Oh Lake St. Clair how I love thee. This is my third trip to this heavenly body of water and I grow more fond of it every time!! Now conditions were totally different this year than other years. The water was very high and actually almost flooding peoples houses in the canals. But…..even with a little tougher conditions we caught over 150 bass in four days and caught some other cool stuff also.
How to fish Lake St. Clair
If you want to take your kid or buddy on a trip and guarantee they catch fish than look no further than Lake St. Clair. You don’t need to hire a guide to learn the lake. Just watch the other boats. When you see a big group you can fish with them just be respectful. The one thing that is most important for me on this lake is side scan. I have a Helix 10 in my dash and I rely on that thing. I do not even make a cast unless I see the fish on the screen. Take the time and scan around and when you see those rock piles or vibrant lines then make a cast. If you find a bunch of grass it can be slightly harder to pick up the fish so that would be the exception to the rule. “if you find the grass, you find the bass.”
On this particular trip we found some spots that we had all to ourselves. At one point we caught fish on one spot for two hours. It was absolutely awesome. The best part is we didn’t have to share it with anyone. Thats why I cannot stress to you enough to scan and look before you make a cast. Next time you watch Bassmaster’s, FLW or Major League fishing keep in mind they didn’t show up and just start catching bass. They have practice days (except for MLF) and they scan around and find their spots. In MLF they even have a 15 minute ride through. So use those electronics and put the time in instead of searching with your lures. I promise if you do that you will eventually find the MOTHER LOAD!!!
Lures for Lake St. Clair
Now the time of year as you know determines what to throw. We always go in late May – early June. This year I think we missed the best time by about one week. It was a little bit colder this year than in years past. So the power fishing pattern (crank baits, spinner baits, jerk baits) was pretty non existent. On my ned rig I prefer them a little bit on the heavier side so they cast better and I preferred the mustad version ned jig head pictured here.
What I like about this head is the hook is stronger and a thicker wire and I feel that it lasts longer. These smallmouth pull hard and can’t straighten your hooks. Now the easier ones to find are the Z Man Ned Jig heads but they do have a smaller wire hook. But they do a GREAT job of keeping your worm on. And speaking of worms it is plan and simple. Any color works as long as it is green pumpkin Goby you can also use just plain old green pumpkin. But we just had great success with that color the last couple years. This year we almost exclusively caught all of our fish on the ned rig. You can catch quality and quantity on this bait. We worked it on the bottom of course and sprayed it with Bang Garlic Scent and I feel it makes a huge difference. They bite more often and hold on to it longer. On this trip we were all using the same lures and I was using garlic and caught ten before any of the other guys caught anything. I believe in that stuff and never go out fishing without it. I use it with all of my bottom bumping baits.
I would also be remised if I did not mention the tube. And on this trip I did catch some of my bigger fish on the tube. I also stumbled across some beds and threw a white tube and they loved it….or hated it but regardless they bit it. And I will only ever use one head until something better comes a long. I feel especially for this lake it should mimic the goby in everyday. The Goby has a big head and this jig head mimics it perfect.
I get the 1/2oz and I prefer it to have the rattles like pictured above. Work it fast and aggressive. Also be a line watcher. These smallmouth will knock slack in your line sometimes when they hit it. You won’t always feel a tug because they swim forward with it. This whole entire trip we used 8-10lb flourocarbon.
So guys if this place is on your bucket list than go. It is no surprise Bassmaster Magazine has it in the top 10 lakes in the country every year.
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