Post edited 10:50 am - July 21, 2009 by Josh S

I've been looking into this as well, and came across this great read from BASSMASTERS:

“Squirrel” Hager: insect hatches turn river smallmouth on

Brian “Squirrel” Hager is a river man. He earns his living guiding anglers and rafters on the New River (Class IV Outfitters, Ames Heights, W.Va.). He is a longtime veteran at casting to flowing waters in search of smallmouth that inhabit them.

“Summer is when fishing is the best on the river,” Hager emphasizes. “The spawn is over, and the fish's focus has changed back to feeding. There's an abundance of minnows and insects available. When the damselflies start hatching, the smallmouth go into a feeding frenzy. This is a supertopwater time.”

Hager says the bite can change daily, and river anglers should test all options in terms of location and lures to set the pattern. “The fish will move around depending on time of day, amount of flow, food availability, cloud cover, water clarity and other factors. In the morning, they might feed at the heads and tails of the shoals. Later in the day, they might move to the flat, slow stretches. You just have to do some experimenting to find 'em and see what lures are working best.

“One thing's for sure,” Hager continues. “When you're floating from point A to point B, you get to fish the whole river — riffles, pools, everything. It's easy to cover it all and discover where the action is best.”

In the morning, Hager typically fishes a Zoom Super Fluke or other soft plastic jerkbaits. He targets eddy pockets adjacent to swift current, and he twitches the bait and holds it in one spot as long as possible. “I'm trying to imitate a wounded baitfish. Smallmouth can't stand it if they think it's a crippled minnow. They've got to strike it.”

Another good presentation for river brown bass is speed-reeling a 1/8- or 1/4-ounce buzzbait through the pools, casting to the bank and retrieving the buzzer back over logs or rocks that are visible beneath the water.

If his surface offerings are rejected, Hager will alternate trying tube lures, diving crankbaits (Bandits and Rebel Wee Craws) and spinnerbaits with small willowleaf blades.

“The point is, you can't start out and say, 'Today I'm going to fish a fluke,' because they might not want a fluke,” Hager emphasizes. “You have to stay versatile. It might start raining or some clouds will come over, and the fish will suddenly want an active bait. Or, if it's hot and sunny, the fish will become less active as the sun climbs higher, and you might have to change to a lure that runs deeper and slower.”

And, Hager says summer is the time for fly casters. “When the bugs are hatching on the river, the smallmouth love to eat 'em. My favorite fly is the Sneaky Pete, which is a bullet-head popping bug.

“Also, fly casting is an extremely efficient technique for fishing a river. You don't waste time retrieving your lure through unproductive water. You lay your bug next to the bank, pop it a couple of times, then pick it up and recast it back into the prime strike zone 2 or 3 feet down the bank. You keep it where it's likely to get a bite. When the bass are hitting a bug, you can catch a hundred in an afternoon float.

“I can't think of a better way to spend a summer afternoon,” Hager sighs.

You can read the rest on lake fishing here