In the low clear smallmouth rivers of August and September I usually wade upstream and fish upstream ahead of me often with surface bugs. Fishing the Murray’s Shenandoah Slider upstream is normally very effective at this time of the year by using the conventional strip-pause-strip retrieve. Most of the strikes come within the first five seconds. However, this year I’ve found a slightly different technique which has helped me catch more bass. On some occasions the bass will come up to the bug in the first several seconds and swirl below it. I don’t know if they have missed it or refused it, but if I swim it back downstream with my line hand just slightly faster than the current I’ve been able to tease many of these bass into taking my slider. The pointed nose of this pattern makes it easy to give this action.
