Summer is just about here with the thermometer rising into the 80’s and beyond, the water level in the Columbia River is dropping and getting warmer every day. Record heat is forecast for this weekend, there will still be guys in full dry suits out there even as the temperature nears 100°F mark and the river water is in the mid 60’s kayak fishing for smallmouth bass.
The bass fishing has been unexpectedly slow for the past few days, kind of a mystery. Usually, the smaller fish start to bite with regularity about this time of year, but these days, you never know what the heck is going on. The Columbia River is amazing to see, but just about everything about it is managed by humans. Nature still runs the show, but man has altered the natural course of the Columbia River and all it’s tributaries. We only caught a few fish, mostly small to medium sized bass to show for two days of bass fishing. This was the biggest smallmouth I caught during those two days.
We talked to a few other people fishing for smallmouth bass, they all said they thought the fishing was slow. One thing everyone noticed was the incredible amount of vegetation, river plants, seaweed, whatever you want to call it, in the river. The Columbia River is choked with seaweed which makes fishing difficult, you get a wad of seaweed on nearly every cast. The river usually looks like this in August, when the warm water causes a plant growth explosion, but it’s only June. Makes you wonder about the big picture and what’s going on with the environment. Sooner or later, all these unusual things are going to add up to something.
Anyway, we may give it one more shot locally before we head out east on a little bass fishing road trip to a place where the smallmouth bass bite all the time. Stay tuned for more smallmouth bass fishing action.
I’m lovin’ it! I actually just read like three of your posts today. So that means you better keep writing more, because I am going through these like they’re going out of style.