Smallmouth bass are great sport on the end of the line and cold late fall days see these aggressive predators schooled up on deepwater structure chasing down anything that moves. One key point to consider when looking for areas that are holding fish at this time of year is that all spots are not created equal. On a medium sized lake like Falcon you might have most of the large bass in the lake in three small areas. This can make finding them somewhat of a chore but when you do, look out!
One of my first experiences with fall bass came on Lake of the Woods in Ontario many years back. Trying to find some late fall walleyes, two friends and I fished a series of islands that had a variety of structures nearby. This included shallow sunken rock piles, weed growth and sharp drop-offs into the deeper water of the main lake basin. Bingo! Smallmouth bass were everywhere gobbling up anything that we threw their direction.
Fall smallmouth will hit a variety of lures; jigging spoons, jigs and plastic, live bait rigs with minnows all will work, some better than others depending on activity level. All predators including pike, muskie and even walleye will use similar areas at this time of year, prime ambush spots for open water forage which could include ciscoes and whitefish that are moving up on reefs at this time of year to spawn.
Right now with water temperatures dropping below fifty one degrees Fahrenheit, smallmouth move even deeper, roaming sharp drops near the main lake basin. When the bass are positioned like this, I prefer vertical jigging with a jigging spoon tipped with a small plastic power minnow. The erratic swimming motion of an aggressively fished jigging spoon can solicit vicious strikes from even the most inactive smallmouth. This pattern worked on a real late fall trip with Jeff Gustafson. We had a great day catching jumbo smallmouth even though we started out looking for largemouth and crappies. This is also an excellent pattern for fall lake trout, with fish that will rip the road out of your hand. Once fish are found, depending on depth and wind, it is usually better to try and stay vertical. My new MinnKota Terrova has the improved spot lock feature with GPS which allows you stay right on the spot.
With all the advances in cold weather gear, along with more reliable engines and other equipment associated with sport fishing, you no longer have to be miserable on the water in cold weather.
Gone are the days when we had wear clothing that was neither water or wind proof or would save your life if you fell overboard. Times have changed for the better