# coldwater river smallmouth



## tcba1987 (Jun 22, 2004)

what do you all reccommend i try this time of year for river smallmouth ?? i dont usually use live bait but will if thats all they hit this time of year. when do the smallies quit bitng in rivers is there a certain temp range or will they bite all winter if there is open water to fish ?? also do any of you have luck on buzzbaits in rivers?? i know a fellow who swears they are the best big smallmouth bait that there is whats you alls opinion ?? oh yeah im limited to bankfishing so keep that in mind. what areas should i be trying ?? the same ones i fished all summer or what ???


----------



## johnboy111711 (Apr 7, 2004)

you might want to try some tubes, they always work well for me. also small hair jigs, leetches, minnows, craws work well. crank baits such as big O's and jerk baits like rapalas work well too


----------



## JBJ (Apr 11, 2004)

In shallow rivers I get bites year round with small crankbaits and fairly often with small spinnerbaits. I will fish as long as there isn't ice forming.


----------



## WLB (Apr 6, 2004)

I wade the river I fish for smallies, last week same as always I caught some on small rooster tails but got most on a small silver and black floating rapala fished around rock piles and current eddies. I use the same rooster tails I use for white bass in the spring in chartreuse, black or white. I fish smallies on the river till late november, early December or till the river gets high and muddy. I work the lures slow but every once in a while they like that rooster tail as fast as I can fish it. The leaves are a problem, if you don't get a fish on a cast you get a leaf, Good Luck


----------



## Procraftboats21 (Apr 6, 2004)

try a small hair jig tipped with a uncle josh spin frog, deadly in cold water.


----------



## Flipp (Apr 5, 2004)

I fish rivers almost year round I use tubes, cranks, blade baits, and a hair jig with twister tail on it.


----------



## RiverRat (Apr 5, 2004)

I know many that catch all through the winter using scaled down plastics..i prefer a much different method, but both work well. My personal opinion is that my style produces more and better fish....but i dont talk about how i go about catching them on the internet..sorry.
My biggest smallies of the year come in the months between Oct.-March when the water temps are 55 degrees and lower. I had 2 yrs. in a row that i caught a smallie every month of the year. Most of the time Jan. is my hardest month because its usually the coldest and unstable during winter.
I have caught(AND released) 8 fish Ohio smallies over the past five years, one of them out of a stream that is one of the hardest to catch a smallie of that size. It all depends on many factors, but starting with a QUALITY smallmouth river/stream is #1 in my book. My avg. is in the 17-18" range for sure, yea i catch the small ones too, but the majority are the bigger fish.

Many smallie anglers hang up there gear in mid Oct. which is a very good thing for me and my few friends that know better...its VERY rare for us to see another angler along the waters we fish...not that im complaining..lol

Good luck to ya, winter fishing is not for some, but give it a go,
Scott


----------



## fishing_marshall (Jun 12, 2004)

Are smallmouth found in the same areas all year around or usually deep water in the winter?


----------



## Action (Apr 8, 2004)

fishing_marshall said:


> Are smallmouth found in the same areas all year around or usually deep water in the winter?


They go to deep wintering holes, usually where there's some current close by.
Smallmouth will swim many miles to get into the right holes.
This is why you can pound them in the winter if you can find them. They stack up heavy and don't feed a whole lot, but if you can find them you can catch them with some knowhow.


----------



## fishingredhawk (Apr 14, 2004)

Lately on the Scioto in Columbus, I've been doing well on yellow/white/orange 3" tubes, and suspending cranks (rouges, husky jerks). Good luck


----------



## spinwader (Feb 18, 2009)

i'm close to you....do you go down near the 5th ave. bridge?


----------



## Gone Fission (Mar 13, 2005)

He might not answer..the thread is 5 years old.


----------

