There’s a certain crispness that comes during this time of year that takes control of our senses as chilly winds whip through the mountains pulling nature’s perfectly colored picture off the very limbs they clung to the last several months. What a display, and how blessed are we to witness this canvass every year. The same thing happens in a different realm right under most of our noses as school starts back up after winter break and football draws to a dramatic close. For those of us that continue to fish, this time of year offers us reprieve from the crowds, and another canvas beautifully painted by nature that swims freely in the rivers and lakes. This time of year offers some of the best trout fishing of the year with an amazing spectacle of color for those fortunate enough to witness it firsthand. Just like any experience, having the right tools can make this experience even more special.
There’s a special type of lure that I always have with me when fishing rivers or lakes this time of year; jerk baits! That being said not all jerk baits are created equal when it comes to trout fishing, and certainly not so when it comes to fishing moving water. Quite a few jerk baits blow out fairly easily in moving water, which is counterproductive to catching fish. There are a few brands that I use that really dig down deep and handle fast moving water seamlessly. My all-time favorite brand to use is Dynamic Lures based out of Grand Junction, Colorado. Known as an amazing trout state, Dynamic Lures were designed solely for river fishing for trout. There are two sized lures to choose from with Dynamic Lures, the first being the bigger of the two: Jspec. This jerk bait has caught me more big trout to date across the country hands down to any other jerk bait on the market. The smaller brother to the Jspec is the Trout HD coming in at 2.25 inches and is very similar to the Rapala countdown, but maintains its action in slower moving water where the countdown loses its steam. Coming in at a close second, some of you who walleye fish will know of the Smithwick Rogue, which has been a prolific jerk bait for many years. The shape of the bill is key to its success in faster moving water, and sometimes when you really need that reactionary bite a bigger bait is the way to go. The question now is what colors to use? Pretty simple on colors when it comes to trout fishing. I use about 4-5 different patterns that absolutely crush it while trout fishing. The top 5 colors are anything gold based, rainbow pattern, brown trout, pink, and my absolute favorite color is anything with a red/orange/yellow combination like a crawdad or firecraw pattern.
Jerk baits can really put a smack down on some big fish, that are pressured pretty heavily. What’s truly amazing about most jerk baits is that they are about as friendly to any level of fisherman with a little orientation as casting a kastmaster or spinner out. These baits do most of the work for you, which makes it ideal for beginners to use, but also offers experienced anglers and opportunity to change the retrieve, adding more action and precision to the movement of the bait. It’s comforting knowing that anyone can cast these lures out and catch fish just by reeling it. The action of the Jspec in particular has my attention (and the fish’s) as you get tons of feedback (vibration) when the lure is running properly. If the lure is fouled or picked up weeds, you will know as the lure will lose its vibration feeling when you are reeling it in. Knowing the basics of river fishing will help you maximize the use of this, but any for that matter, and help you land more fish and make a lasting, colorful fall moment which leads us into our next topic of how to fish rivers with jerk baits.
Looking for ambush points on the river is key for holding big fish. Big fish don’t spend a lot of energy for tough or small meals, instead they focus on easy meals using these ambush spots on the river. For those of you just starting out fishing the river, you can breathe easy, most of these ambush points are pretty easy to find, but placing your lure in the correct spot can be a bit tricky and will take a bit of practice. One of the best spots to target on the river is anything behind a rock or underwater barrier that creates a rapid or back current on the back side. Big fish and fish and general will sit on the back end and eat injured fish or insects as they get swept by the current. This is a big reason why spillways often harbor big fish, as bait fish are sucked through the dam they are killed or injured on the journey. You’ll often find these bigger fish and feeding fish in general right up on the wall of the spillway grabbing food as it’s pushed through and going back under the torrent. Casting at an angle up stream of this ambush point will not only give your lure the best action coming back stream, but will come across the ambush point giving you a little more time to present to the fish. Looking at the illustrations below, on the left one you would stand by the run and cast diagonally into the riffle. Finding “seams” in the river is also a great spot these fish wait for food to come by. A seam is a section of the river where you have rapids on one section and back currents or slack water to the left or right of that back current. Most of these fish will sit in wait under the moving water and will dodge back and forth on the seam feeding. A brief jerk and pause when coming in or out of the seam will often yield a strike.
When retrieving jerk baits you want to reel to match the speed of the river, and every few turns of your reel give a jerk-jerk and very brief pause (about 1 second) in the reel. This mimics an injured fish when crossing the ambush point of the river and you will often get the strike on the very brief pause. Brown trout are little different as they like to set up fast moving water before these other ambush points (rapids, rocks, logs, etc.) and are a bit more aggressive when they feed. It’s important to note that you will want to cast just above the rock or structure so that the water drags it under into the ambush spot. With this style of fishing you want to cast diagonally upstream and rip it in fast, or retrieve it slowly. What I like to do when fishing eddy’s is cast up stream (while standing at the head of the eddy) work the lure on its way back down and let it loop past you so you are letting the water give the lure the action on the backside as the current “long-lines” the lure downstream for you and give it a pop occasionally. I’ve caught some nice rainbows doing this as they hang out on the front end of the eddy grabbing bait as it’s caught in the eddy.
Sure, the weather is colder, wind has a bit more bite, but so do the beautifully painted fish! Having the right tools will make fishing this time of the year worthwhile and I promise you that you will be rewarded with bigger fish, and bigger memories. You know you have the right lure on when you can consistently catch double digit amounts of fish and the paint on the lure is beat up! This start fishing rivers this year has been amazing thanks to many companies innovative products that are becoming more mainstream with jerk bait fishing for trout, so give them a shot and see what memories they can create for you!
