Fish-Hawk.Net

Hey Everybody,

Just wondering if anybody has any info on fishing fast water, rapids etc..
I was on the Quebec side on the weekend and fished the bottom of a set of rapids. I got a couple little smallies but nothing else.

Just wondering on techniques or lures or even any articles that might be around. I tried a search on the internet but didn't really find anything.

Any help would be great,

Thanks

Hey there, I too fish rapids quite often. I find the best techinique for me casting into the rapids at a 45 degree angle and letting the lure drift with the current. Second try allowing it to drift from 45 to 90 and then reel it in. You should find plenty of smallies in the pools and look for deeper rocks that are creating an eddy. Smallies like to hide out of the stronger currents and come out for drifting food. Fish some of the lower pools for the bigger smallies and walleyes. The tailouts usually hold walleyes and pike/muskies as they wait in calmer waters for food.
Hope this helps,
BA

Another method you may try depending on your baits, is to use a fairly heavy sinker tied about 2-3 feet from your hook... and then use a floating jig head, for jigs, minnows or worms. This method I have found to be very sucessful fishing rapids, however depending on the bottom, you will loose alot of rigs to snags....

Thanks for info. I'll give that a try. Any specific lures to use or just the same kind of stuff you use in calmer waters?

I usually start with a jig, casting it right into the fast water. Let it drift, with slow pulls every once in a while to keep it from catching bottom.
If this is unproductive, I switch to a popper and work the bottom of the rapids where the water is slower and there are some deeper pools. I know this seems a bit unusual, but it really does work for smallies.
In-line spinners with willow blades (like the aglia-long) work really well on top of the rapids right before the water gets 'choppy'.



Something unusual that happened to me on this past Saturday, is I caught not one but two LARGEMOUTHS in fast water. I mean right in the rapid, not on the edge or in front of. I never thought largies enter fast water like that, but there they were .