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08/25/2018 08:10AM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
Starting to put my tackle together for a week of smallie fishing. I’m heading in a week from Tuesday and the weather forecast looks to be about the same as it is now. This is my first fall trip to the BWCA. Does anyone have any info on what the smallmouth are doing? Are the fish still holding deeper or is there a shallow water bite? I’m not really sure what my main gear should be? Jigs/tubes? Flukes? Spinnerbaits? Is there any top water bite?
Any info is much appreciated! Thanks!
 
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08/25/2018 08:32AM  
Last week I caught smallmouth all through the water column. I will say the biggest fish were deep. I was jigging for lake trout in 55 feet of water and found a small hump that yielded some 17 to 20 inch Smallmouth.
 
lundojam
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08/25/2018 04:26PM  
I'd call it late summer. Last week we caught lots of fish in like 8 - 12'. Should be a good evening topwater bite. If they are in their fall spots, check out saddle areas and humps in 20ish feet.
 
thlipsis29
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08/27/2018 03:09PM  
We were fishing Lake Three last week using nightcrawlers and my 12 year old daughter caught this one in about 13' of water. 21" and approx 5.5 lbs.
 
08/27/2018 05:33PM  
Thanks everyone for your helpful info! That is a dandy of a smallmouth your daughter caught! I can only hope to run into one like that on this trip! Thanks again to all
 
missmolly
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08/28/2018 08:01AM  
thlipsis29: "We were fishing Lake Three last week using nightcrawlers and my 12 year old daughter caught this one in about 13' of water. 21" and approx 5.5 lbs. "


Chunky!

Moray, listen to QueticoMike when he posts. He is the Bronze God. I'd write more, but I have to kneel and pray his way just now. Three times a day, you know, but it's worth it!
 
Bigbriwi
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08/28/2018 09:47AM  
We are leaving Friday and this is what I am bringing for smallies. Morning and evening bite should still be good on top water and afternoons I will fish them with crankbaits mainly.

Jointed Rapalas
Surface Poppers
Whopper Ploppers
Flukes (Rigged traditional and with bullet head jigs)
Jigs and grubs
Tubes
Square Bill Cranks
Flicker Shad

 
08/28/2018 10:12AM  
Miss M, I always like to read QMikes posts. He definitely knows his stuff and has the picks prove it! My BW fishing trips have always been in May,so fishing for smallmouth this late in the year in MN is new for me.I wasn’t sure if the fish were transitioning to a fall pattern. From what everyone is saying seems they are still in summer mode. I’m traveling from Southern California,so I’m trying to streamline fishing gear. It seems I will still need a little of everything. Can’t wait to be in the nice cool Minnesota woods! Thanks again to all that have replied with helpful tips.
 
missmolly
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08/28/2018 10:31AM  
moray: "Miss M, I always like to read QMikes posts. He definitely knows his stuff and has the picks prove it! My BW fishing trips have always been in May,so fishing for smallmouth this late in the year in MN is new for me.I wasn’t sure if the fish were transitioning to a fall pattern. From what everyone is saying seems they are still in summer mode. I’m traveling from Southern California,so I’m trying to streamline fishing gear. It seems I will still need a little of everything. Can’t wait to be in the nice cool Minnesota woods! Thanks again to all that have replied with helpful tips. "


I fished up north once in October. That was a great trip and weird too, for the bass were everywhere. In the warm months, I don't bother trolling while traveling. I want to get to the good spots ASAP, but that October, it was worth trolling whenever we were moving because we'd pick up bass everywhere, much like one catches pike in the warm months.
 
QueticoMike
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09/01/2018 04:47PM  
Just got back from the BWCA yesterday. The biggest fish I caught was in 2 feet of water in a small pool on the other lower side of a waterfall. I typically only catch one or two pound fish there, but one about 22 inches was sitting there that day gorging itself on crawdads. I was throwing 4 and half inch tubes, green pumpkin Strike King Bleeding Bait tubes with 1/8 oz jig. They were still hitting topwater too. Best ones came on the magnum frog torpedo. Lost a monster and my lure when it ran me under a rock right below the canoe. Broke my line and broke my heart. Some decent ones on the bone colored Pop-R. My second biggest fish came on the ZMAN ShadZ (aka Zulu), it was 21 inches. Fishing a channel then, along an edge of a drop off. If you want to read my article on fishing Zulus and or my article on fishing tubes in current send me an email - queticomike@yahoo.com
 
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