# River Smallie on the fly rod



## Whales (Sep 17, 2018)

I got this nice Chucky Smallmouth on the fly rod in a "not to be named river", LOL. I don't do to well on Flies for River Smallies, it could be not the right Flies or time of year etc. This one killed a black Wolly Bugger. Looks like they are starting to make there way into the small rivers....my favorite time! I do really well with my spinning rod however. Patience and practice for the fly rod I guess.


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## 9mm Hi-Power (Jan 16, 2010)

Nice fish. Years ago I caught one almost that large on the Shiawassee River - also on a Wooly Bugger. 

9mm Hi-Power


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## Whales (Sep 17, 2018)

9mm Hi-Power said:


> Nice fish. Years ago I caught one almost that large on the Shiawassee River - also on a Wooly Bugger.
> 
> 9mm Hi-Power


I have been to a spot on the Shi years ago that had a hole with some really big Smallmouth. It was out in the country, when I whent back it seemed that the river had changed more sandy. Maybe I will put it on the bucket list this summer. I hit all the Sag. tribs. Cass and Flint are my go to...Tib and Shi every once and awhile. They tell me the Shi has some big ones.... haven't got the big ones there yet!


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## 9mm Hi-Power (Jan 16, 2010)

Whales said:


> I have been to a spot on the Shi years ago that had a hole with some really big Smallmouth. It was out in the country, when I whent back it seemed that the river had changed more sandy. Maybe I will put it on the bucket list this summer. I hit all the Sag. tribs. Cass and Flint are my go to...Tib and Shi every once and awhile. They tell me the Shi has some big ones.... haven't got the big ones there yet!


 I now live in west Michigan and even pulling up some maps of the Shiawassee River I wasn't able to pinpoint the road crossing where I caught that nice smallmouth . A guy that I worked with in the "D" really got me into fly fishing and we'd hurry home from work, hook up (we lived close to one another) and head out to just below the spillway where the Huron River comes out of Island Lake for a couple of hours of summer evening fly fishing - always my favorite time. The river there was very wadable and then had big blocks of opposing and alternating current diverters/shore protectors and it was loaded with panfish and the occasional smallmouth. There were often unbelievable hatches with the river boiling with insects and feeding fish. What a great place to learn the fundamentals of fly fishing - nymph vs. wet fly vs. dry fly and always enough action to keep a "newbie" in the game. Thanks for bringing these memories back to me.

9mm Hi-Power


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## TroutFishingBear (Aug 31, 2007)

Whales is always wailing on the big SMB.


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## Botiz (Oct 21, 2010)

Good job. My bread and butter is river smallies on the fly rod.


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## Allen Morgan (May 13, 2018)

I just starting targeting river Smalies on the fly yesterday. I caught several yesterday and today, different rivers, all on the same pattern, a Clouser in Perch colors. I got two of those in a swap on this website, I believe. Donated one to a chain link fence that was out of reach this morning. Need to replicate that pattern SOON.


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## hooknem (Mar 14, 2003)

Excellent. I recently discovered the power of the clouser minnow after fly fishing for many years. Just never got around to giving it a chance, but very glad now that I did. The clouser was a good producer for me earlier this week in white/olive and brown/chartreuse. Probably one of the easier flies to tie too.


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## DLHirst (Mar 14, 2009)

Clousers are great baitfish patterns. Less likely to get hung up w the inverted hook, too! I like to fish them in trout patterns. Browns, mostly, as I am targeting browns, mostly. But, for smallies, a perch pattern would be a killer!


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## Shoeman (Aug 26, 2000)

hooknem said:


> Excellent. I recently discovered the power of the clouser minnow after fly fishing for many years. Just never got around to giving it a chance, but very glad now that I did. The clouser was a good producer for me earlier this week in white/olive and brown/chartreuse. Probably one of the easier flies to tie too.





DLHirst said:


> Clousers are great baitfish patterns. Less likely to get hung up w the inverted hook, too! I like to fish them in trout patterns. Browns, mostly, as I am targeting browns, mostly. But, for smallies, a perch pattern would be a killer!


Clousers are one of the most productive flies for Anything! Here's one of my saltwater boxes. Those brown and the chartreuse ones kill the smallies. On larger waters I fish them on a T-200


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## DLHirst (Mar 14, 2009)

Yep! I use ‘em for stripers in sourthern Maine. They are gold.



Shoeman said:


> Clousers are one of the most productive flies for Anything! Here's one of my saltwater boxes. Those brown and the chartreuse ones kill the smallies. On larger waters I fish them on a T-200
> 
> View attachment 771260


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## Lamarsh (Aug 19, 2014)

I'd like to hear of a fish species you CAN'T catch on a clouser minnow.


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## DanP (Mar 1, 2005)

Shoeman said:


> Clousers are one of the most productive flies for Anything! Here's one of my saltwater boxes. Those brown and the chartreuse ones kill the smallies. On larger waters I fish them on a T-200
> 
> View attachment 771260


That's a nice looking box of flies there!!


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