Spinnerbaits effective in cloudy fishing waters
Fishing lures have inherent characteristics that determine the specific situations in which a particular style shines, circumstances that include water clarity. When the water takes on a rain-driven murkiness, the spinnerbait is in its element.
Essentially, a spinnerbait is comprised of a safety pin-shaped wire form, with a rotating spinner blade located off one end of the wire, and a skirted jig off the other. The line tie —often merely an “R” shaped bend — is located at the vee of the wire.
The options beyond this basic format are many, including multiple spinner blades, various spinner styles (shapes), and choices in skirt materials (ex: silicone, natural bucktail). These options allow an angler to fine tune the presentation, based on the variables such as flash, vibration, and desired running depth.
It’s been my experience that spinnerbaits are most effective in cloudy water, where the thump of the blade, combined with a degree of flash, suggests “baitfish” to a nearby predator. With the weather we’ve been having of late, I’ve had plenty of opportunity to put spinnerbaits to the test.
My friend Wes has fished with me for several years now, typically sharing the boat for three days during the July 4 week when he’s in the area visiting family. Most other years, the Allegheny has been its typical low/clear/warm self by early July. This year I emailed Wes a couple days before he left his Houston, Texas, home, informing him about this season’s conditions.
“If we are able to get out, you’re going to see a whole different river,” I warned. “It’s going to be high and dirty. We won’t catch the big numbers of smallmouth bass like we usually do, but the ones we do catch will probably be big. And, be ready to throw a big spinnerbait most of the day.”
In a river system like the Allegheny, the hard current of higher water forces the fish right up next to the bank, where they can escape the push of the current. Flooded shoreline grass in areas protected from the main flow often harbor fish, particularly ones in a feeding mood.
During our first day, things started off decently. We boated a few fish early — on spinnerbaits — but then the skies opened back up. A hard, steady rain quickly muddied up the incoming streams, which pumped more dirty water into the river.
The fish shut down. That day and the following night the river rose two feet; we cancelled our mid-week trip, and hoped things would settle down for the third and final day.
By Friday, the river had dropped to the same level of Monday’s trip. It was high and muddy, but fishable. During the day, we concentrated on grassy protected areas of shoreline, particularly spots where incoming streams (which were now running clear) improved the water clarity.
The action wasn’t spectacular, but Wes managed to boat around a dozen smallies, most of them quality-sized fish up to 18 inches. Though we experimented with various lures during the day, all but one came on a spinnerbait.
The spinnerbaits we used were single Colorado bladed 3/8 ounce versions. Colorado blades are nearly round, and produce a lot of vibration and lift. The Indiana blade is more oblong; it puts out less vibration, but more flash. The third common blade shape is the willow leaf; it has little vibration, but lots of flash. The willow leaf has little lift.
But utilizing the characteristics of these blade shapes, you can tailor things to your fishing situation. In the scenario I described, we wanted lots of vibration and lift, since the water was both dirty and shallow.
So the Colorado was a good choice. Had the water been somewhat clearer — or had we been fishing a bit deeper, i.e. off of the bank — Indiana or willow leaf bladed lures might have been a better choice.
