Smallmouths are very defensive when it comes to their nests and eggs, so use lures that feign a threat to the nest, and you'll be in business. Salamanders are notorious egg-stealers, as are minnows and crayfish. Three of my favorite baits for this type of fishing are a 4-inch Zoom Lizard in green pumpkin, Zoom's Baby Fluke in white, and Yum's 2 1/2-inch Baby Crawbug in black, blue and red. Smallmouths are in a defensive mode rather than a feeding mode -- thus the small baits. The fish will attack the intruders. Rig the baits with oversized hooks. They won't spook fish during their superaggressive spawning mode, and hookups will improve. Eagle Claw's Lazer Sharp Kahle-style hooks will work with all three baits.

HUZZAH CREEK
Huzzah Creek, in Crawford County, is one of the top producers of smallmouth bass in terms of numbers. Start your trip at the private access at Huzzah Valley Campground, east of Steelville on Highway 8. Six miles and dozens of smallmouths later, you can take out at the Missouri Department of Conservation access at Scotia Bridge at the end of E Highway.

While at Huzzah Valley, visit with Corey Cottrell, one of the owners, and perhaps the best smallmouth fisherman in the Ozarks. "The Huzzah is one of my favorite smallmouth streams," he said. "I grew up right on its banks and know it like the back on my hand. It has such a diversity of habitats that favor smallmouth bass -- clean water, gravel and rocky bottoms, rootwads, deep holes, riffles, mud banks, submerged logs -- the Huzzah has it all."

Cottrell will rig three rods any time he fishes the Huzzah. "I like to cover all the water columns, top, middle, and bottom," he offered. "I like to throw a Sammy Lure or a Fluke for topwater action. Spinnerbaits in chartreuse and white are my favorite to cover the middepths. Bitsy jigs and tube baits in crayfish colors are my favorites to fish the rock and gravel areas."

To check water and fishing conditions, call Huzzah Valley Resort at 1-800-367-4516.

ELEVEN POINT RIVER
The Eleven Point River is a fisherman's paradise: 50 miles of specially managed waters between Thomasville and the Arkansas line. Brian Sloss and Ryan Griffin own the Eleven Point River Canoe Rental at Alton. The pair of outdoor enthusiasts guide for trout and smallmouth bass.

"Cane Bluff to Greer Spring is my favorite smallmouth water," said Griffin. "I catch larger fish in that stretch, up to 3 or 4 pounds. When the water is higher in the spring, I start further upstream at Thomasville. The water is much smaller there. I use small baits like the Rapala Countdown Minnow in the 2-inch model. Farther down the river, I prefer Gary Yamato's 4-inch twin-tailed skirted grubs in natural colors. Greens and pumpkin colors work best. I rig them on 1/8- or 1/4-ounce jigheads and use 6-pound line."