From the benchWith the river sitting at a clean, low 1,720 cfs and water temps at 57.6°F, smallmouth are in their most aggressive pre-winter feeding window — don't waste it throwing small stuff all day. Start the morning with big streamers and crayfish patterns tight to structure and rocky shelves, covering water quickly until you find active fish. As the mostly cloudy skies warm things up toward midday, watch for BWO activity in the slower flats and be ready to downsize to a #22 dry or emerger on a long, fine tippet. The calm winds forecast all day mean you can make precise presentations — take advantage of that and work the transition zones between fast riffles and slow pools where smallmouth stack up this time of year.