Keeping Faith and Finding the Sweet Spot

The amount of disappointment I was feeling was unbearable!  I drove three hours to catch monster Lake Erie smallmouth and I couldn’t get a bite. Has it happen to you? Thankfully I had a guide that had faith and found the sweet spot.

On August 4, 2006 I fished Lake Erie with smallmouth guru Matt Morgan and he taught me the importance of having faith in an area and being patient long enough to find the sweet spot.  Morgan says, “This time of year the smallmouth in Lake Erie are relating to rocky shoals in 22 ft of water. Current and wind direction determines were the smallmouth will school up on a reef.  The smalljaws are primarily munching on gobies and crayfish that live by the rocks.”  Morgan also explained that just drifting reefs won’t consistently produce big smallies but finding a sweet spot on the reef would.  Finding that sweet spot is the challenge. 

After a twenty-minute run Morgan and I started the morning drop shotting Poor Boy’s Gobies on one of his favorite reefs.  I had my goby rigged on a 7’ 2” Shimono drop shot rod with a Diawa Capricorn reel lined with 6 lb. Gamma Fluorocarbon.  Matt decided to fish the south side of the reef because of a reverse current caused by 3 days of a strong south wind.  I was expecting to get my arm broke by a 4 lb smallmouth but neither Matt or I got a bite.  Matt couldn’t believe we weren’t getting bit and said, “I know there’s fish here I just have to find the sweet spot.”  We fished for about two hours before we decided to check a couple other reefs and ship wrecks.  Nothing was going on and before I knew it five hours passed.  I was distraught and questioned if there were still smallmouth in Lake Erie?

Matt had a huge call to make that would ultimately determine whether we would catch any Smallies today.  Matt asked, “Should we check another spot eight miles away, or go back to were we started? I know there’s good fish on that reef.”  Before I could answer Matt decided to head back to the reef we started at.  We pulled up to the reef and decided to drift the North side of the reef using tubes. We had drift socks out to slow us down and help make our drift precise.  Within the first ten minute I had a bite and my line started to rise to the surface.  A beautiful black smallie came leaping out of the water like a tarpon, but it came off.  Matt quickly threw out a buoy saying, “That could be the sweet spot!” 

Matt slowly used his trolling motor to move us close to the buoy.  We used drop shot gobies to probe the deep structure.  On my first cast with a goby I felt a smallmouth take it.  I quickly reeled down, loaded my rod, and imbedded the needle sharp hook.  Again my line came rising towards the surface and a chunky 4 lb. smalljaw erupted from Lake Erie.  For the next hour and a half Matt and I loaded up.  Our best five smallmouth weighed 19 lbs and our biggest smallie was 4 pounds 6 ounces. 

Even though we didn’t slay monster smalljaws all day long I learned a couple important lessons.  First, have faith in your spot and don’t second-guess your instincts.  Second, be patient enough to find the sweet spot.  When we finally found the sweet spot it turned into an amazing day on Lake Erie.