when the white bass are running.
> 
> Outdoor Hub mobile, the outdoor information engine


Hey kingo... I got into using bait casters on the river this year .. I do like spinning outfits better( just a personal opinion)... BUT.. I will say this about bait casters... They are extremely accurate for casting! Don't get me wrong.. I can fling a lure with a spinning rod pretty well to a tight spot.. But the bait caster was amazingly accurate when I wanted to put the lure in a certain spot also.. Try it sometime... Granted, ya gotta give yourself time for practice and learning to control the spool with your thumb.. But they are terrific reels for rivers


----------



## kingofamberley

Fishlandr, maybe I will have to get a baitcaster some day. If I decide to go MH that is haha
Stink, I am still at the point in my life where I consider St. Croix to be good rods. Maybe one day I will be able to afford calling them mid range haha. I know that fly fishing tends to be more expensive than spin fishing but still.


Outdoor Hub mobile, the outdoor information engine


----------



## co-angler

I only use the MH baicaster when throwing jigs and tubes.
While I was catching hybrids, I was using a M rod with a baitcaster. 
It's all about lure selection and matching the rod to the rig your tossing!
I waited a long time to convert too. My pals all told me repeatedly that I would understand once I got to using them. As usual, they were correct!


----------



## co-angler

kingofamberley said:


> How exactly do you put your second rod in/on your backpack?


Heres a pic of my pack rig....


----------



## kingofamberley

I may well have to try that. Thanks for the input guys.

Oh, I have another tip, and I guess this is more of a general Midwest pattern than just a Miami pattern, but I've been noticing that in a lot of reports lately for whatever reason craw patterns like tubes have been producing. The guy who taught me most of what I know about fishing back in the day told me that tubes don't resemble any real living creature in freshwater, but the bass are strangely attracted to it. On OGF I've learned of the tube's supposed craw affiliation, but I think its more like an embodiment of a mix of trans-species traits that get bass excited. Kind of like bass candy. Maybe thats why as the cold makes them unwilling to chase down things aggressivley, they can't pass up a piece of candy. Just a thought.


----------



## oldstinkyguy

I'm no expert on saugfish but I do fish for them alot this time of year and people ask about it more than anything else so here's how I do it. First off the last thing I wanna do in winter is worry if there arent even any fish where I'm fishing to see my bait. In summer there are fish spread thru the whole river, in winter that isnt the case. Find a complicated stretch, even if you have to drive ten minutes further its worth it. I want an island with water pouring around both sides or at least a big s curve, a deep run, a riffle and DEEP WATER all in close proximity. Yeah thats alot to ask for but if I fish thru all that I know I will have shown my lure to at least a few fish. I've read where sauger may migrate a hundred miles in big rivers in winter it stands to reason to me that they will migrate 5 or 6 in the LMR to a great stretch of river. If I'm fishing the gmr for winter saugs I'm fishing below one of the dams. 90 percent of the time I'm throwing a three inch grub. Not just any grub but a gawdawfull butt ugly one. Try pink or orange or neon green, the brighter and gaudier the better most days. Now for something wierd, some days they like a neon pink one over a red with gold metalflake one. Color matters some days even if your fishing some horrid color no live fish has ever seen before. Bring a file the rocks will do a number on your hook. Expect to lose alot, I lose HUNDREDS in the course of a year. (a do-it mold will save you a fortune) The other lure I fish is a sinking or suspending minnow plug. Once in a while it will outproduce the grub. Everyone I ever talk to says minnows on a jighead will outproduce both but I hate to fool with live bait in the cold. Concentrate on slack water right up against current most of the time, but expect to try everywhere, Ive caught them anywhere as long as a deep hole was close by. Especially if there has been a week long warm spell, they might just be right in the current below a riffle or the dam. And some days you just feel a mushy weight instead of a strike, set the hook on weight in the winter. I also find that sauger sometimes have the odd habit of only wanting the bait presented one way. Just because you didn't get a strike fishing upstream doesn't mean the same lure wont get a strike fished downstream. Another trick that I see almost no one doing in winter is fishing after dark. Saugeyes, walleyes, saugers all are strongly nocturnal fish, this doesn't end in winter. If your dressed for it and fishing where no one will see you and call the cops on the crazy man you can often do very well at night in the winter. And thats it, i'm sure theres other ways to catch em but thats how I go about it. ... fish ugly lures for an ugly fish that doesn't fight all that well while freezing your a$% off possibly even in the middle of the night. Sigh...is it spring yet?


