Jumping Smallmouth Bass

Upload & Sell: On After several years of depriving myself from fishing, I decided to go out and try for some smallmouth bass. I owe Karl A some smallmouth jumping shots as I had promised him several years ago. The smallmouth bass is a highly prized gamefish as it fights much harder than a largemouth bass and they usually jump several feet out of the air with acrobatic displays when they’re hooked. I use live bait (shiners) to hook them and then the fish is released after the brief photo shoot. I lost two lunkers which threw the hook while jumping, but I managed to catch a few as well. Also known as bronze backs from their golden coloration, these fish are my favorite freshwater species. I only use ultra light tackle, super whippy lightweight rods and 4 lb. test fishing line giving the fish the advantage. I also use Gamakatsu octopus circle hooks which are the best for catch and release fishing as the fish is almost always hooked in the corner of the mouth , making for a smooth harmless release. I had another one break off too after an extended fight when the line was worn down by the hook from small toothy abrasions. Kudos to my wife Susan for the first few lunkers caught and for the photos of my fish.
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Edited on May 26, 2014 at 07:37 AM · View previous versions