Wisconsin is a great state for catching smallmouth bass. There are plenty of lakes and rivers to fish where you can consistently catch these fish. This article will focus on some of the more popular places to fish for smallmouth bass.
Door County is the place to go if you are looking to catch a big fish. Fish in the 2 to 3 pound range are very common and there are many fish bigger than 5 pounds in the Lake Michigan waters that surround Door County. The most popular place to catch these fish in Door County would have to be Sturgeon Bay. Sturgeon Bay is known for producing some excellent results in the spring with experienced anglers boating 40 to 50 fish in day. When the fish move in shallow, you can catch them all along the shorelines. The nice thing about Door County is that this area is one of the top vacation destinations in the midwest so you can bring the family and everyone should be able to find something to do.
Lake Geneva is another great smallmouth bass destination in Wisconsin. This lake is very popular among boaters, so try to get out here in the spring and fall for the best fishing opportunities. If you do fish during the summer, don’t be afraid to fish 30 to 50 feet of water. There will be schools of bass sitting in the deeper water and the local bait shop tells me that there are actually two thermoclines during the summer. In the spring and fall, more bass will be in the 12 to 16 foot range making them a lot easier to catch. Even though this lake is a great smallmouth bass lake, fishing can be extremely tough and most anglers choose to only fish with live bait. There is a ton of fishing pressure on Lake Geneva, but some of the locals know how to catch their limit consistently. Learn the hot spots and you will catch lots of smallmouth bass in between 16 and 20 inches.
Smallmouth bass can also be caught in most of the lakes in the Northwoods of Wisconsin, although they are not as abundant as the walleye and muskie. There are trophy smallmouth in the 4 to 5 pound range in many of these lakes. Lake Winnebago has some decent fishing for smallmouth bass as well.
In my opinion, if you could only go one place, I would tell you to head to Sturgeon Bay of Door County for a week in the spring, early summer or fall. Hire a fishing guide and learn as much as you can, then try to hit the same spots or other similar areas with your own boat during the rest of your trip.
To find more information on fishing, guides, lodging and more, take a look at our Wisconsin fishing page.
By: Kevin Sewell
Posts Tagged ‘Lakes And Rivers’
Wisconsin Smallmouth Bass Fishing
April 30th, 2010Trout Fishing In Pennsylvania
April 28th, 2010
With more than 83,000 miles of streams and rivers, along with 4,000 inland lakes and ponds covering 160,000 acres the state of Pennsylvania offers plenty of water in which to fish for trout. As a matter of fact, Pennsylvania is where I learned how to fish for trout. I’ve since followed the fish that I fell in love with while living in PA to the trout fishing state of Montana. My fishing mentor taught me many of the techniques that are going to be discussed in this article on the banks of rivers and streams in the great state of Pennsylvania.
Trout fishing in Pennsylvania is really quite good. Whether you prefer lake or river fishing for trout, PA can accommodate you. In PA the opening day of trout season is almost as much of an event as the opening day of deer hunting season (although nothing can beat the opening day of deer hunting in PA!) The lakes and rivers of central Pennsylvania, where I grew up, were packed with anglers in search of trout on the opening day of trout season.
Because we spent so much time trout fishing in PA, my mentor created the original bait pouch for carrying his trout bait (especially worms). At the time, the bait pouch was simply a cut off end of an old sock. Today there are much more functional versions available, but if you don’t want to buy one, just cut off an old sock! In any case, PA is where this ingenious way of carrying trout bait (especially worms) was born.
Another trout fishing technique that was born while trout fishing in Pennsylvania was the use of a set of pre-tied gang hooks. Gang hooks are simply a pair of small hooks tied in tandem. The concept is quite simple, yet extremely effective. Why? Mostly because gang hooks allow the angler to present a live worm in a completely natural manner. In fact, when rigged on a set of gang hooks, hooks are barely even noticeable to the human eye. This is obviously an incredible advantage to the angler and much better than using a single size 4 hook with a worm “threaded” onto it. Although I now use gang hooks all over the country, as far as I’m concerned they will always be inexorably linked to Pennsylvania trout fishing.
Trout fishing in PA is probably some of the best trout fishing in the entire United States. Montana has Pennsylvania beat, but I think that’s simply because there are so many less people, rather than the trout fishery itself. If you’ve never considered Pennsylvania to be a trout fishing state, it’s time that you should. Pennsylvania trout fishing is as good as can be found almost anywhere. Although it’s surely not my cup of tea, the state of Pennsylvania also has some excellent fly fishing from what I understand. So if you happen to be into waving feathers back and forth in the air, Pennsylvania can accommodate you as well. In many ways, PA is a trout anglers paradise.
By: Trevor Kugler
Fishing Rods for Different Types of Fishing
March 25th, 2010
Make the statement “all fishing rods are the same” and you are bound to get some laughter and more than a few lectures from experienced fishermen. There are almost as many types of fishing rods are there are types of game fish. There is simply no way that you could have a “one-size-fits-all” fishing rod. Below is a list of some of the different types of fishing rods, and explanations as to why they work well for the type of game fish that they were made for.
Bass fishing rod – The bass, both the freshwater and saltwater variety, is one of the most popular game fish. Bass tournaments are held in lakes and rivers each year, and the lucky fisherman who can land the biggest bass in one of these tournaments gets to take home not only a prize, but a great story as well. One of the reasons that bass are so popular with fishermen is that they can be crafty opponents, and fierce fighters. The type of fishing rod that is good for bass fishing is one that can take a lot of punishment. Landing a bass can take some time, and before you pull one into your boat or on shore, it is going to take your line for a ride, and bend your fishing pole every which way. Bass come in varying sizes, so of course bass fishing rods will come in different sizes, but they all need to be strong and extremely flexible. Bass fishing rods tend to be made from fiberglass more than anything else; though not as strong as graphite, it can take more extreme bending.
Trout fishing rod – Trout fishing rods do not generally need to be as flexible as bass fishing rods. Yes, there are some big trout out there – some as big as salmon – but generally they tend to be lighter than bass, with a little less fight in them. This doesn’t mean that trout aren’t fun to catch…the number of fishermen each year that go trout fishing in lake, rivers, and streams will attest to the fact that trout fishing is a wonderful way to spend the day. Trout poles usually run anywhere from seven feet to ten feet, with a nine foot pole being a good size for going from stream fishing on the shore to lake fishing in a boat. Trout fishing rods can be made from graphite; although graphite is not as flexible as fiberglass, with trout it is flexible enough. Of course, there are also fly fishing rods for trout, but these are in a whole different category than “regular” fishing rods.
Crappie fishing rods – The lengths of crappie fishing rods vary according to individual preference, but one thing about crappie fishing rods that needs to remain constant is that they must be light. Crappie fishing usually involves “jigging”, or snapping the rod up and down continually to lure the fish toward the bait, and if your fishing rod isn’t light, it’s going to tire your arm and wrist out rather quickly. Crappies are fairly small fish, so a light fishing rod and light line are fine to use. Due to the type of fishing it is, comfort should be the main concern when it comes to a crappie fishing rod.
By: John Gibb
