Successful Smallmouth Bass Fishing in Clear Water

Some bass anglers believe fishing for smallmouth bass in clear water is more difficult. After all, when the water is clear, wouldn’t it be challenging to fool these bronzebacks into biting your artificial fishing lure or live bait? 

You have to be willing to change up your strategy if you want to be successful when it comes to fishing for smallmouth bass in clear water. In clear water, these freshwater bass fish can see your lures or baits, so you need to be smart and strategic about tricking them into eating what you put out. Even though it sounds like a challenging endeavor, there’s a hidden benefit to smallmouth bass fishing in clear water; you can cast your bait or lure from a long distance. The fish can spot it from yards away and be enticed to check out your offering.

Here are a couple of fishing tips you can consider and do if you want to experience successful smallmouth bass fishing in clear water:

Where to Find Smallmouth Bass in Clear Water

Smallmouth bass that reside in clear water are commonly found in deeper water, at the bottom of the lake or river, or in weedy or rocky areas. Food for these bass will usually be found in those areas. It also gives them a chance to hide from direct sunlight. These smaller fish often travel in schools, follow bait fish around the water, or linger in potential ambush areas. 

If you want to look for them in shallow water, aim for inside weedlines and sand. Look for areas that contain structural elements where the fish can gather around. The best place you can find when it comes to shallow water fishing for smallies is inside weedlines with a hard rock bottom between vegetation and shoreline. Sandbars, sand flats, isolated rock piles, clumps of foliage, and submerged timber are also possible hotspots. 

Choosing a Bait or Lure

To know what best lure or bait can be effectively used for smallmouth bass fishing, we must consider their diet. These bass fish often target crayfish, insects, and bait fish. So it makes sense that an angler should use lures that resemble smaller fish or crawdads with color and can generate quick movements (to trick them into thinking it’s acting like their usual meals.) Here are some of the best bait and lures you can use:

1. Jerkbaits

Jerkbaits are effective when an angler catches smallmouth bass because they create the same jerky movements of small fish eaten when they’re in the water. The movement can also attract the smallmouth bass if you’ve cast from a long distance. However, just throwing them in isn’t enough. You also need to consider what color you are using and that your fishing line is the proper weight. 

If you’re fishing on a clear, sunny day, pick a lure with chrome, gold, and green colors. If it’s overcast, use a lure of solid colors. White, colors between green and blue, or chartreuse are good options. In choosing a fishing line, a 10-pound test fluorocarbon line will allow your jerkbait to create better action while lessening the risk of scaring off wary fish.

2. Tube Jigs

Tube jigs or drop shots with soft plastic minnows, worms, or tubes are great to use in deep clear water. Smallmouth anglers can use these lures by bouncing them along the bottom to mimic crayfish or baitfish. Depending on the depth, a sufficient weight for a jig head would be between 1/8 to 3/16th ounces. To use a tube jig, manipulate your rod with short, quick thrusts followed by short pauses to make it move like its prey. Drop shot, however, allows your bait to stay within a short distance from the bottom in the fish's strike zone.

3. Spinnerbaits

Spinnerbaits are another great option for smallmouth fishing in clear water. A white or white and chartreuse spinnerbait with willow leaf blades burned with a 6 or 7 to 1 gear ratio baitcaster can resemble a school of baitfish if you cast it in shallow water, just below the surface.

When to Go Smallmouth Bass Fishing in Clear Water

Catching smallmouth bass in clear water is best done during the summer. That season offers an abundance of bait fish, panfish, crayfish, gobies, and other food that will draw in smallies (especially in shallow water.) An angler can target smallies in shallow water because the fish have less time and space to escape an attack. Another reason summer is the prime time is that smallmouth bass also like to sunbathe in shallow areas with snacks within reach.

Additional Tips

1. Tailgaters are common after a smallmouth strikes your bait or lure. Try to use polarized sunglasses to spot more fish from further away, giving you a better chance of landing them too.
2. Vary your retrieval. It’s okay to use different techniques when you’re reeling in bass. No one magic formula can have you successfully land a bass every time.
3. Avoid sudden movements and keep quiet. The point of trying to catch smallies in clear water is to be more careful so that you won’t scare them away. Also, be cautious of your boat’s shadows because they can spook the fish.