Presented by Princecraft
We used a mixed variety of baits on this Fish’n Canada episode, including Yo-Zuri’s 3DB Suspending Jerkbait 110 along with their 3DB 1.5 Squarebill and MR plus the 3DR-X Flat Crank. Add in the Hardcore Minnow Flat 95SP and you have a hardbait lineup that’s hard to beat.
Top to bottom: Yo-Zuri 3DB Suspending Jerkbait 110, the Hardcore Minnow Flat 95SP, along with the Yo-Zuri 3DB Twitchbait. These all produced extremely well on our New Brunswick Smallmouth trip.
Of course, we also used a lot of soft plastics, including dropshot rigs, Neko rigs, and Ned rigs but, to be honest, the hard baits outproduced the soft plastics by far. All in all, as long as you are throwing a decent Smallmouth presentation, you’ll tie into lots of fish.
If you are looking for some outstanding hospitality along with some absolutely insane Smallmouth Bass fishing, this is the trip you need to set up!
WHAT’S A GREAT RIG FOR UNCHARTED WATERS?
This is an area of the river where a bigger boat isn’t all that advantageous. Yes, lots of interior space comes in handy, however, when maneuvering in shallow, rocky waters, oftentimes smaller comes in much handier.
The Princecraft Amarok 166 is perfect for smallie fishing on any part of the St John River but, in particular, in the area we were filming in. It’s lightweight, great on fuel, and has a great-sized front casting deck for a 16+ footer.
Remember, most of the boat running you will do in this area will be off of plane. Once you find a nice long stretch of deeper water and mark it with a GPS trail (or Quickdraw trail), then and only then would you attempt to run on plane.
The other advantage to a boat like this Amarok is, with the efficiency of electric trolling motors nowadays, you only need a 12-volt motor to fish effectively. If you want some extra power, then bump it up to a 24. There’s absolutely no need for a 36-volt troller on this rig.