----------



## Saugeyefisher

oldstinkyguy said:


> I'm no expert on saugfish but I do fish for them alot this time of year and people ask about it more than anything else so here's how I do it. First off the last thing I wanna do in winter is worry if there arent even any fish where I'm fishing to see my bait. In summer there are fish spread thru the whole river, in winter that isnt the case. Find a complicated stretch, even if you have to drive ten minutes further its worth it. I want an island with water pouring around both sides or at least a big s curve, a deep run, a riffle and DEEP WATER all in close proximity. Yeah thats alot to ask for but if I fish thru all that I know I will have shown my lure to at least a few fish. I've read where sauger may migrate a hundred miles in big rivers in winter it stands to reason to me that they will migrate 5 or 6 in the LMR to a great stretch of river. If I'm fishing the gmr for winter saugs I'm fishing below one of the dams. 90 percent of the time I'm throwing a three inch grub. Not just any grub but a gawdawfull butt ugly one. Try pink or orange or neon green, the brighter and gaudier the better most days. Now for something wierd, some days they like a neon pink one over a red with gold metalflake one. Color matters some days even if your fishing some horrid color no live fish has ever seen before. Bring a file the rocks will do a number on your hook. Expect to lose alot, I lose HUNDREDS in the course of a year. (a do-it mold will save you a fortune) The other lure I fish is a sinking or suspending minnow plug. Once in a while it will outproduce the grub. Everyone I ever talk to says minnows on a jighead will outproduce both but I hate to fool with live bait in the cold. Concentrate on slack water right up against current most of the time, but expect to try everywhere, Ive caught them anywhere as long as a deep hole was close by. Especially if there has been a week long warm spell, they might just be right in the current below a riffle or the dam. And some days you just feel a mushy weight instead of a strike, set the hook on weight in the winter. I also find that sauger sometimes have the odd habit of only wanting the bait presented one way. Just because you didn't get a strike fishing upstream doesn't mean the same lure wont get a strike fished downstream. Another trick that I see almost no one doing in winter is fishing after dark. Saugeyes, walleyes, saugers all are strongly nocturnal fish, this doesn't end in winter. If your dressed for it and fishing where no one will see you and call the cops on the crazy man you can often do very well at night in the winter. And thats it, i'm sure theres other ways to catch em but thats how I go about it. ... fish ugly lures for an ugly fish that doesn't fight all that well while freezing your a$% off possibly even in the middle of the night. Sigh...is it spring yet?


Thanks for the very information filled thread. That type of info will help cut the learning curve for alot of anglers... And are sauger that bad of a fight? The saugeye(especialy the 17-20inchers) I have been catching lately are like freight trains, Ive ony had one or two fish out of many that just came in with the head shakeing. Good drag,knots,and line have been a must the last month or so when there in there aggresive mood! Has been a absolute blast! 
Oh and ditto on the ugly choices of colors. Seems if i can see that bait glowing good in the water, its the color I want(orange,bright blues,chartruses)...
Thanks again for the thread,lots of good info from everyone!


----------



## kingofamberley

Thanks for the info Stink. You know saug/wall/eyes are my favorite fish in the river haha. I like their heavily armed and camouflage appearance. Sauger and walleye don't fight too hard but some of those saugeye are good fighters. That little one I got the other day actually pulled out some (admittedly loose set) drag. It was caught on a orange jig head with a fire tiger 3" grub.


