Outside Iowa: Featuring Iowa’s Bronze Backs
I feel it safe to say most anglers out there would agree that pound for pound, the smallmouth bass is one of the most tenacious fish in freshwater!
During the spring especially, they are relatively easy to catch and will push your gear to the max.
Smallies are often thought of as a clear water fish that require a finesse approach, but there are times and locations across the state where the water isn’t gin-clear and a more aggressive presentation will be the ticket.
Not only are smallies abundant in quite a few of Iowa’s lakes, but also they are renowned as a tackle busting river fish. They likely exist in some numbers in nearly all of Iowa’s interior streams and rivers, but rivers like the Upper Iowa, Maquoketa, Wapsipinicon Des Moines, Middle Raccoon and both the Mississippi and Missouri are some of the most popular for good reason.
Some of Iowa’s top lakes include East and West Okoboji and Big Spirit, which are likely the best lake smallie fisheries in the state where five fish bags at tournaments have weighed up to an impressive 25 lbs. Nice smallies have been caught in Big Creek with regularity and even lakes like Brushy Creek where a stocking program no longer exists, but they still show up from time to time.
For my time and money, the Interior Rivers are where it is at and quality fisheries likely exist within an hour of just about anywhere you live in the state! Smallies can get difficult later in the summer as they tend to school up and suspend, but they can occasionally be caught around rock humps and boulders. Now is one of the best times of the year to target big smallmouth bass, as they are usually found in shallower water just following their spawn.
My favorite all around horizontal bait for smallmouth is a Rapala DT-10 in a natural color. If the fish are holding tight to the structure and need something vertical, I don’t think you can beat a four-inch black tube Texas-rigged with a 1/8 oz. nose weight. As with most fishing, experiment a bit and let the fish tell you what they prefer.
Most of the Iowa Great Lakes have an abundance of rocky points with adjacent weed beds making the perfect combination to find smallies on a regular basis. I like to go through an area quickly with a search bait like a crank and come back to where I contacted fish and pick apart the structure with a slower presentation. Docks can also be a tremendous location to find the fish during the spring, and there’s no shortage of them on the Okobojis or Spirit.
River fishing can be a bit more of a challenge, but I suggest getting some grubby shoes on and wading your way from hole to hole looking for the best looking structure. Most of Iowa’s rivers will have an abundance of wood in them, but if you can find rocky hard bottoms, you will find smallies. Small spinners, jigs and even small minnow baits like Rapalas will bring those fish out to investigate. Anytime structure breaks the river’s current, it creates an “eddy”
where the water swirls and calms and fish of all species find refuge and often feed heavily as plenty of food exists here as well.
The best thing about Iowa’s smallie fishery, the interior rivers are highly underutilized to the point where you likely won’t run into many other anglers taking advantage of it. Plus, you’ll get to experience the beauty of another Iowa summer and one of the most beautiful fish in fresh water.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me and I’ll help in any way I can! tha481@gmail.com
Live It Up!
Thomas resides with his wife and two children in Guthrie Center. He is a professional outdoor writer, photographer, videographer, and outdoor talk radio show host; for more information visit www.outsideiowa.com