BASSIN' IN VILAS COUNTY

###

Let me say this right up front: we've got some of the very best, most consistent smallmouth bass fishing in the world right here in Vilas County. Big statement, right? Year after year the lakes and rivers in the Eagle River area produce tremendous smallmouth catches. You will find that smallies are one of the most consistent of all fish as far as biting on a daily basis and you won't have to worry about wind or rain spoiling a bass outing. These fish keep on biting..

It has always amazed us that for decades we seemed to ignore these fish - concentrating instead on walleye and musky as out "premier" fish. More and more, as the guide community and the angling community recognizes the sport of these great fish, we see groups of anglers targeting the bass population for catch and release fun. One of our revered old-time guides, Orville Small, was the pioneer of smallie in this area. Calling himself "Sam the Bassman" he was fishing these fish over 30 years ago while most of the other old timers were pretty much ignoring them. Well folks: Orville knew what he was doing!

Right away from mid May on, the smallies start hitting with their trademark aggression. They stage a pre spawn feeding journey up to the shorelines to feed. At this time of year the action can be great with medium tackle and jigs and minnows along the hard bottomed shorelines where they will be spawning in several weeks. If jigging is too difficult, or if you are taking kids along to do this, we suggest simply using a bobber with a leech on a bare hook. If you do this on windward shorelines at this time, you'll usually get great action from big fish.

As we get further into the month of May, the fish turn their attention to their spawning process. This can be a great time for smallies, if caution is used in handling them, use barbless hooks and get them back into the water right away after catching them. They move up onto most hard bottom shorelines on out area lakes, and can be seen along those shorelines for several weeks as they spawn and then guard the beds. During these periods they will hit just about anything presented to them. Twitch baits such as small perch Rapalas, plastics, crayfish rubber imitations, leeches, worms or the newer Berkley "Gulp" products all work very well during this process. You can fish in water from two feet to 10 feet, depending on the clarity of the lake and wind direction.

If you are a fly fisherman, May and early June can be "hog heaven" for the fly angler. The fish are shallow, and reachable with a fly rod. Fly fishermen successfully use Clauser Minnow patterns, crayfish imitations, leeches or slow drop flies with almost equal success. Just fish the spawning shorelines and aim at the beds.

In June the fish begin to drop away from their spawning areas and simply move a little deeper, to set up for the summer. This makes it a little harder to find them, but not much. Look for hard bottoms, rocks of any size and merely fish in 8 to 12 feet.. This is the time (mid June) to start using crayfish imitations baits of one kind or another. The crayfish hatch, and the fish will feed almost exclusively on this crayfish hatch for long periods of time. During this period, any of the jig crayfish imitations work well. Also, red or orange crankbaits such as Shad Raps or Hot n' Tots work very well. If you have a newcomer to the fishing game, you can just set them up on structure edges with a slip bobber and a leech with great success.

By July and August the fish have established themselves on structure in the 8 to 15' depth range. An easy way to fish for them at this time is to drag a jig and leech on the deeper ends of structure Crankbaits and Jig & Pigs still work very well also. During the summer period, many fly anglers will use poppers in the evenings for both small and largemouth bass.

Speaking of largemouth, that is another under fished resource. Many of our lakes have an excellent largemouth population which is mostly ignored. These aggressive fish will hit just about any moving flashy bait, and are usually pretty easy to find. Just look for any type of weeds throughout all lakes. Weeds - deep or shallow - are home to these fish and they rarely leave them. Lily pads are also a favorite hangout.

For baits for these fish, plastic worms are the most common, followed by spinnerbaits and surface baits. If you want to try live bait, nightcrawlers will always work for them. Another really great way to fish for largemouth is to get a map and shore fish or wade some of the many small pothole type of lakes. There are literally hundreds of these pothole lakes in Vilas County, and the balance of them have largemouth in them.

One more bass idea - river fishing for smallies. The Wisconsin River is literally loaded with smallmouth bass, and hardly fished for them at all. Floating in a pram or canoe, and fishing the rocks and trees with leeches or surface baits will provide you with a great days action. We find more and more fly fishermen trying this type of fishing also - and for a bonus they can often successfully wade the river in mid-summer .

All in all, bass fishing will provide you with the most consistent action of all our fishing. Many of the Eagle River Association guides will be glad to help you with a day or half day of this great fishing.

Good luck and good fishn'

###

Back