Salem, Virginia, may not be on a tidal body of water, but it’s close enough that veteran Elite Series pro and Missile Baits empresario John Crews has developed an expertise on tidal fisheries — and a passion for fishing them. His two Elite Series wins came on the California Delta and the St. Johns River, 2,700 miles apart but bound by the fact that their fish respond to moving water. He’s also earned high Bassmaster finishes on South Carolina’s Winyah Bay, the Delaware River out of Philadelphia, and the Potomac River. He also happens to be a complete tackle fanatic, obsessing over details and presentations. Here’s what he almost always has on the deck of his boat when fishing on tidal rivers in May and June, when most of the bass are completing the spawn or immediately post-spawn:
Notes:
After spawning, the fish will set up on wood on lower tides, or if there’s no wood, on the outside edge of a grass line. That’s when he likes the E Pop or a buzzbait.
He rigs the creature baits on light weights because this is a time of year when there are a lot of fry around, and “if the bass aren’t guarding fry, they’re trying to eat fry.”
The Baby Fat John doesn’t dive more than 2 feet, less on heavy line, so it can be kept above the muck even in super-shallow low-tide situations.
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