While rock bass may not be the biggest fish in a stream, they can be among the most fun to catch. They smash lures like little bundles of dynamite, and where there is one, there usually are many more. Rock bass won’t win in any pulling competitions. However, they easily make up for their lack of power with abundance, willingness to bite, and vigor.
Rock bass like the same generally stream conditions as are favored by smallmouths, so the two species often are found in the same waters. In fact, an angler swimming a YUM Gonzo Grub for stream smallies typically will catch some rock bass, and an angler working a 2-inch Wooly Beavertail for rock bass is apt to have a few smallmouths nab his offering.
Unlike smallmouths, which often hold behind shoals within rapids, lie behind boulders in deep swift runs or hold right along current lines, rock, bass usually will be in the slackest spots they can find, often way back in large eddies, well away from noteworthy current. They also are very cover oriented, and often will bundle up around treetops or big boulders.
The most fun way to catch rock bass, if they happen to be looking toward the surface to feed, is with small topwater plugs. Great picks include Rebel Crickhopper Poppers and Arbogast Hocus Locusts. Cast to the bank and close to cover and fish these baits very slowly. Twitch the Crickhopper Popper gently and only on occasion. Reel the Hocus Locust just fast enough to make it wobble and pause often.
If the fish won’t come up, the most efficient tools for going down after them are small YUM baits, including 2-inch Wooly Curltails and Beavertails, 3-inch Muy Grubs and 3-inch YUM Dingers.
The classic way to fish a soft-plastic bait for rock bass is to string it on a 1/16 or 1/8-ounce leadhead and bounce it along the bottom. However, drop-shot rigs work extremely well any time the fish are piled up near the bottom around specific pieces of cover. With a drop-shot rig, it’s easy to put a bait right where the fish are and pull rock bass out one after another.
Finally, anglers shouldn’t overlook down-sized crankbaits and jerkbaits. Rebel Deep Teeny Wee Crawfish, Cotton Cordell Spot Minnows and Excalibur Ultralight Ghost Minnows all work great when the rock bass are staying beneath the surface but feeding aggressively.
One of many virtues of rock bass fishing is that these fish are wonderful for introducing children to fishing with artificial lures. The fish typically are easy to find, and once a pattern is established the action tends to be outstanding. Plus, between the hard hits, the large size of a rock bass’ mouth and the small size of the lures normally used, the fish often hook themselves. The world record rock bass, which came from Canada, weighed 3 pounds.