Bronzeback. Smallie. Micropterus Dolomieu. Smallmouth Bass. They are fighters; hardy fish with toughness and aggression matched only by those who relentlessly hunt them with feathers and steel. Anyone can catch a smallmouth, but consistently hooking them, especially big ones, requires a great deal of experience, forethought, and often some ingenuity. The book on smallmouth bass is still very much being written as technological advancements in gear, highly specialized flies, and progressive anglers continue to push the boundaries of smallmouth fishing into all four seasons and just about any water conditions imaginable. Squarely among those at the forefront of this group is Mike Schultz, owner and operator of Schultz Outfitters in Ypsilanti, Michigan. A long-time guide, fly designer, G. Loomis Ambassador, and champion of the smallmouth bass, Schultz and his team of highly skilled guides have spent years developing data driven programs that regularly net fish (and big fish, at that) throughout all seasons of the year, including the cold-water periods previously deemed fruitless. The result is a series of innovative early season flies and strategies which evolve with changing water conditions that open the door for anglers to target river smallmouth bass with confidence, regardless of the temperature.
Early Season
Adopting cold-water specific strategies is critical to finding early season success with lethargic, bottom-oriented fish. “Slow down,” says Schultz. “Don’t take the fly away from them with fast retrieves.” Instead, he recommends jig-style flies like his Red Eyed Leech and variations of Russ Maddin’s Circus Peanut, which are front-loaded with weight to cut through current, get in the zone quickly, and be “popped” up and down over a relatively small area. “Having a fly that drops quickly is really important, as is being able to keep that fly in a zone versus taking it away from them,” says Schultz. “That jigging motion, which catches fish throughout the entire season, is almost essential when you’re fishing really cold, early season water.” Similar to the spin angler’s Ned Rig, Schultz says his jigs are often eaten on the drop, near the river bottom. He strongly prefers natural color schemes that include tan, brown, grey, olive, and black to match forage like lamprey, baitfish, and crayfish in the colder months.
Fishing high-percentage windows is another one of Schultz’s top cold-water strategies. “It’s not uncommon,” he says, “for the fish to turn on for short periods, usually between 1 pm and 4 pm, when the water reaches its peak temperature for the day.” During the early season, the fishing can be slow in the morning, and then, “like the flip of a switch,” the fish will get super aggressive for a while before shutting back down. Being on the water during these brief windows is critical in winter and early spring when strikes are fewer and further between. He also notes that anglers should seek to take advantage of unseasonably warm or sunny days in January, February, and March, when fish will often soak up the sun in shallow tailouts and along banks on darker substrate and color changes. Big fish, often of the 19-plus-inch variety, will sometimes sit in only a foot and a half of water and be missed by anglers concentrating on deeper pools. This phenomenon, he says, is one of the most predictable smallmouth bass behaviors he’s discovered, and it has produced time and again for him.
Transitional Period
As water temperatures climb into the low 40s, smallmouth bass push out of the frog water, moving closer to current seams. In response, Schultz and his team deploy their transitional programming, opting now for slightly different flies that “bridge the gap” between the early season’s jigs and the swim flies he fishes in warmer months. One such fly is his uber-popular Leggy Boi, which sports a bulbous head, multiple segments, and unsurprisingly – many rubber legs. It was designed to be cast into slow water and hunted through areas of moderate flow toward seams, thus passing through the strike zone during this transitional time of year. Adding small, intermittent strips will pick it up, let the legs expand and “breathe,” and then gently drop the fly. Its many legs, trimmed to various lengths along its body, wiggle and bounce, attracting the attention of fish and acting as a parachute to slow the fly’s fall and allow it to hang at a generally consistent depth. “You’re playing a game with the materials,” he explains, referring specifically to the weight of a tungsten bead tied in under the buoyant EP Crustaceous Brush head. The size of the bead versus the amount of brush used for the head dictates how high in the water column the fly will ride. “The colder the water, the lower you want it,” he says. “The warmer it is, the higher you can fish it.” This balancing act lets anglers fish the Leggy Boi slowly at a desired depth, hanging it in the fish’s face without fear of snagging the bottom or underwater structure. Schultz recommends tying and carrying them in multiple densities for varying flows and temperatures. While not its intended purpose, the Leggy Boi also produces at a high rate for anglers when fished as a true swim fly in the late spring and summer due to its excellent movement and profile.
Another transitional fly that Schultz’s team regularly throws is the Woodsman, a modified version of the Circus Peanut that incorporates many of the same triggering characteristics of the Leggy Boi. This pattern, however, is designed with bent-eye hooks and strategically placed weights to ride hook-point up, making it the top choice for fishing woody areas, and for extracting fish when they bunch up tight to cover. Both flies are generally tied in lengths between 3.5 and 4.5 inches and fished intentionally at depths determined by temperature and flows. Full intermediate lines are employed in cold water to help the flies fish low in the water column. As the weather breaks and the water warms, full intermediate lines are swapped for intermediate tips and floating running lines that hold flies higher in the water for more aggressive fish.
