TexasKayakFisherman.com

pdt818 wrote:anyone got some info on river LMB? i am curious since i have never caught one on a river

I am by no means an authority on river LMB, but I'll toss in what I've learned.

On the Colorado, the LMB tend to be more picky than their spotted cousins (which is why I like them-they are relatively easier to catch ). Where the river is wide, I look for cuts in the bank, even if just 6inches to a few feet feet in deviation and try to catch the fish "on the drop" whether it be a senko, tube, etc. In these cases I wacky rig the worm and let it fall, getting the hit after the first or second twitch.

If there is strucure like deadfall, It is often hard when the water is up because of the current(2K-3K cfs) and getting an accurate cast without getting hung up unless I'm tx rigged or wacky rigged.

I like the rapalas and cranks, (similar as possible to forage) and spinners on current eddies and breaks to washouts by creek inlets.

On the Guad, they will hug the bank more, so hit eddies and drops.

On the Llano, I have caught them also hugging the bank near structure. They'll hit spinners and cranks more readily on this river.

River LMB seem to be more finicky from one time to the next than lake bass. I've caught LMB on the Llano on spinners one week and the next week couldn't hardly get a hit. One time as I was throwing everything in the tacklebox, I tied on a jointed minnow and discovered by accident that if I impacted a boulder at the water line I would get a fish about every third cast. Throw an otherwise perfect cast that made no splash on no bite.

budreaux wrote:River LMB seem to be more finicky from one time to the next than lake bass. I've caught LMB on the Llano on spinners one week and the next week couldn't hardly get a hit. One time as I was throwing everything in the tacklebox, I tied on a jointed minnow and discovered by accident that if I impacted a boulder at the water line I would get a fish about every third cast. Throw an otherwise perfect cast that made no splash on no bite.

finicky is a good word.

Another thing, after last summer's floods, I've had to practically re-learn the river almost completely and still haven't figured it out yet all the way. DNR fishes the same section and bass fishes a lot more than I do. All he's been getting are smallish bass as well. I'll just keep trying different tactics until I figure it out. And not go for catfish as much

Beve,
you lead interesting topics.
Good work. Worth reading.

I focus on Black Bass during the hotter months, usually early morns on main lake points. Fishing for bass to me is more about seeing the sights, the wildlife, the sunrise, taking pictures and getting some exercise.

I never keep bass. Just admire their coloring and toss them back. More than anything, fishing for bass is a pastime during the tough season when striper are hard to entice.

I'll be on the best spots before dawn and if lucky, will have already caught a few bass when the bassboats come running in.

Usually they don't see my kayak until they are right on me. Some of these guys I know, so I'll give them a hard time about staying in bed, others I just give a wave and tell them it's over.

Sometimes they leave. Sometimes they'll squeeze in on me.
Doesn't matter. I've already worked the area with a topwater, a worm, a spinnerbait or whatever I feel like fishing that morning.

Enjoying the early morning before the heat of day
is what bass fishing is all about for me.

Now I've a question?
I have a sister in Nederland (near Beaumont) and I've bass-fished a few times in that area. I've been told that bass in the alligator filled bayous and brackish swamps of Southeast Texas seldom venture from tight cover due to these gators.
Has anyone actually seen or heard of gators catching a bass?

I have been studying river bass from the kayak. Just love this type of fishing. Most of our trips are downriver with a vehicle at each end. We are always on the move. Sometimes you just get one shot at a hole. We started with what we figured was right, small spiners and tiny stuff with ultra light gear. Eventually went back to my go to lake gear. 7' Med/hvy bait caster with TX rig worm. We still catch some with a Rapala now and then. The whole weedless deal saves a bunch of frustration. Not even having treble hooks out saves on the frustration where I fish on narrow tree lined rivers. These fellas were landed on 3 and 4 hooks 10lb line 1/4 oz lead.






I know SM or guad point is I don't need to downsize my gear.

When I met this fella I was glad my ultralight was stowed.



These fish are almost always right on the bank where vines and tree limbs beg for you to toss a crank bait

my 2cents

Iamdamoder wrote:I know SM or guad point is I don't need to downsize my gear.

Either way, that is a beautiful fish. And those are the places I have always caught LMB on rivers in my limited experience.

I'll have to agree with Iamdamoder on this one. A lot of folks will go right to the downsized lures when they get in flowing water. True, you can go ultralight and catch a bunch of small bass with a larger one or two thrown in. That is a lot of fun and I try to do it whenever I can. However, most of those same small bass will hit a full sized lure and you get a lot more of the medium and large size river bass on full size flukes, senkos, jigs, etc without really sacrificing on numbers.

