Spring Smallmouth Bass: Movement and Migration
- Pete Cartwright
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
In spring, smallmouth move from their winter holes (areas) to spawning areas. In my experience of 40 plus years fishing for smallmouth, this migration can be a huge distance or a short distance. The most profound migrations can be from larger rivers to streams or a large winter hole in a river to other parts of the river. These migrations usually happen near April here in western PA but can happen earlier if water temperatures get into the 50s and stay there. There is really no way to know unless you have radio-tagged fish movements to know how far they travel during migrations; some fish travel long distances, others not so far at all. If the area provides habitat for what they need for winter, they won't move far at all, including in some smaller streams these fish never leave.
When these fish start to move, it isn't all at the same time; they seem to move in waves with water temperatures and daylight as the main factors. Also, bait movement is a factor.
Once the water temperature is in the high fifties and climbing, they really move fast up creeks and streams—here one day, gone the next. I have followed some migrations up streams from the mouth up 5 miles, moving upstream every day for a week at a time. This is a great time to be on the water.
I fish all year long for smallmouth. During winter, they like areas that have slower currents with boulders and mud and some kind of drop-off. It doesn't have to be crazy deep; a few areas that I fish are only a foot or two drop, others a slow drop from four feet to fifteen feet into a channel. These spots can hold a ton of fish. The thing people don't realize is they move in winter, just not very far. Bigger smallmouth eat all year, maybe not every day, and during the coldest times less, but if something presents itself as an easy meal, they will eat it.
The next time you go out and don't get any bites, that doesn't mean the fish are not there. It could be they ate yesterday or a few days ago and are not active. If you catch some smallmouth in December in an area, it is most likely these fish will be there until it warms closer to 50 degrees in spring. That is a winter area. Now, that area might cover a lot of water, and they move around that area due to water levels and flow.
Here are some interesting studies that cover smallmouth movements that are a great read. Of course, every body of water is different.
The Yough:
In the Youghiogheny River in western PA, it isn't easy to find winter smallmouth. As a wade angler, it gets even harder. I cannot cover the water I need to unless the water is very low in winter to find them. As soon as water levels get lower, I catch more fish because I can fish areas that I was not able to target when it is higher. So during winter, for me, it is dependent on water levels for catching them. The Yough is big enough and deep enough, with enough habitat to hold smallmouth all year long. I have a database of 30 years of fishing the river, and during low flows in winter, I have better success than in higher flows. Just because you don't catch them doesn't mean they are not there. I have fished creeks in spring and observed many, many smallmouth right in front of me, and they won't eat anything no matter what you throw at them, including live bait. I go out at least once a week until I see a big uptick in bites and size of fish. When you start catching a bunch of smaller fish in current, they are moving. This is a great time to fish for smallmouth and can be difficult some days and be incredible the next. The weather is a major factor, with up and down temperatures and higher water levels. My advice: just go and fish, learn every day, write it down so you can compare next year or in five years. The more records you keep, the better chance you have to figure out the fishing puzzle day in and day out.
Areas to Fish:
I target spring smallmouth bass in shoreline eddies and muddy flats during early spring. Then, as the water warms, I target faster current breaks. If you can catch them when they are moving, you can have awesome days in April. Look for river choke areas where it funnels fish into an area where they can rest before entering riffles. Again, water levels dictate where fish will be.
Baits:
You can toss just about anything this time of year when they are feeding; it doesn't really matter, as they are hungry after a long winter. Some days it gets tough, and they are very hesitant to strike. I slow down and use smaller soft plastics to catch them. Try different colors and sizes with different retrieves; spring smallmouth bass are awesome!
These are the hooks I use for most of these baits you can purchase them right from the site click the hook you want.
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