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River Guide Jeff
05-14-2009 7:50:24 PM CST

River Report -- May 14 For over 20 years I've had great faith in twister-tail grubs, the Galida's Grubz in particular. Well tonight I had the pleasure of sharing the boat with John Galida. John caught the biggest and the most. Most of the fish on Galida's Grubz in the skipjack pattern. Also some on Case Magic Stiks, Sinking Salty Shad and soft swimbaits. Most of the fish in shallow spawning locations.

River Guide Jeff
05-12-2009 6:45:05 AM CST

River Report May 9-11 Middle Allegheny River smallies are making a movement to the shallows in preparation for this year's spawn. Most of the fish caught during this period have been in the shallows, with Case Magic Sticks and Sinking Salty Shad being the way to catch them. Anyone interested in a trip when the fish are concentrated in shallow, slow-current areas should consider booking a trip during the next couple of weeks.

River Guide Jeff
05-12-2009 6:38:01 AM CST

Lake St. Clair -- May 6 Seems there are a lot of great options these days for big smallies. Michigan's Lake St. Clair is one of them. With all the opportunities in the area for muskies, walleyes and Lake Erie smallies, St. Clair's brown bass get somewhat overlooked. This early May trip with Detroit-area guide Doug Cummings yielded over 20 smallmouth between 2.5 and 5.25 pounds. Doug stays on the smallies, not only in Lake St. Clair, but the St. Clair River and Detroit River, from spring thru fall. He's the man in that area.

River Guide Jeff
05-12-2009 6:27:43 AM CST

May 2-3 -- Buffalo/Niagara Area. If you are looking for a great multi-species trip within a few hours drive of western Pennsylvania, consider the area around Buffalo and Niagara Falls. Exceptional fishing for bubba-sized smallies in eastern Lake Erie, Buffalo harbor, and near-shore areas of Lake Ontario. Lake trout, brown trout and rainbows in the lower Niagara and Lake Ontario. Frank Campbell, guide-wise, is the man that can put you on all of them. He put me on my biggest smallie ever, this seven-and-a-half pounder.

River Guide Jeff
05-12-2009 6:22:03 AM CST
River Report -- mid to late April Guide trips during this period experienced some tough conditions, with rapidly warming water, and very clear water. Intense feeding windows were interspersed between slow periods. Jerkbaits fished over rocky flats tended to be the best pattern going, as fish got active and rose up out of the rocks to smack 3-inch XCalibur twitch baits and Lucky Craft 78 Pointers.

River Guide Jeff
04-19-2009 2:19:24 PM CST

River Report -- April 19 Clear water and sunny skies may have contributed to a slow bite in the am. Things picked up in the afternoon, when some clouds rolled in. Jerkbaits were the best thing going today. Guide clients boated smallies up to 17.5 inches, and lost one at the boat pushing 20 inches. Fish starting to move into shallow water. Prespawn conditions to be here soon.

River Guide Jeff
04-17-2009 2:28:47 PM CST

Lake Arthur -- April 17 My buddy Deron and I fished Arthur this afternoon, landing a couple dozen largemouth. Mostly from shoreline laydowns, but some fish on emerging weedbeds.

River Guide Jeff
04-14-2009 7:28:36 PM CST

River Report -- April 13 Guided the southern Venango County portion of the river today. Not a lot of bites, but some quality smallmouths, including two 18 inchers and a 19 incher. Plus three bonus walleyes c&r, the best being a 25-incher. Water temperatures have settled in the low 40s for the past couple of weeks, keeping the bass near the slower, deeper water. The warm up forecast for later this week should move some fish toward shallow pre-spawn sites. Tubes, weighted Case Magic Stiks, and jerkbaits were the deal today.

River Guide Jeff
04-12-2009 5:43:31 PM CST

Scouting Trip -- April 10 Did a scouting trip on a lightly fished reservoir with my buddy Dave Lehman. We boated a bunch of nice smallies up to 19 inches. All across the state, smallmouth bass provide exceptional sport, often under utilized. These fish hit skirted jigs tipped with soft plastic craws, tubes, and sinking worms like Case Plastic's Magic Stiks.

river guide jeff
04-05-2009 8:53:43 PM CST

River Report -- April 5 River up about 2 feet from April 2 trip. Dirty water killed the jerkbait bite. But we picked a few up on tubes.

river guide jeff
04-02-2009 8:27:54 PM CST

River Report -- April 2 Nice warm, sunny weather, but REALLY windy on the river this afternoon. Tough to detect bites on jigs. But we picked up some really nice smallies on jerkbaits. My buddy Tom smoked 'em on a LC Pointer, including a 21 incher. And a nice pike.

river guide jeff
03-29-2009 5:07:47 PM CST
River Report -- March 29 The maiden voyage on the Keystone Connection's new 18-foot river boat was christened with an 18-inch smallmouth on the first cast of the day. Not a fast day, but one that produced 14 smallmouth and 3 northerns. Most of the bass on jigs -- tubes, grubs and skirted jigs. A couple on swimbaits and jerkbaits. The action should steadily increase over the next week or two as water temperatures increase and the bass get more active.

