Pics of smallie gear???

[RvW]

I suspect a few of you bass fishermen can afford a digital camera, or got one for a bamitzva gift, take some pics of your smallie rigs please!

With two boats in the yard, and often only a few hours to kill, smallies are often our target, but weve been getting skunked more often than not lately!

We use gitzits, and curltails. Are these not prefered? Are the fish just being tight lipped due to all the bait in the (Albany Willamette) water already?

Thanks in advance.

[Striper Club]

I am still saving my food stamps for a camera, but as for what you are throwing, try 3" Senkos in watermellon or pumpkin colors with a splitshot about 12" above the hook. Texas rig the worm.

In areas with little chance for snagging, try dropshotting the same.

Also, 3" tubes, 4-5" salamanders, crankbaits and roostertails are worth a shot. :smile:

[Wreckless]

Tubes (Gitzits) in mud green or camo like colors are my fav......my $.02

[Bamaboy]

The advice above is good-- but I suspect that you are fishing in the wrong places. If you are in the correct places, you can catch smallmouths with a Snoopy pole and a curly tail grub.
-- If I remember correctly down your way there is a lot of mud/sandy banks, shallow shoals, and sticks and such in the water(avoid these areas). Start by fishing by boat ramps and docks with a texas style set up...these places ALWAYS hold fish. Progresss to where creeks and rivers flow into the mainstream of the Willamette all you need here is a leadhead/grub set-up. Cast into the current and pull the grub into the slack waters. The fish will be sitting there waiting for your food. Finally try to find a place or two where the water is "slower" and flows over big boulders-- here all you have to do is float something over the top of them: rapalas, soft jerks, trick worms ect.
---just a little more-- My favorite way to catch smallies is to find "hidden pockets". Find pockets on the flats-- These places generally occur where the river is a bit wider and sort of slow. In the middle of the day all the bass in a particular area will come to this hole. This situation is where you can catch bass after bass on anything in your tacklebox! The best indicator of such spots is: Watch for bass feeding on the surface in a particular area, if your lure gets hit as soon as it hits the water (bass are competitive, other bass chase caught ones to you. These places are hard to find but worth the effort.
Good Fishing, Bama

[RvW]

Well, we are still making trips now and then to the Willy for smallies. Hour here, two hours there mostly from the bank.

I didnt get a pic, but picture it as you read it.

Im fishing near some rocks and concrete which were dumped into the river years ago. Theres a channel about 16 ft off the bank and Im throwing a 3 inch gitzit with a 1/4 oz jig head and retrieving it with small jerks allowing it to drop to the bottom.

Bang, got hit, three or four head shakes and then dead weight, classic 3 second ********* fight. He was about 14 inches. pig but useless trash.

I move upstream about 40 ft and let my gitzit drift from the current to the seam below the concrete. little tugs here and there looking for the hit on the drop. BANG fish on! woohoo, a fighter this time. Splash , he jumps and confirms, pig smallie!

runs to the bottom, then back up...splash, jumps again, good solid fight on a diawa spinmatic ultralight, and a real small quantum Ed Hillary spinning reel with 6 lb ultragreen. Fights hard all the way to the bank.

My bud Paul hoists the beast up laughing and hands it to me..a solid three pounds of torn up, bruised and battered but tough as a rock small mouth. I go to take the gitzit out of his mouth and I see a tail in his gullet...a HUGE tail. I pull on it and out comes a ********* about 7 inches long. The digestion process had already began and this fish had no skin, his organs were showing, and flesh was begining to break down.

The pig smallie looked like he survived a depth charge explosion. he had NO dorsal fin to speak of. just little bones healed over on his back. His tail fin had a chunk missing off the bottom so it was less than half the size of the top portion. Scarred, beaten and bruised, but all the spunk youd expect from a 3 pound smallie, especially one with a 7 inch fish in his gullet.

What a blast.

I used a gitzit that is sort of white/clear with glitter inside.

P.S. thanks a bunch for the tips.

[Bamaboy]

You should write for a fishing mag!!! Great story--with the ********* twist at the end!!! Bama

[bucketmouth]

Sounds from your description, that maybe this Bass could have used the nourishment of the 7" pikeminnow it had caught.

[RvW]

I'm guessing by the fight he wasnt undernourished much. This thing in his gullet might have killed him before he got it digested. With all the healed scars on this ole pig Im sure he can handle a little harassment.

[Striper Club]

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