On many bodies of water, the weeds will not hold nearly as many smallmouth bass as you will find around the rocks. However, on some bodies of water, the weeds will hold some smallmouth bass from spring through fall.
Weeds are Great On Waters with Minimal Rocks
On lakes that don’t have a lot of rock, you can expect to find good numbers of smallmouth bass along the deep weed line from summer through fall.
Harder Bottoms are Key
Smallmouth Bass love firm bottoms, so finding weeds in areas that have a hard bottom are key for catching smallmouth in the weeds. Soft bottoms usually won’t hold many smallmouths, so focus your time on the hard bottom areas with weeds.
Emergent Vegetation with Rocky Bottoms
These spots are great spots due to the rocky bottoms, however, the vegetation does help draw more minnows and other bait fish too. On many of the lakes up north, you can find these spots off of points and islands. You will see the vegetation and as you get closer, you will notice the rocks there too. The spots with rocks will usually hold more smallmouth bass while the ones with a softer bottom and more weeds will usually hold more northern pike.
Fish the Deeper Weed Edges
Smallmouth bass will move into the shallows, but they prefer deeper water than largemouth bass. Spend more of your time fishing the deeper weed edges when targeting vegetation and you’ll have more success.
Fish Above Submerged Vegetation
On many lakes, there will be submerged vegetation. In murky water, it may be fairly shallow while in clear water, it could be 15 feet down. Either way, smallmouth bass can often be found in these weeds as they ambush bait fish just above the weeds. Fish your baits just above these weeds and you’ll have a good chance to catch some of these weed-oriented fish.
