In mid-August I encountered the rare phenomenon of Smallmouth Bass and rusty crayfish colliding on sand flats to both feed. On consecutive days, crayfish were invading the sandy grass flats to feed during lowlight conditions. At the same time, schools of feeding smallmouth bass followed the crayfish movements to feed on them in these exact same locations. Didn’t think smallmouth bass used weeds? Think again!

On Wednesday August 14th, I fished for smallmouth bass on one of many Northern Wisconsin’s trophy fisheries. As sunset came (7-8pm), crayfish were prowling the shallow sand and grass flats and the wolfpack of hungry smallmouth bass were on the feed. Prior to this outing, I had never experienced the phenomenon of smallmouths and crayfish colliding together in weeds like I did during this film session. Fittingly, I caught them by burning a Rapala Cranking Rap, a loud rattling crankbait, that perfectly represented prey and triggered the strikes necessary for lowlight conditions.

Lake Profile

Size: 1000+ acres
Lake Type: Mesotrophic
Maximum Depth: 45 feet
Avg. Depth Fished: 5 to 11 feet
Water Clarity: 3ft (light brown)
Primary Fishery: Smallmouth bass, walleye, muskellunge
Areas of Focus: Sandgrass flats and sand pockets with vegetation
Time of Day: 7pm to 8:30pm
Lure Used: Rapala Cranking Rap 05 (Red Crawdad)

The ideal smallmouth bass crankbait is a smaller, compact, realistic, and noisy representation of bottom-scurrying prey. In this case, it’s their favorite, the crayfish. This method of fishing was perfectly executed on the shallow sand flats with sparse vegetation as the smallmouth and crayfish collided together in the same locations to both feed. Rusty crayfish are prolific weed and vegetation destructors, and are invasive species in the north country. Their abundance is a detriment to weedgrowth as they are habitat destructors, but their presence is a benefit to smallmouth bass fisheries.

Rusty crays are most active during low-light conditions and are more nocturnal than anyone thinks. On this particular lake I fished, smallmouth bass are at the top of the food chain and frequently follow the movements of rusty crayfish for their feeding patterns. If it weren’t for mosquitoes, I would have fished well into the night as the fish kept biting.

Under most circumstances I use a crankbait to search out cover and structure, looking for a reaction bite yet at the same time covering water in search for actively feeding fish. I don’t fish them slowly as one normally would with a fiberglass rod and a lower gear ratio reel. Rather, I power my way to ferocious strikes with speed and power. For this specific technique illustrated in the video, I prefer fishing with a “power”reel with a 6:3.1 gear ratio. Quantum’s Catalyst (redesigned for 2013) is a perfect match, spooled with 12lb fluorocarbon coated coplymer line and paired with a 7 foot medium action Quantum Tour Edition rod.

Modern crankbaits are available in all shapes and sizes, representing all types of bass forage and enabling bass anglers to cover all the bases when it comes to locating and catching fish. As we know, the favorite forage for smallmouth bass is the crayfish. Thus in my opinion, nothing works better than correctly matching the hatch.

Designed to target specific depth zones and keep you right on the fish, the Rapala Crankin’ Raps had me covered anywhere from 5 to 10 feet. As it occurred on this outing, smallmouth bass were feeding on crayfish in these depths during lowlight conditions. Their round body design, loud rattle chamber, and thin tail combine to produce an enticing wobbling action that bass and even other fish species can’t seem to resist.  Well constructed and durable, the Crankin Raps also feature holographic foil inserts and external scale patterns for added realism and underwater flashing.

The shallow-diving 03 and 05 sizes in the Crankin Rap feature a square-bill designed to plow through the water, while the deeper-diving 08, 10 & 14 sizes feature a round lip that allows them to plummet quickly to their desired depth.  Available in a variety of proven colors in each size, each Rapala Crankin Rap also has the running depth prominently displayed on its bill, allowing anglers determine at a glance which Cranking Rap to choose.

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