Post by Brian on Nov 11, 2010 11:51:50 GMT -5
I launched at the VTF&W access in Brattleboro Tuesday and Wednesday this week. I said to the Mrs. (she wouldn't go because it's deep fishing) before I left the house that I didn't know what to fish for...... smallmouth bass, walleye or dace (fallfish). So I took rods for all three. A #3 Mepps for the dace, spidergubs and tubes for the bass and dropshot for the walleye.
When I got to the river the current was screaming, a good thing usually. But the water temp. was 42 degrees, not a good thing with that much current. In fact I'd never been able to catch bass at all when the temp. gets below 45. Undaunted, I first tried feeder creeks with the Mepps. Nothing. Then traditional fall smallmouth areas with the jigs in 15' to 22'. Nothing. After two hours I get a bite on a football head spider grub. The fish was on a slopping rocky bank and pulling hard but staying down. A nice walleye? No, a jumbo minnow! A 17" fallfish, cool.
Tried for bass further down river in 18' to 22', still can't find them. These areas the bass would be if the water was 46 to 48, hmmm? Dunno. But did find a bunch of walleye and a single big rock bass in 30' to 50' with the dropshot. In a large eddy pool near the current seam. Caught and released 6 walleye. One was they smallest I've ever seen, about 6". The rest were 13" to 15".
Next day I went back with bass in mind. Left the Mepps home but took a 1/2 oz. silver buddy type jigging blade on 12 lb. test. First I tried again the 18' to 22' traditional areas with jigs and jerkbait. The water had warmed up to 43 (a sauna). Still zip. Fished for three hours before finally connecting with a 1.5 lb. smallie in 28' on the blade. The wind and current made it tough to hammer on a small spot and only had one other bite before losing the blade on the multitude of snags that make up the river bottom. Tied on a new one and kept at it in 27' to 30' catching one more very pale cold smallie, 1.75 lb. or so. Then I went back to the walleye hole from the day before. With the blade I jigged up 2 giant rockbass. Then tried the drop shot and got two more big rockies and one walleye. End of day, gets dark early and I had to motor 5 miles up river. A good time.
A 30' deep rocky from day one. Day two they were 40' and bigger.
A big river fallfish, the board is 4" wide.
When I got to the river the current was screaming, a good thing usually. But the water temp. was 42 degrees, not a good thing with that much current. In fact I'd never been able to catch bass at all when the temp. gets below 45. Undaunted, I first tried feeder creeks with the Mepps. Nothing. Then traditional fall smallmouth areas with the jigs in 15' to 22'. Nothing. After two hours I get a bite on a football head spider grub. The fish was on a slopping rocky bank and pulling hard but staying down. A nice walleye? No, a jumbo minnow! A 17" fallfish, cool.
Tried for bass further down river in 18' to 22', still can't find them. These areas the bass would be if the water was 46 to 48, hmmm? Dunno. But did find a bunch of walleye and a single big rock bass in 30' to 50' with the dropshot. In a large eddy pool near the current seam. Caught and released 6 walleye. One was they smallest I've ever seen, about 6". The rest were 13" to 15".
Next day I went back with bass in mind. Left the Mepps home but took a 1/2 oz. silver buddy type jigging blade on 12 lb. test. First I tried again the 18' to 22' traditional areas with jigs and jerkbait. The water had warmed up to 43 (a sauna). Still zip. Fished for three hours before finally connecting with a 1.5 lb. smallie in 28' on the blade. The wind and current made it tough to hammer on a small spot and only had one other bite before losing the blade on the multitude of snags that make up the river bottom. Tied on a new one and kept at it in 27' to 30' catching one more very pale cold smallie, 1.75 lb. or so. Then I went back to the walleye hole from the day before. With the blade I jigged up 2 giant rockbass. Then tried the drop shot and got two more big rockies and one walleye. End of day, gets dark early and I had to motor 5 miles up river. A good time.
A 30' deep rocky from day one. Day two they were 40' and bigger.
A big river fallfish, the board is 4" wide.
. I never got back at it until the water hit 42 this week. Actually, I'm pleased I caught a bass at all 
. I did have a VMAP walleye in the back of my mind 
and spent a good deal of time in a walleye hole (really three....one produced).