Brown fish

[philbert]

Hey folks, I'm coming up on 7/14 and I can't wait! I'll be fishing on the Mn side of the lake primarily on the east end. What would you guys suggest for fishing smallies? I have kids who are 8-14 years old coming. Usually, I try to find smallies shallow and then bring the kids out. On most occasions, I try to get them on a grub or spinnerbait shallow. It's easier for the kids to cast and slow roll than using other baits.

We release 'em all.

Is it relatively simple to at least catch short smallies in mid July along shorelines? I'm assuming that the larger fish would probably be deep at that time of year. Any help that you could provide in regard to lures would be a great help as well. Thanks for the info, this forum is great.

[uffdapete]

You should be able to find smallies shallow early and late in the day and the baits you mentioned would work. Another fun presentation for kids is topwater - like Zara puppies or Skitter pops. Topwater baits were made for kids. They don't get snagged on the bottom, they have fun twitching them and more fun seeing the fish smack them.

[philbert]

Thanks for the advice, I hadn't thought about the surface lures. You're right, the kids love them and so do I. They have used twitching raps as well when I've taken them for Largemouth, so they kind of understand the concept. Either way, it's always fun to take the daughters fishing.