Northwest Fishing Reports

Okay so this was my first year targeting smallies! I have caught many cold/lethargic LMB in winter that put up a good fight! Last week I caught a decent 2.5 pound smallie that put up no fight from 25ft. Did I trigger a strike from a very lethargic smallie or what? Sunday Sparky caught a decent smallie that put up a good fight! Was that smallie in an active period?

One more question for the smallie kings cough...tag...cough, cough...robber the last couple weeks the smallies have been in deepwater close to a dock! Is this typical winter hideouts? Haven't been able to hook up on main lake flats,humps and drop-offs! I was just figuring that they really relate to being close to cover (docks) in the winter! Whereas in the summer they would be caught deeper and further away from structure. Yes, this is American Lake which doesn't have very much deep water stucture! But Washington and Sammamish is a little too far and I am hoping to put together some type of pattern where we may be able to get more than I smallie boated in a day! But we have been consistent with hooking up with one.

Thanks guys I am learning so much about smallies this year and love the action!

cough... cough...BBD?

bassmasterderek wrote:cough... cough...BBD?

Wow BMD , thanks for not putting me on the spot ..lol


okay so here is my opinon on the smallie caught in 25ft of water that didn't put up much of a fight. During this time of the year it's kind of important to have an ideal of what dept the "Thermocline" is in that lake .. If that lake is only 50-60 ft deep the themocline could very close to 20-25 ft . With being said, bass consider that dept of water to be most comfortable in there staging . If your pulling that fish out it's comfort area during colder months it's bladder starts inflate and the normal fight in that fish can be effected .. That's why the thread on the proper way to fizz a fish is KEY for the next 4 months ...look at this way , if you have been sitting in heat all day in your house and you walk outside to 35 degree air tempt . Your not going to moved as fast as you would if the air temp was close to your home temp right . Now this not to say that all bass in that lake would offer that same action , each bass has it own personality ..My question to you if that fish that sparky caught , what was the size and what dept did it come from .. Your second question is why was robbers fish so close to that deep dock . Well point and case when i was on wash las week i picked up the fact that most the "active" fish were holding in 36ft , well if im around a deep dock that has forage near it in 36 ft you better believe at some point a fish will pull up to feed if there is oppertunity ..Now dont confuse LMB patterns with smallies ..LMB can be taken from 5ft of water in the dead of winter and most likely will be sitting extreamly close too wood . They tend to do this to get the heat from that log on a sunny day .Smallies on the other hand work under most different movement , they will go deeper based on the themocline and forage through out the winter months .. I have never fished on american lake yet because sparky hasnt giving me the green light to get on his water ..lol , so i can only relate to this topic based on wash, and samm, and southern lakes .. I hope i have answer at least one of your questions ....Good luck at there boys

BBD

BBD, Sparky's fish was about 2.5 too and about 20-25ft of water as well! I wasn't saying robberelite's fish came from docks I was saying my latest fish have all been from docks when they were actually deeper in the summer months than this. I was just throwing robbers name out there kinda like i did to you, sorry guys! I just know you guys have more experience with smallies than I.

And none of the fish required any fizzing! With the exception of some perch that probably could have been fizzed but still spiraled there way down themselves.

And when you say don't get LMB and SMB mixed up? I am finding them pretty similiar in territorial areas. They both don't move VERY far from their summer spots and the strike zone is smaller hugging closer to cover!

Thanks you for the reponse BBD and good luck getting the green light from sparky on american!

GREEN LIGHT....BBD/Fishinislife/BMD/Sparky...We got 2 boats down here if ya'll wun com'on durn here we cood git-r done..
to Pabst Lets get a winter fishin in YEEEEEEHAAAAAAAAW.Maybe we all should go up tags way..haha invade him:-$

I'z rekon,..I da like 2 fish 2.

Im off tha hook i can take my boat out allllllllll day!!!!!!! C'mon BMD get your side taken care of beg beg beg.Dez get ur @#$%^&(*&^%$ in gear and respond bro.Fishinislife:cheers: Kevin you more than welcome to C'mon down you the next contestant on gettin yo @#$%^&whipped jus playin naw man if you got a boat and bro bring this would be a spur thing and hella fun:cheers:

aaaaaaa chew!!!!!!!!!!