----------



## oldstinkyguy

Anytime the LMR is over 55 degrees you can expect to catch some fish on a topwater plug. The Little Miami thru the middle and upper reaches is just about the perfect size to fish one. Not so small that a buzzbait or zara puppy will scare everything in the river and not too big in that the fish are shallow enough to respond to a topwater. Smallmouth are moody ill tempered bastards and I think a topwater appeals to this mean streak. I carry a small box of topwaters in my pack while wading and allways try a couple out during every trip. At the least carry a small rapala and tiny torpedo or pop-r. Me, I carry those type lures in a couple different styles plus a walking the dog plug. And if I'm going to be fishing the river at night I'll throw a prop type plug like a woodchopper or a jitterbug. The jitterbug has been forgotton but will still account for alot of bass if you will throw it. One tip is if in clear water don't pause the bug if you see a bass coming for it, just keep it coming. If you pause often the fish will turn away. The jitterbug doesn't track real well in fast current but in quiet water at night sometimes nothings better. To me, chugger type baits are a big fish lure, I think the average bass you catch on one is bigger than on most other type baits. I like the fact that with chugger type plugs you can vary the retrieve to suit the mood of the fish that day. Loud and noisy or subtle and teasing. Another topwater tip is to not set the hook too soon, wait until you feel the weight of the fish on the line before setting and you will hook up more. And don't think of topwaters as just early and late lures too, I'm constantly amazed at how well they produce in the LMR right in the middle of the day. And for me at least, one bass caught on top is worth two caught any other way. I think there are alot of days on the LMR we tie on a roostertail or a rebel craw and start catching fish and leave it on all day without realising the smallies would hammer a topwater just as well that day and we miss out.


----------



## kingofamberley

LOL thats funny because I was just reading this:
http://www.worldfishingnetwork.com/...mallies-leave-that-topwater-at-home-9404.aspx

I like the idea of topwater baits but I haven't had too much luck with them. This coming season I will give it more effort.


----------



## steve113535

That article seems kind of bogus to me, I have seen many nice fish caught on pop-r's from GMR. But oh well, different area and different body of water can produce different results with various baits.


----------



## oldstinkyguy

steve113535 said:


> That article seems kind of bogus to me,


I agree. Thats a pretty small smallmouth he's trying to pass off as big in that article too. I think there's a pretty high goober factor at work there.


----------



## co-angler

oldstinkyguy said:


> I think there's a pretty high goober factor at work there.


Thats some funny stuff there!
I'm not taking ANY advice from a clown in a hat like that!


----------



## QueticoMike

co-angler said:


> Thats some funny stuff there!
> I'm not taking ANY advice from a clown in a hat like that!


I'm going to send the guy a package of Zulus.........


----------



## oldstinkyguy

One day a couple years ago after having just caught some river smallies on a four inch worm the next day I was fishing a spinnerbait for some farm pond bass. The big half ounce spinnerbait was tipped with a Luck ''E'' Strike spinnerbait trailer which reminded me of a cross between a soft plastic jerkbait and a four inch finesse worm, A couple days later I was back on the Little Miami with the spinnerbait trailor without the spinnerbait. Texas rigged on a light wire hook it made a wonderfull ultralight jerkbait, a soft twitch and it would glide beautifully and then just hang in the current. Plus the trailor comes in several minnowlike colors, a clear metalflake, white, pearl, chartreuse. In addition it also comes in black. In the next pool there was a slow eddy with a couple downed trees. I rigged up the black trailor but this time slid a lead cone weight on the line before the hook. Thrown up against the downed timber the little plastic bait settled on the bottom. I let it set a second and just as I began to retreive the line twitched as a nice smallmouth inhaled it. Since that day the little split tailed trailor has earned a place as one of the most versatile lures in the box.


----------



## oldstinkyguy

one of the best reads on smallies in rivers you will ever find....
http://archives.in-fisherman.com/content/tracking-river-smalljaws/1


----------



## kingofamberley

oldstinkyguy said:


> one of the best reads on smallies in rivers you will ever find....
> http://archives.in-fisherman.com/content/tracking-river-smalljaws/1


Great article, thanks for sharing!


----------



## Britam05

I've heard from reliable source the Fendora hat helps land big fish.










Posted using Outdoor Hub Campfire


----------



## oldstinkyguy

co-angler said:


> Lie to passerbys about how your doing. If your having a great day, tell them it's going OK not "GREAT"! Unless you want to return to your spot to find those folks catching "your" fish!!!


Last spring I found one little spot in a very public lake that had fish stacked up in it. I was just nailing some very pretty bass every few casts. A couple carrying tackle came along and said "how ya doin?"
Me- "eh, Ok I guess"
There was a guy fishing about fifty yards away and after the couple had passed completely out of sight headed for the other end of the lake, he called out "Ok my A$S! Lyin son of a [email protected]#$"


----------



## co-angler

You fish OSG, therefor you lie.