Peak Season
Peak season, the pre-spawn period when water temperatures exceed 45 degrees, is when fish start to really chase swim flies, and Schultz says they can begin to “play with them” a little bit more. “Don’t be a robot,” he says, alluding to anglers’ tendency to fall into monotonous retrieves after hours standing at the bow of the boat. Instead, look to hunt the fly, imparting sharp, erratic action with unpredictable starts and stops to mimic an injured minnow. While the boat is now moving a bit faster, this isn’t quite power fishing, and it’s still important to “think before you cast,” says Schultz, quoting fellow Great Lakes angler and guide, Jeff Liskay. “The angler who makes six targeted casts along a bank may catch more fish than the one who makes thirty, he says.” It’s at this point that Schultz’s team starts to incorporate a little wilder color schemes as well, with white, chartreuse, electric green, and yellow emerging as favorites. Bright flies are more easily tracked from the boat, allowing the guide to provide important feedback and helping the angler to manipulate it around subsurface obstructions. This visual element of peak season streamer fishing is incredibly engaging and exciting. “When a swim fly gets eaten,” says Schultz, “it gets completely erased from the background. It doesn’t matter if it’s four, five, six, or seven inches long…it’s gone.”
Blane Chocklett’s iconic Game Changer is one of the primary flies used during this time frame, and Schultz will play with modifications and designs to accentuate their actions according to his needs. He’ll often, for instance, tie them with mop tails instead of the typical marabou or hen feathers. The mop material absorbs water, effectively adding “weight” to the back of the fly without tying in actual lead or tungsten. “When you crack that fly with the weighted rear, you get that full half-turn, presenting it to the fish in a true T-bone fashion, where it’s sitting completely sideways,” he explains. Tweaking fly designs to achieve a variety of actions and stripping them with intent are powerful triggers for peak season smallmouth bass. For those looking to specifically target big fish, Schultz suggests up-sizing the flies to effectively eliminate some of the smaller fish within the population. Too big, however, can at times be, detrimental so his flies typically max out around 7 inches in length.
All Bets Are Off
When the water reaches 50 degrees, Schultz says, “all bets are off,” and a wide variety of flies and retrieves can produce until the fish start spawning. Anglers are encouraged to throw flies that fit their personal preference, catching fish in whatever way they most enjoy. It’s at this point that Schultz starts fishing his Swinging D, playing the same buoyancy game as the Leggy Boi, but now balancing the fly’s foam head and lead keel weight. “That fly is designed to hang over a spot and fish an area,” says Schultz, who generally operates on smaller rivers, targeting productive zones that range in size from that of a school bus to a dinner table. “We’re not tracking flies at great distance. You can give the Swinging D a hard strip and it may move three feet, but it’s three feet sideways,” he explains. This keeps it in the zone for an extended period of time. It’s specifically meant to be fished from a slow-drifting boat at roughly a 45-degree downstream angle as it needs head-on current to wash over its flared head to achieve its snake-like action.
In fact, Schultz preaches keeping the fly out in front of the boat at that angle all the time – a strategy that provides multiple benefits to the angler. “Nine out of ten times,” says Schultz, “the fish will turn and charge downstream after eating the fly, creating a positive hookset for the angler positioned upstream.” Conversely, he has found that flies, even multi-hook patterns, are often pulled from the mouths of fish that inhale them when they’re presented upstream or perpendicular to current. To effectively set the hook in these scenarios, he says more times than not, “the angler must alter what most would consider a natural hookset. Easier said than done for the inexperienced.” The downstream angle of approach, however, alleviates this issue, spooks fewer fish, and provides direct, head-on current over the heads of his flies, a necessary consideration for many swim-style patterns.
Schultz’s programs are also augmented by very intentional boat control that assists the angler with controlling slack, thus achieving proper depth and imparting optimal action to flies in all seasons. Very similar to a wade angler stepping into or away from a swung fly, Schultz will hold a static boat position and row slightly forward or backward to drop and kill or elevate and speed up the fly, respectively. This creates precise presentations that pinpoint and exploit specific bottom or structural features that an unfamiliar angler may not be aware of, thus eliciting more strikes. This team approach is exceptionally effective in the transitional period when anglers are using a hybrid swing strip approach while presenting neutrally buoyant flies. The depth and overall speed of the presentation must properly match the temperature of the water in these situations.
Extending the Season
When fishing sub-50-degree water, Schultz says to “take your time, slow it down, fish every cast, and pay attention.” Relying on purpose-built flies and deploying them in ways that reflect the fish’s habits relative to temperature can help maximize time on the river. This is especially true during the early season when anglers may only get a couple of shots at mature fish all day long. When properly deployed, these cold-water strategies, developed by Mike Schultz and his crew, can effectively add weeks or months to an angler’s smallmouth bass season.
