September through the early part of October can be the toughest time of year to catch river-dwelling bass. They're in transition from the summer to the fall pattern, warm days and cool nights keep water temperatures bobbing up and down and the baitfish on which they pray begin to act differently and move to new locations.
A lot of elements combine to put bass into the proverbial funk. On most days, it takes a savvy angler – or an extremely lucky one – to put a limit of keepers in the box.
There's not much you can do to ensure that you get really lucky the next time you go out to pursue bass on a river. But maybe some pointers from an expert, such as Ohio Bassmaster Elite Series pro Bill Lowen, can result in an extra bite or two. And that just might be the difference between a great day on the water and one that's merely better than a day at work.
Stay on the Main Drag
Lowen, who grew up fishing the ultra-tough Ohio River, said it's important to focus your efforts on the primary channel at this time of year.
"(The bass) aren't back in the creek arms or pockets unless there's consistently moving water in there," he said. "The biggest key is some type of moving water, whether it's a river discharge, current from a dam or anything like that. That moves algae and other stuff, and that brings the baitfish in.
"Wherever the bait is, that's where the bass are going to be, and the current positions them where you know they should be."
And just where should they be? Try any piece of structure that disrupts the flow of water.
"On a river system you look for anything. I've caught them off washing machines, tires, cars – it doesn't matter, as long as it's breaking the current, or what we call giving them a seam to get on. It could a barge, a dock, a rock, whatever."
Use Your Eyes
Finding baitfish – and thus finding bass – on a river can be simpler than achieving that task on a lake because it doesn't require extensive use of electronics. Your eyes are your best tools for the job.
"You can see them flopping on the surface," Lowen said. "You can go for miles with nothing, and then it'll seem like every baitfish in the river is all on one bend or one section.
"Quite a few things come into play, but if you don't have any baitfish, you're probably wasting your time. Typically, I won't fish there. Occasionally I do, but 90% of those times I'm not getting bit."
He looks for pieces of structure in water that's 3 to 6 feet deep – maybe a little deeper if he knows there's a big population of smallmouths or spots in the area, and perhaps a little shallower if it's dominated by largemouths.
"I always try to position the boat down current so the bait is coming into the fish's face in a natural presentation. I'll throw (the bait) a pretty good ways above the cover, probably 10 feet, and sometimes maybe a little farther if I need to get it down before the current washes it past the cover."
He'll often start out throwing a crankbait that runs to about 3 feet, and might move on to a spinnerbait, buzzbait and topwater plug. If none of those work, he'll flip a jig in there a few times before moving on to the next locale.
"One of the other big keys this time of year is that the fish will suspend around the cover – they'll be at 3 feet in 6 feet or 5 feet in 10. Typically you don't want a crankbait banging on the bottom, and the same thing with a jig. I'll let a jig get down to 3 feet or so and then swim it."
Mostly Mono
Monofilament is Lowen's primary choice for line when fishing rivers in the fall.
"I like to throw a lot of handmade, balsa-type baits and also the Ima Shaker, and they're only running about 2 to 4 feet. Mono keeps the bait up better than fluorocarbon and I think it gives it more of a natural action.
"I use 12-pound Berkley Trilene Big Game for cranking handmades. I'll go to 12-pound Berkley Trilene 100% fluorocarbon if I'm taking the bait down to the bottom or really burning it."
His final piece of advice is to be willing to move frequently.
"Don't get hung up on one spot because there's not going to be a giant wad of fish anywhere. I'll get to a place and say okay, I'm going to make 10 casts to get one bite. Then I'll run up the river to the next spot and keep jumping around.
"If you get a couple of bites in one spot, you can make the mistake of camping there way too long."
