MASSENA, N.Y. – The second stop of the Toyota Series Presented by Phoenix Boats Northern Division takes anglers to the St. Lawrence River, which is legitimately one of the best smallmouth fisheries in the world. Renowned for its gorgeous water and plentiful, big smallmouth, it’s not an easy tournament fishery, but it does offer fantastic fishing. If you haven’t been, it’s a must-see, and anyone who has been is always eager to get back.
What to expect
June and early July on the St. Lawrence are defined by shallow, often spawning fish, but that’s not the case as the summer wears on.
“With fish finally making their migration off a late spawn, there should be a really good shallow postspawn bite and really good deep dragging in the river,” said JP Pelletier, who guides on the river. “Guys are going to catch them swim-shotting and with hair jigs shallow and on shallow boulders, and then there’s going to be a good concentration of guys catching them deep on jigs and drop-shots.”
Last year in mid-August, Brody Campbell won with better than a 26-pound average, and while that is in play again, the fish may not be plump enough for weights that astronomical.
“There were a lot of heavy 5-pounders on beds,” said Pelletier of the early going. “So, I think it will take 25 pounds or more a day to win, and I think it will be won between Clayton and the mouth of the river.”
Baits to bring
In the summer on the St. Lawrence, packing tackle is pretty easy – you need a minnow, a drop-shot and a football jig of some sort out deep, and a drop-shot, hair jig and possibly a dice bait up shallow. Then, throw all the spinning rods in the truck and get ready to hear the drag scream.