River vs Lakes

Even though I live on the mighty Mississippi, I don’t fish it much, at least for bass. I usually fish bass on my favorite lakes. What I am wondering is, Is there a big difference? What should I be looking for on the river? Any pointers would be greatly appreciated.

Troy

I think there are plenty of differences and some similarities. The river is constantly changing with flow levels etc.
On the river I would look for current breaks, such as wing dams, backside of islands. In the backwater I look for things that may be more similar to a lake, weedlines pads. Experiment as much as possible. I have been out very little of late and it shows in my confidence and abilty to put fish in the boat with any consistancy. This has been a strange summer for me on the river. If you want to be consistant I would encourage keeping a simple log of day, time, weather, water level and from there what you did that day. High water will be different from low water. The log will help you determine what was working in the conditions. This, mind you is a do as I say not as I do. I need to start this for myself and I know that I would be much better off for it.

I think the river can be much more challenging at times, but also easier at times, depending on the level of the water and what the fish are doing. How’s that for a worthless sentence.

I guess what I mean is, the challenge of rivers is the water level, clarity, and current are constently changing, and the fish must adapt. In a lake, the environment is much more constant, which kinda makes lakes easier. At times though, the current on the river will concentrate fish, which can make it easier.

I think the one thing you have to do is try and learn how current affects on positions fish and bait. It sounds easy, but sometimes, at least for me, it isn’t.

I tried getting info on fishing the river before and where to start and what to try and I got close to nothing. I tried asking people if they would take me out once and just show me some basic strategies and I got nuthin, so I have busted my a$$ the last two years on the river and I am finally to the point where I can put together a decent limit on pool 4 the majority of the time. This is what I did:

Just drive around. The river where we live is not prime bass water, there are a few, but the numbers and best way to learn is between Pepin and Alma. If you have a smaller boat, put in at the marina in Alma and cruise up the main channel a little and then idle around in the backwaters to get a feel for where the deeper water is and the areas that you want to avoid.

After you have an idea of the area, put down the trolling motor and start fishing. The easiest targets to start with are visible structure like wood and weed edges. Find a bank with a little current and a few feet deep and cast jigs/tubes to every piece of wood. If you catch some fish you will start to have confidence in this area and use it as a starting point. Next time you go out go to spots where you caught fish before and see if they are still there. If not look around to where they could be. If you catch them again, fish that area thouroughly and learn it well and then move on and explore new water. Never get too comfortable with one spot because river fish move and if you have a variety of staging areas you will be a lot better off than relying on one honey hole that was full of fish a week ago.

Also check out the front and back sides of islands with current flowing by. If you look at the front of an island you will notice a little current break in the front where the water splits. It has been my experience that fish will sit in these breaks and wait for a meal to wash by.

As far as lures go, I usually have the following rigged up when I head to the river:

Black/Red Flake Tube
White or Chartreuse Spinner Bait
White or Brown/Chartreuse Swimming Jig
Lake Fork Tube Creature or Yamamoto Creature Bait (I prefer green pumpkin this year so far)
White/Chartreuse Bandit Crankbait (6ft diver)

I like throwing the tubes around wood and flipping the creature baits into pockets along banks where the fish can sit and wait for food to wash by.

I like throwing the swimming jig or spinnerbait along weed edges in the current.

I use the crankbait in deep eddies along the shoreline.

These are just my experiences from what I’ve done that has caught fish. Hopefully some people with more experience and skill will chime in.

One more thing. If all else fails, do what real fishermen do and find the boats that do well in the tournaments and follow them around with binocs.

Bomber, thanks for the info. When are we going to hook up?
We are neighbors for crying out loud.

I fish both lakes, and rivers(Chippewa and Mississippi), and
there are a lot more similarities, than differences, once
one digs below the surface. Current focuses forage, and
fish. Add cover, and structure, and things really are not
that different. Lakes have current, caused by wind, or
inlet, and outlet, streams, and the fish can feel it.
We fishers can’t really see it, but the wind, and a good
bottom map, help me see the eddies, and current breaks,
in lakes. The problem is as the wind direction changes,
so do the eddies, and current breaks. So studying
lake currents can be a real challenge, but can often
pay huge dividends. So many times I see guys running
to less windy spots on the lake. BAD PLAN. I can’t count
the number of hog smallies that I have set the hook on,
while pitching in 3′ waves. I run to where the current
focuses forage, and ultimately fish, whether it be the
river, or a lake, or a flowage. A rocky reef on a lake,
that comes within two feet of the surface, is just about
the same as a closing/wing dam, on the Big Muddy, when
the wind blows into it. About the only thing I consider
very different about lakes versus river, and flowages, is
rapidly rising, or falling, water. Learning what that does to
river fish, will be mostly useless on lakes. It can be handy
on flowages. So the short answer, IMHO, is rivers, and
lakes, don’t fish that differently, as long as you always
think about what the “current” is doing to the forage,
and ultimately, to the bass.

Big Bass Bane