DPS Kayak Fishing Blog

Summer Buzzing by Billy Souders

   With the dog days of summer in full swing, so is the wonderful topwater bite for river Smallmouth. Recently, I’ve done two float trips on the upper Potomac and have seen an increase in topwater action. This time of year is particularly amazing not just because of the topwater bite, but also because the majority of the upper Potomac is too shallow for bass boats to navigate. Due to that, we kayak anglers are left with a nearly empty river that isn’t overly pressured – with the potential to haul in large amounts of fish.

    On July 19^th,2014 my father-in-law and I did a float from Taylor’s Landing, MD to Shepherdstown, WV. The topwater bite was slow at first. As the day progressed, it began to pick up, but was fairly sporadic. The majority of the time I was using a 1/8 ounce white buzzbait. I had a total of about 14 strikes but only landed 5 Bass, which included my best for the day – a 17” Smallie. On July 24^th, my father-in-law and I did another float trip from Sandy Hook, MD to Brunswick, MD from late afternoon to early evening. Right from the start I knew that I was going to commit myself to using the buzzbait for most of the outing. I honestly can’t give an exact number on how many strikes I received, but I would say it was in the ballpark of 50. I probably landed about 20-25 of those fish. I would say that the majority of the missed strikes came from very small fish. Unfortunately, we didn’t land any really nice Smallies but both of us sure had our opportunities at a few husky Bass. My largest of the day was a 16-incher with the majority of the fish in the 10-inch range. But for everyone who has fished for Smallmouth, there is one thing they know: A 10-inch Smallie has the fight of a 14-inch Largemouth.

    One of my most effective techniques for getting a solid hook set was casting the buzzbait downstream at a 45-degree angle or straight downriver. This presentation seemed to be successful since I was able to slow it down and use the river’s current to spin the blade. It also appeared to me that the Bass were able to target the lure more easily. Generally, if you fish parallel to shore and upstream, the lure is being pulled in two directions; you are reeling it straight towards yourself and the current is also pushing it downstream. Also, by throwing the buzzbait upstream, you are forced to reel it even faster since you are bringing it with the current. With all of these variables in play, I believe it is harder for the fish to target the lure effectively, thus resulting in short strikes and or side slaps. Another important factor that I had found was to work shade lines as much as possible. With the river shallow and the sun heating up the water quickly during the day, the fish are staging up in deeper holes and in the shade. Finally, be prepared to change the color of the buzzbait often. I found myself routinely changing the color and/or size as each day progressed, oftentimes going back to the same colors I had used earlier in the day. Some variables for changing the color are obvious, like going to a darker color during twilight hours or when cloudy, but other times it wasn’t so apparent. It was important for me to be vigilant and pay close attention when the bite slowed – that was my indicator that I need to change something. Sometimes it was as simple as just adding a chartreuse grub as a trailer and other times I had to change the color completely. One example had been when there were about 2 hours of daylight left and I had just pulled into a very promising eddy and rock break. I made multiple casts with the white and chartreuse buzzbait and didn’t even get a hit. While sitting there I changed to a black buzzbait and on the first two casts into the same hole I nailed two fish.

    As always the comfort of fishing from the Jackson Big Rig was spectacular. Paddling the Big Rig upriver can be taxing at times due to the sheer size, width and weight; however, when floating down the river and going through rapids, it is very nice. The stability allows me to comfortably stand as I am floating downstream, which gives a great vantage position to spot submerged structure to target. 

Thanks for reading another blog post from the Delaware Paddlesports Kayak Fishing team! Catch em' up!

Billy

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