Posted using Outdoor Hub Campfire


----------



## oldstinkyguy

More than everything you ever wanted to know about the LMR is here-

http://www.epa.state.oh.us/portals/35/documents/LowerLittleMiamiRiverTSD2007_appendices.pdf

If you scroll down to page 200 (yep 200) you start getting to the good part. They surveyed various sections of the river over a two month period and list every species(gamefish, rough fish, minnows, everything) and their number and weight for all kinds of places up and down the river.


----------



## kingofamberley

oldstinkyguy said:


> More than everything you ever wanted to know about the LMR is here-
> 
> http://www.epa.state.oh.us/portals/35/documents/LowerLittleMiamiRiverTSD2007_appendices.pdf
> 
> If you scroll down to page 200 (yep 200) you start getting to the good part. They surveyed various sections of the river over a two month period and list every species(gamefish, rough fish, minnows, everything) and their number and weight for all kinds of places up and down the river.


Excellent! Thanks osg!


Outdoor Hub mobile, the outdoor information engine


----------



## GarrettMyers

oldstinkyguy said:


> More than everything you ever wanted to know about the LMR is here-
> 
> http://www.epa.state.oh.us/portals/35/documents/LowerLittleMiamiRiverTSD2007_appendices.pdf
> 
> If you scroll down to page 200 (yep 200) you start getting to the good part. They surveyed various sections of the river over a two month period and list every species(gamefish, rough fish, minnows, everything) and their number and weight for all kinds of places up and down the river.


Awesome info as always, thanks!


----------



## TheJGRDispatch

Get a kayak so you can cover much more water.


----------



## TheJGRDispatch

oldstinkyguy said:


> More than everything you ever wanted to know about the LMR is here-
> 
> http://www.epa.state.oh.us/portals/35/documents/LowerLittleMiamiRiverTSD2007_appendices.pdf
> 
> If you scroll down to page 200 (yep 200) you start getting to the good part. They surveyed various sections of the river over a two month period and list every species(gamefish, rough fish, minnows, everything) and their number and weight for all kinds of places up and down the river.


That's an awesome link. Thanks guys.


----------



## oldstinkyguy

This site list access points to the river
http://www4.wittenberg.edu/academics/hfs/tmartin/LittleMiami/LittleMiamiRiver.htm

and this one has a map of the bike trail with access points 

http://www.littlemiamistatepark.org/images/stories/maps/2011mvbikeway2409.pdf


----------



## oldstinkyguy

It's winter, seemed like a good time to revive an old thread....

We have all heard the age old advice use the lightest weight you can get away with.

Well I'm starting to realize that it should be the lightest weight that gets the job done. Sometimes in really fast swift water that can be pretty durn heavy.
The last couple years I've been carrying some 3/8 and 1/2 ounce jigheads with me on river outings and find myself fishing areas and catching fish tht I wouldn't have a few years ago.


----------



## afishinfool

oldstinkyguy said:


> It's winter, seemed like a good time to revive an old thread....
> 
> We have all heard the age old advice use the lightest weight you can get away with.
> 
> Well I'm starting to realize that it should be the lightest weight that gets the job done. Sometimes in really fast swift water that can be pretty durn heavy.
> The last couple years I've been carrying some 3/8 and 1/2 ounce jigheads with me on river outings and find myself fishing areas and catching fish tht I wouldn't have a few years ago.


I use to carry only 1/8 or 1/4 oz jig heads but found that in heavy current I couldnt find the bottom. Went to 3/8 oz last year and my smallmouth catch rate probably doubled. Surprising how often you can find fish in REALLY heavy current.
My tip to all: You cant catch them sitting on the couch, get out and get ya some.


----------



## savethetrophies

I learned that being versatile with weight is huge in the river. Also, when spring comes and those smallies are staging to spawn. Go to bass bro and get some " shakey head" jigs with worm or creature bait. They will blast this rig hard in spring time. I never knew about this rig until a couple years ago when I started fishing bass tourneys in lakes. I tried it last spring in the LMR and it did a phenomenal job....


----------

