Well like everything I normally start - I feel into a rut with this segment and slacked off! Never fear though - It's back! This week's lures are all about bottom contact:

Lure:

Tubes - Yes, the tube! One of my all time favorite lures, yet it's probably the simplest lure in my box (besides the stickbaits). It's so easy to use, even you're grandpa can use it! 

The smallmouth here in Pa are in Pre-Spawn mode (or just about to enter pre-spawn). They need to fatten up and they just can't resist a tube. Crawl one along the bottom rigged on a weighted tube hook and you'll find the fish. A good place to start looking is at the end's and beginning's of deep pools, especially if shallow flats are around. The smallies are going to be sitting in these area's stocking up on food and waiting to move up into the shallows to spawn. 

Fly:

Prince Nymph - The royalty of all nymphs! Doesn't really look like any bug I have ever seen, but it imitates just about every Mayfly nymph around. Every box needs a few Prince's, especially beadhead princes.

A lot of people have a hard time with nymphing, but I can guarantee it's because they aren't dragging the bottom with their fly. If you can't feel the bottom when you're nymphing, you aren't nymphing right! Occasionally trout will take a nymph in the middle of the water column, but 9 times out of 10, their grabbing them from the bottom. Get your fly there to find the fish!