Summer Riverine Reservoir Tips

Alton Jones likes cranking main river wing dams in the summer.

In the context of the upcoming FLW Cup on the Red River, we asked three pro anglers from Texas who have a lot of experience on the Red River what they thought about the winning tactics and the challenges the FLW competitors will face. Here’s what B.A.S.S. anglers Alton Jones and Matt Reed, and B.A.S.S./FLW angler Zell Rowland (who will be fishing the Cup) had to say about winning on the Red in summer.

Backwaters

In spring, water quality is good and bass are positioning in backwaters for the spawn. During summer, though, water quality and temperatures can be questionable in some backwaters. “If we don’t have rain north of the river to get it to rise before the Cup we won’t have much current, and that will take a chunk of the river out of play simply because water levels will prohibit access or the water will be stagnant,” said Rowland.

He visited the river in July with the heat index at 105 degrees and river running slow. He found that he couldn’t get into some of the backwaters he’s fished in the past because of silting with mud and sand. Plus water levels and the always-changing topography of the river make it difficult to fish on history.

He noted that vegetation plays a big part in backwater success. Aquatic vegetation improves the water quality, and holds better bass than sloughs and pockets that only have wood cover.

“The Booyah Pad Crasher and Poppin’ Pad Crasher will be good for those areas with vegetation,” he said. “For flipping, I’ll be throwing a YUM Wooly Bug or Mighty Craw.”

Reed agrees with Rowland on his choice of flippin’ baits and said that smaller plastics are best. “Shad and smaller bluegills are the main forage during summer,” said Reed. “The fish don’t seem to have much to do with crawfish this time of year. Chartreuse patterns have always done best.”

Main River

Elite Series pro Jones has plenty experience on the Red River, including two Bassmaster Classics. “The tournament could be won in either a backwater or on the main river,” he said. “The main channel is 20 to 30 feet deep in some places and dredged for barge traffic, but in the backwaters, 8 feet is as deep and you’ll find. Either way, it will be won shallow – less than 5-feet of water.”

On the main river, Jones says that current is key, and that the XCalibur Xcs100 or Bomber 2A are top picks. He says that running those crankbaits along a milk run of wing dams will likely be the pattern. Reed likes to work Red River wing dams with cranks that run a little deeper, something like the Bomber 4A or a Fat Free Shad BD5F, which dives to about 9 feet compared to Jones’ Xcs100 that dives to just 3 feet.

Category: Fishing Tips/Techniques, LA, Riverine Reservoir