Smallmouth are generally an aggressive lot, but when they move into spawning mode, they get an extra pep in their step. Complementing this amped up attitude, the fish typically move shallower and become more easily targeted — especially in the super-clear St. Lawrence River water.
Several anglers, starting with Day 1 leader Timothy Dube reported leveraging this seasonal availability in the opening round of the TNT Fireworks B.A.S.S. Nation Northeast Regional at St. Lawrence River. Dube marked a bunch of beds in practice and after taking a look at all of them with his Flogger (surface level underwater viewer), he knew which ones held the best quality.
Dube wisely hit his top-4 beds first and locked up a solid 4-fish limit, which included the day’s biggest fish — a 6-7. Catching that fish on his second spot put him on track for an early finish. Dube opted to wrap up his day around 11 a.m. and leisurely make his way back downriver from Alexandria Bay.
Dube and many others who included bed fish in their game plans benefitted from Wednesday’s mostly sunny conditions. After light overnight rain, Day 2 began with dim skies and those clouds will last throughout the fishing hours.
Anglers will have a harder time seeing their targets today, but targeting waypoints will get them into close proximity. Shallower fish may still be moderately visible and anglers using forward-facing sonar will be able to better pinpoint their casts.
