Pre-Spawn Season is Upon Us
We’re into week two of March, which means smallmouth bass season is just around the corner – kicking off fast and furious with pre-spawn action in early April. It seems these fish are now in almost unlimited numbers in rivers throughout the Pacific Northwest, and while we may have mixed feelings about that from an ecological perspective, it provides a robust, diverse fishery that is fast emerging as one of our very favorites.
Why Fly Fish for Smallmouth Bass
Smallmouth season typically runs from April through October, as things begin to cool off. Prime time is dependent on the type of fishing you most enjoy, which is one of the coolest things about this fishery. Your heaviest fish of the season are typically caught during pre-spawn, early in the season, and this is also when you’ll typically be throwing your largest flies. If you’re more of a topwater aficionado, the post-spawn bite that runs May-June can be an all-out ambush party on the surface. And during the dog days of summer, dead drifting smaller bugs will not only scratch that dry fly itch, but will challenge even the best anglers. This is a more advanced technique, one that requires both angler and guide to work in unison, employing long leaders and a stalking hunter’s mentality.
Another thing I love about this fishery is the accessibility. Not only do we have excellent smallmouth water within 20-30 minutes of Portland, but it’s also a fishery made for all skill sets. If you’re just getting into the sport and want to catch a few fish without a high risk-to-reward ratio – looking at you, winter steelhead – there’s a near guarantee you’ll hook up during the summer months. You can cast smaller flies all day, patterns that won’t have your shoulder barking but are the perfect snack size for most of our local bass. For the intermediate angler, push your limits and go out a bit earlier in the season to cast bigger flies, learn new retrieves and break that trout set habit once and for all. For the advanced angler, there are next-level techniques we can get dialed in as well – talk to your guide in advance and get a game plan together.
But my absolute favorite part of this program is the variety. Down one bank, you might hook a few 14-15” fish, and on the very next, your fly disappears, inhaled by a true giant. And of course, coming out of a long winter season, it sure is nice to cast flies to fish that are actively feeding at all hours of the day.
Flies for Smallmouth Bass & Presentations
The flies are a never-ending source of fascination for me, learning how to create different foundations and platforms that make your flies do different things underwater can be extremely satisfying. We employ multiple articulations, different-shaped heads, narrow bodies, wide bodies, and everything in between. The flies are individually designed to emulate fish in a myriad of different ways – side to side, erratic moves similar to a jerk bait, you name it. The stripping techniques are not your standard strip-strip-pause – animating the fly with your rod and stripping in the slack patches will lead to more eats and shots at the larger, discriminating fish.
We carry a wide variety of flies in the shop for smallmouths and bass, from articulated patterns to your more basic streamers and poppers.
Best Rods, Reels, and Fly Lines for Smallmouth Bass
Your typical springtime bass set-up will feature a 7 or 8-weight rod like the Echo 84-B, paired with a matching reel and either an S3 sink line or a full intermediate line like the SA Sonar Titan.
Smallmouth Bass Guided Trips
Want to make this the year you unravel the mysteries of smallmouth bass? We’d love to show you the ropes. We run jet boat and drift boat trips, dependent on flows. Right now, I have dates available from the end of April through the second week of May with multiple days open each week. You can book online, call the shop, or reach out to me.
Rates:
Jet boat – $700 single angler, $800 two anglers
Drift boat – $600, one to two anglers
About Eric Leininger
Eric Leininger is a guide for Northwest Fly Fishing Outfitters and ambassador to brands like Simms, Scientific Anglers, and Riversmith, specializing in guiding fly anglers targeting steelhead, tiger musky, carp, and bass in the Pacific Northwest.
Be sure to listen to Eric's Podcast "The Struggle is Reel" where fellow guides Zach Carothers and Matt Thornton cover the life of guides in the Pacific Northwest.