Smallmouth bass fishing: It's not about quantity

Randy Boeller, Spring, Texas, in a kayak, with a smallmouth bass caught in an Ozark stream.

Tom Smith, Springfield, is one of many outdoorsmen who look forward to the big Memorial Day Weekend.

Smith is both a squirrel hunter and smallmouth bass angler. This year, both seasons open on May 25, and Smith is ready.

"There are plenty of squirrels in the Ozarks, both red and gray, and with a liberal limit of 10 bushytails, hunters' chances of taking squirrels are excellent. I use a .22 rifle -- the same one my father started me on 30 years ago," Smith said.

Kyle Lackey and Jaron Moananu, Lee's Summit, float and fish on the Sac River.

"He always said, 'If you use a rifle, you don't waste any meat and don't have to pick out shot while eating them.'

A big challenge getting the squirrel ready for the table is skinning it. Once you have mastered that job, I then fry it like I would a chicken. Fried squirrel with biscuits and gravy is hard to beat. I usually avoid freezing squirrels because the flavor is best without freezing them."

Squirrel hunting is different from most any other game. You may sit, walk, stand, or use a dog to find squirrels.

"When turkey hunting in the spring, I look for signs of squirrel because both turkey and squirrels use the same areas," Smith said. "When you find a spot that deer and turkeys use, you know there are squirrels around.

"There are not very many hunters in the woods when the season opens, mainly because of ticks. I always have to check for ticks when I come home from hunting and this spring, those blood sucking critters are plentiful."

After a day or two of squirrel hunting, Smith turns to his favorite sport, floating and fishing for smallmouth bass.

"I usually wait until after the holiday crowd has left to take my canoe to the Big Piney River -- especially in the middle section of the river -- for some smallmouth fishing," Smith said. "When it comes to float fishing, Ozark streams can't be beat.

"I have taken some great trips on the Big Piney. I know of some holes where there are some big brownies.

"Using an ultralight rod and a reel with 6-pound test line is just right. For lures, you also need to go light.

"Instead of 6-inch plastic worms, I use a 4-inch worm, that works well. Other good smallmouth lures include crawfish-colored crankbaits and a small chartreuse jig."

Smith's largest smallmouth weighed just over 4 pounds. He said the day he caught that fish was the best day he ever had fishing for smallmouth bass.

"Besides that big fish, I also caught seven others that I released and had a lot of rock bass, as well," he said. "It was a day in early June as fog was rising from the stream.

"There is a big root wad in the bend of the river that has always produced smallmouth. On this day, I put on a brown 1/16-ounce jig and cast into the current when, all of a sudden, the rod was nearly pulled from my hand.

"There was no mistake what the fish was -- a big smallmouth that was bent on getting loose. After a long battle, I finally was able to bring the lunker to the net.

"This king of a clear, cool Ozark stream had earned it's freedom and after shooting a photo, it was released to give another angler the thrill of fighting a bulldog of the fishing world."

Most of the smallmouth bass caught in Ozark streams are less than 12 inches long, but even a small fish can put up a battle when using ultra-light gear. Back in 1994, Kevin Clingan, Springfield, caught a 7-pound, 2-ounce smallmouth from Stockton Lake, which was the state-record smallmouth.

No matter which Ozark stream you float, you will soon see why smallmouth fishing is a sport of quality, not quantity.