Ontario smallmouth trip 8-06- help please???

[Roberto]

I'm heading up to Ontario (Dryden area) for a trip next week. Called the lodge, and the report is that the smallies have gone deep (15-25ft) due to unseasonably hot weather.

Anyone offer tips on how to catch them deep? Normally down here, we can catch them on jigs, tubes, carolina rigged finesse worms, and drop shots on the breaklines.

Any ideas of structure / presentations to trick these deep brownies?

Thanks,

R

[wolfe]

Hey Roberto; will you have a fish/depth finder? Curious, as this could benefit you greatly, in my opinion.

W.

[Roberto]

Yes; the boat has a depth / fish finder.

The lodge owner says he can put me on the deeper areas holding fish.

It sounds like they're just tougher to catch in the deeper water.

He says they are much easier to catch in 6-8 ft, so I'm really curious what you would do to get them to bite in 15-20 ft (lures, presentations, etc.).

Thanks,

R

[wolfe]

Hi again, Roberto.

Maybe invest a few bucks in some heavier "flippin' jigs", which are good for either tossing into weedy areas or for working some deepwater areas. You can tip them with whatever plastic you're partial to, but the crayfish simulated plastics work nice with this kind of jig. Smallies love crayfish...yum...

Also, maybe for some moderate depth waters, you can tie on a nice suspending bait like a Rapala, Husky Jerk, etc....

W.

[Badger Shark]

Last week we were catching them in 20ish feet of water jigging with worm and leeches. We were jigging for walleye and catching smallmouths.

[pafishin]

Roberto,

Most of the smallmouth we catch are in 15' to 18' of water. I mainly use tubes on a 1/8 oz. jig hook. But we use senko's and other worms also. You can fish the same, your just in a little deeper water. Don't be afraid to throw topwater either. They will find it!

Mike

[BBRich]

Drop a tube jig down there, salt & pepper or grey. Go with dark colors for sure. That's how we do it on Lake Erie, works great.