SMITH MOUNTAIN LAKE FISHING REPORT
June 2020
DALE WILSON’S
SML GUIDE SERVICE
PHONE NO: 540-297-5650 / 540-874-4950
www.captaindalewilson.us
The pic included is of two smallmouth bass caught and released by Captain Dale on 5/26/20
Overview: Heavy rains and flooding has made for different fishing conditions. The stained water will make for better daytime fishing. As the water clears later this month night fishing will improve.
Most species of fish have spawned. Water temperature will be in the 70s to near 80 by the end of the month.
Largemouth bass: Fishing for largemouth bass should be good. Best lures will be plastic worms, Ned rigs, drop shot rigs, crank baits, top water lures, Carolina rigs and shaky heads. Points, brush piles, rock piles, ledges and deep docks will be the best areas. Best depths will be from the surface to 25 feet. Fishing will be good at night when the shad are spawning. Best lures at night are wake baits, large plastic worms and football head jigs.
Smallmouth bass: Fishing will be fair. Best areas will be humps, stumps and rocky areas. Best lures will be tubes, Ned rigs, top water lures, hair jigs and medium diving crank baits. Best areas will be in the mid- to the lower sections of the lake. Cloudy days with light wind and at night are good times. Look for areas with rocks, stumps and flats near deep water. They feed heavily on crawfish around the full moon.
Striped bass: Fishing will be good this month. Stripers will be caught in the mid-sections of the lake and the lower sections toward the dam and in the large creeks. Best lures will be swim baits, buck tails and Zoom flukes fished on ½- to ¾-ounce lead heads. The best time to fish is cloudy days, early morning, nighttime (when the shad are shallow) and late afternoon. The best depths will be from the surface to 60 feet. Live bait fished on down lines and planer boards will work this month. They will constantly be on the move. Try to find the largest concentration of shad to locate the striped bass. Night fishing will be fair this month. Lures like Red Fins, Thunder Sticks and large Rapalas work when the shad come to the shoreline at night.
Crappie: Fishing for crappie will be fair. The best depths will be 5 to 15 feet. Crappie will be found around deep docks, brush piles and fallen trees. Docks with brush piles are usually good areas to hold crappie. Small live minnows and 1½- to 2-inch tubes or shad-shaped plastic lures fished on 1/16- to 1/8-ounce lead heads will work best to catch crappie this month. Best areas are the main creeks and the upper section of the both main channels.
Tips of the month: Be aware of floating debris when boating due to recent flooding. Night fishing for largemouth bass will be good as the water clears. Always wear a life jacket. Try to find the areas with the largest concentration of bait fish. Make sure running lights are on after dark. Reports about local fishing are available on The Bass Cast Radio Show and at WSLK radio. Be courteous, obey all the boating laws and take a kid fishing.