One thing I have noticed about the riverine bass as opposed to the lake variety is they seem to spook easier. Once you see it, it has seen you and is very difficult to catch even if you can see it after it seems to have calmed down. Someday I'll learn my lesson and quit paddling up to likely structure without thouroughly working it only to see the fish of the day swim away.

Just like I said.

Fished the San Marcos Monday with the wife and Sis in law. My wife managed to break another rod and was on her backup, cheap ultralight w/ well worn 6 lb mono. Then within 20 yards of where that big fish was cpr'd in April, boom she is hooked up screaming it's your fish its huge.
Well she broke off at the boat no pic but the SIL was there to assist. A whole lot of screaming going on.

point is
well you get the idea

Trophy Size: What is your trophy size for this specie?

For me 8# or 24"

To qualify for TPWD Big Fish Award: 21"

I agree with the 8#.

!2lb
Ron

Are we talking Fork Amistad Falcon or a river near you. I am sure most of the guys on here catch 5# bass all the time.
They are holding the pics for a 12#

my best was just over 7lb. But with what they are catching nowdays I would say 10lb for a trophy

Moder
I was lucky enough to take a 10 lb about three years ago on a local lake that wasn,t a river fish forgot this was river fishing
Ron

Hey moder I think it's always gonna depend on where you catch it from. That's why it's so interesting to hear everybody's opinions cuz we all fish different places. Hell my PB LMB is only 5#. And from a river. So a double digit bucketmouth out of a river would blow my mind.

I'm sure the guys who fish lakes see the bigger boys more often anyways...

pdt818...very quality information. I agree on every point. I would add a couple of baits to your list as definite must-haves....

1. creature baits (i prefer zoom baby brush hawgs)
2. shallow diving crankbait (0'-2')
3. tungsten bullet weights (much better feel underwater)

your color choices are dead on....i absolutely love watermelon red and tequila sunrise.

maybe you could post up how you fish soft plastics? i know everyone is different.

Personally, I toss the bait at the "fishiest" spot in the water first. then let is sit for at least 5 to ten seconds...then twitch the bait two or three times..and let sit again. I continue this only until the bait is 5 or six feet from the previously mentioned structure. My experience is that the bass will hit the bait before you ever move it. I usually fish with the line slack and watch for movement....then set the hook like there's no tomorrow.

anybody fish them different?

and how the heck do you fish those rage bang tails????

Beve wrote: So a double digit bucketmouth out of a river would blow my mind.

Yes, Beve. It will .



However, on most Texas Rivers, I consider anything 23" and up, to be a Trophy River LMB.

bang bang bass!!!

I didn't catch this fish. My fishing buddy Damon did. It's an 8lb 9oz LMB he hooked up with on 1-30-11. We were fishing the Colorado and he was working a shoreline hole with a larger chartreuse (I can't spell) lizard. He dropped it in, let it sink and before he could start to take up the slack it was on.

Weather was sunny, in the upper 60s at the time, 5 mph wind and the water temp was up a little for January.

Here is a fish I caught at Ivie about 2 weeks ago. 12.31lbs, 27.25" long and 20" girth! I will post a detailed report in a few days when I have a chance.

Arai wrote:Here is a fish I caught at Ivie about 2 weeks ago. 12.31lbs, 27.25" long and 20" girth! I will post a detailed report in a few days when I have a chance.

Wow, nice catch

Congratulations on that hawg.

This is a really helpful topic of discussion. THanks for getting it started. The only thing is this is #7, where are the other six??

Shadow_Fox wrote:This is a really helpful topic of discussion. THanks for getting it started. The only thing is this is #7, where are the other six??

There is a thread here somewhere with the whole series in it

Well, for what it's worth, being from Florida and having fished for bass there, in Texas and Oklahoma, I can say with certainty there is one thing that all bass, regardless of strain, have in common. And that is you have to really match the hatch to have any kind of consistency. And for that to happen, you have to gain an understanding of the patterns.

For example, I had a day last summer where I threw a 2" chug bug at them all day long in the middle of the July heat and caught them ALL Day. Turns out they had been feeding on the exact same sized shad that had been in the creek. And these were explosive bites all day, with fish commonly coming out of the water to blast it!

I do believe the Florida bass fight harder. But that doesn't mean much since I've never had one, even a 10lb fish pull more than maybe 20 feet of line off the reel. So I don't think bass are particularly strong fighters. But they make up for it in other ways. If you want something that pulls back hard, go catch a blue cat.

A worm is a worm, no matter where you fish it. Put it in front of a bass and he's gonna eat it more often than not. But worm fishing is tedious and only appeals to me if I'm in a place where I know there to be fish. I like cranking and fishing topwaters to find them. Spinner baits are great when they're up shallow bedding. And of course, the bluegill, being the bass' natural born enemy, is great to use or immitate when they're bedding.

Just my .02