Well dont have a boat but if someone needs someone to scare the fish their direction, I am your guy and would love to go out and learn a few things.

SPARKY101 wrote:Im off tha hook i can take my boat out allllllllll day!!!!!!! C'mon BMD get your side taken care of beg beg beg.Dez get ur @#$%^&(*&^%$ in gear and respond bro.Fishinislife:cheers: Kevin you more than welcome to C'mon down you the next contestant on gettin yo @#$%^&whipped jus playin naw man if you got a boat and bro bring this would be a spur thing and hella fun:cheers:

Sparky i thought about you yesterday , i was in the market looking for the perfect turkey ...lol thats was sooo lame .. anywho , im down for american ill call fish'n tonight and see if we can make it happen .. saturday and sunday are suppose to be desent days .. stay tuned .. BTW , if we come I WILL PACKING ..lol put down the coffee dez and get back to work ..

I am good to go for saturday, but I have to work so I have to be off the water by 1. Gate opens at 7! I might try and go in later! But no promises!

And how did this thread become a fishing trip? LOL!

If anyone has an open seat,I'm game. By boat is sidelined for a month or so. Or as I like to say "Dry Docked"

bassmasterderek wrote:I am good to go for saturday, but I have to work so I have to be off the water by 1. Gate opens at 7! I might try and go in later! But no promises!

And how did this thread become a fishing trip? LOL!

I was thinking the same thing .. you know how it works , cant talk bass without it turning into a "show me the bass" contest .. we got excited once we got the green light from spark .. now i just need to know about his favorite hole ..

Bigbass Dez wrote:

bassmasterderek wrote:I am good to go for saturday, but I have to work so I have to be off the water by 1. Gate opens at 7! I might try and go in later! But no promises!

And how did this thread become a fishing trip? LOL!

I was thinking the same thing .. you know how it works , cant talk bass without it turning into a "show me the bass" contest .. we got excited once we got the green light from spark .. now i just need to know about his favorite hole ..

I would tell where his favorite hole is but then I would have to find a new partner for capity city bass club!

bassmasterderek wrote:

Bigbass Dez wrote:

bassmasterderek wrote:I am good to go for saturday, but I have to work so I have to be off the water by 1. Gate opens at 7! I might try and go in later! But no promises!

And how did this thread become a fishing trip? LOL!

I was thinking the same thing .. you know how it works , cant talk bass without it turning into a "show me the bass" contest .. we got excited once we got the green light from spark .. now i just need to know about his favorite hole ..

I would tell where his favorite hole is but then I would have to find a new partner for capity city bass club!

there's room for one more HawgHunter this year ..

You All should be ashamed of yourselves,talking this turkish rubbish behind my back while im at work real work labor intensive,Not sitting in front of my PS3 fishing,not sitting behind a desk drinking coffee,yup you will know who im talking about hmmmm which leads me to believe fishin and me are the hard workers here why you 2 have your little chitchatty gossiping giggling session let me know wazzup!!!!

I would tell where his favorite hole is but then I would have to find a new partner for capity city bass club!

there's room for one more HawgHunter this year ..

HMMMMM[-(

Dez oh Dez!!!!!Where or where art tho romeo!!!!:-&

bassmasterderek wrote: One more question for the smallie kings cough...robber

First, I am no smallie king... I do get some good ones every once and a while though and it doesn't hurt when everyone posts up little ones...

Ron Hobbs talked about deep smallmouth relating to small changes in structure during the winter weather it be a deep dock or a small log. Also the fish do not necessarily feed where they are located, it could be 5ft away or 50 yards away. I would suggest reading Tags winter bass thread or the recap of Hobb's talk, they may help out more for your question...

On a better note, 3riversbasser and I were out a week or so ago and he caught two that fought pretty good, definitly not like they do in the summer though...

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