Filling Time

 What does one do during the winter months of the fly fishing season.? I have the tailrace to fish for trout during winter, but generation keeps those trips to a minimum. 

Charles and I spent Tuesday on Smith Lake, marking brush on some banks and the back of numerous nooks. We were using his GPS on his boat to know the location of the brush once the lake reached full pool, the last of April. 

Once the lake fills in early Spring, small bait fish will move into the tangled branches of all these brush piles. The bass and crappie will feed on the bait fish during Spring, Summer, and early fall; find the brush you find the fish. I've known where a lot of these spots are on Smith. Each year I find a few new ones in case someone else is fishing the same areas I'm fishing. Casting a popper in the vicinity of any submerged tree tops will get a reaction from a spotted bass or largemouth at daylight. Getting the fish away from the brush and in open water is a must if you want to touch it!  

The Clouser Marabou Minnows is one streamer that will get some attention from the crappie. The crawfish and leech streamers are streamers I've never tried on Smith. I will connect with some spotted bass and largemouth using both of these streamers. I hope to share a favorable report in the coming months. as to their progress.

Monday will be the only day next week suitable for fishing. The rest of the week is a wash with wind gusts and rain. The surface temp on the lake will be close to 50 degrees which is what it was this past Tuesday. I will be surprised if there will be any surface action, so streamers will be the fly pattern Charles and I will cast.