river guide jeff
03-22-2009 6:40:56 PM CST

River report -- March 22 Back on the river following another lengthy layoff caused by high water. Did sneak in a quick afternoon trip on Pool 6 last Wednesday, which resulted in one small muskie. But back up in the free-flowing river today, on a scouting trip for smallies, with the hope of a muskie or two as well. Water temperature was 40 to 42. The smallies woke up over the course of the day. Ended up getting 10, including three in the 18 to 19 inch range. The rest were in the 15 to 16 inch range. Also got a muskie in the low 30 inch range. The smallie fishing should only get better, providing the river stays in decent shape, and continues to gradually warm.

river guide jeff
02-26-2009 8:23:32 PM CST

River Report -- Feb. 26 Really nice to FINALLY get back on the river following tough winter weather, an ice covered river, and sports show obligations. My buddy Andy and I fished Pool 6 on a scouting trip. We boated about a half-dozen walleyes up to 22 inches, though most were around 15 inches. The walleyes were really lethargic, and hit bucktail jigs-n-minnows. Just drag them on the bottom, with little to no added action. The river is in nice shape, but access will be tough for a while. When the river receded following higher water, significant amounts of ice chunks were deposited on the bank, in many cases blocking launch ramps.

river guide jeff
01-10-2009 10:35:07 AM CST

River Report -- January 6 Brought in the new year with a quick trip prior to the next snow storm. Cold air temps and sleet in the air didn't keep us from boating a couple nice 'eyes up to 19 inches. Jig n fathead minnows have been productive, along with jigging spoons tipped with a small fathead minnow.

river guide jeff
12-14-2008 6:58:19 PM CST

River Report -- Dec 14 First time out for awhile following extreme cold weather, then a period of high water. River still high today, but fishable. Boated about 10 walleyes today up to 20 inches. If the river falls about a foot, it will be in excellent shape for winter walleye action. Action today occurred on the southern Venango section of the river.

river guide jeff
12-05-2008 6:16:44 PM CST

Dec. 3 -- Susquehanna River Had the good fortune to fish with Rod Bates and Dave Neuman of the Koinonia Guide Service today on the Susqy River near Harrisburg. Water was a couple degrees warmer than the Allegheny. We fished hard, and ended up with 30 quality smallies in the boat, the biggest being an 18.5 incher. Fat, well-fed bass that were set up in a wintering hole. If you ever want to fish the Susqy River, either the main stem or the north or west branch, give these guys a shout.

river guide jeff
11-30-2008 2:30:24 PM CST

River Report -- Nov 29 Finally got back on the river following two weeks of extreme weather. Water temperature was 12 degrees colder than last trip, thanks to the dramatic change to winter-like weather. Despite 36 degree water temps my guide clients worked hard and were rewarded with four big smallmouth bass up to 19.5 inches, and several walleyes up to 18 inches. The bass bite will be contingent on the weather. A few days of warmer weather will likely spur some activity. Otherwise, the effort will focus on walleyes and muskies.

river guide jeff
11-14-2008 6:25:34 PM CST

River Report -- Nov. 14 Another great late fall day on the southern Venango County portion of the river. A good smallie bite in the morning and late afternoon, with a bit of a mid-day lull. Really nice-sized fish today, with a bunch in the 18 to 19.5 inch range. Water temp 46, so if the bottom doesn't fall out of things, we should still have some great upcoming action.

river guide jeff
11-09-2008 5:59:20 PM CST

River Report -- Nov. 9 Cold, breezy day on the northern Armstrong County portion of the river today. Targeted walleyes and muskies. One short (28-inch) muskie, and a handful of walleyes up to 18 inches. About 15 smallies too.

river guide jeff
11-08-2008 6:57:13 PM CST

River Report -- Nov 6 The change back to fall-like weather made it feel like November fishing. And the bass must have agreed. 45 smallies today, including some in the 18 to 19.5-inch range. Other than floating leaves clogging the jet outboard a few times, a pretty great late fall day on the southern Venango portion of the river.

river guide jeff
11-06-2008 7:49:34 PM CST

River Report -- Nov 6 Walleyes are starting to show up in greater numbers. Picked up a half dozen walleyes along with about 20 smallies during a short afternoon trip in northern Armstrong County.

river guide jeff
11-01-2008 6:52:23 PM CST

River Report -- Nov 1 Another recon trip, this time in Venango County. Decent day...37 smallies and four walleyes. Not as many big bass as the last trip, but a few fat ones up to 17 inches. Lots of dead grass in the river today. Hampered the effort. If we would get another foot or two of water in the river, which would push the bass up closer to the banks, and add more walleyes and muskies to the mix, the fall bite would really get rolling.

river guide jeff
10-30-2008 7:54:50 PM CST

River Report -- October 30 Dave Lehman and I did a scouting trip today in northern Armstrong County. The winter-like weather has dropped the water temperature to the mid 40s; smallmouth are moving into their wintering spots. We caught and release 33, lost/missed at least twice that many. Mostly bigger fish in the 15 to 17 inch range. Also a couple small walleyes. Looks like the late fall bite is here!

river guide jeff
10-17-2008 5:41:17 PM CST

River Report -- Oct. 17 Cooler weather and cloudy skies helped spur a pretty good bite today. Decent numbers of smallies, and a few good ones. The best one stretched 18.5 inches. A few fish holding in deeper, rocky runs (Dinger water). But most of them still in thin water on flukes and swimbaits. Water temp is 58, with low, clear water conditions. Floating dead grass was a negative factor, especially in the afternoon.

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