Small Mouths, Big Action

This month will see some of the hottest smallmouth bass fishing we can usually expect for the open water fishing season. While smallmouth do not typically enjoy the status of being one of Maine’s premiere, sought-after game fish such as landlocked Atlantic salmon and brook trout, these black bass provide fantastic fishing opportunities in late spring into early summer. I have had the opportunity to guide numerous anglers hailing from all parts of the country, some unzipping high-end Orvis fly rods on the boat while others broke out traditional spinning gear. One thing they all had in common was the pursuit of June smallies on one of Maine’s many pure and rocky lakes. Here are some of the best techniques I’ve seen employed throughout the best of the smallmouth season.

Pre-Spawn

Most years, the pre-spawn occurs in my region from mid-May into the first week of June. During this time, female bass will be feeding aggressively to maintain energy levels. Their bellies start to swell with eggs and they are hungry. The most successful anglers will be casting their lure at shelves where the shallow shoreline waters transition to deeper depths. Large females will be hanging back, waiting for the males to construct and prepare the spawning beds along the shoreline. Casting lures or wet flies that sink slowly works well. Alternatively, slowly trolling a bright silver or gold spoon along the shelf can be equally as effective.

Bass on Beds

When the water temperatures reach 55 to 62 degrees, the action really picks up. The males have finished the beds and the females start depositing their eggs. During this period, you’ll start seeing more aggression strikes. Males are only interested in one thing right now – defending the beds from intruders. This the time for a lure that imitates an intruder seeking to eat recently spawned eggs. Hard stick baits such as a floating Rapala can be retrieved over a bed and made to dive towards it, leaving the guarding male no other choice than to protect his domain. Soft, Senko-style worms work well also. They can be rigged weedless style to prevent snagging rocks or brushy debris and can be a killer for females still hanging around looking to replenish after spawning. You can move the bait along the bottom and around rock piles without hanging up.

For the hottest top-water action, poppers are a favorite. Toss a popper near the edge of a spawning bed and if an aggressive smallie doesn’t hit it right off, wait for the casting rings to dissipate on the water. A twitch or two should be all it takes to force him into action. The sight of a smallmouth exploding out of the water and tail-walking towards the boat is as good as it gets for me.

Post Spawn

The bite starts to really slow down now. The trick here is to make your presentation easy for the fish to take. The males are tired and worn out from their duties on the beds and the females have become just plain lazy. The water has warmed up considerably by late June and early July and the smallies will be seeking sunken boulders, rock piles, and grasses to hang out around. A slow retrieve around structure that provides relief from warmer waters is the trick here. Look for these spots in 12-20 feet of water. Buck tail type lures with orange, black and green combinations work well. If it is very rocky, a paddle-tail swim bait rigged weedless works very well at keeping the snagging to a minimum and looks very natural to wary bass that have had all manner of lures thrown at them for a month.