The Lower Snake from Pine City down to the St. Croix River is a 12-mile series of long pools separated by shallow boulder-studded riffles. It can be canoed during early summer, and a core of fly- and spin-fishers wade-fish it all season long.

In the past, most smallies in the Snake were under 14 inches, but recently, much larger fish are also turning up. I have landed fish over 18 inches from various parts of this stream. Since the Snake is dark-stained, my favorite colored jigs and flies are black or those with some chartreuse. And because pike are numerous in both the upper and middle reaches, I always use a light wire leader no matter what lure I have on.

A DNR Snake River canoe map can be obtained from the DNR office in Pine City. For daily river levels, go to the U.S. Geological Services' Web site at www.waterdata.usgs.gov. To learn more about the Snake River and how to fish it, go online to SmallmouthAngler.com

COKATO LAKE
Lakes near the Twin Cities that have smallies are not common, but Cokato is a notable exception. While it is just 540 acres, it is also less than an hour from downtown Minneapolis, so it's nice for short outings.

On the west edge of Wright County and next to the town with the same name, Cokato has a surprising number of smallies. DNR sampling finds smallmouth abundance well above the state average for a lake of this type, though most are less than 15 inches. However, DNR biologist Eric Altena, who is also an avid angler, uses more old-fashioned methods to capture the bigger specimens. Using rod and reel, Altena has caught Cokato smallies up to 19 inches. I've had similar results. Using jigs and crankbaits, I've hooked fish nearly that large, plus good numbers of 12- to 13-inchers.

DNR assessment also finds that reproduction is fairly consistent in Cokato, and growth rates are better than in lakes farther north. Most of Cokato is sand, so any place there is rock, you'll find bass. The south end of the lake has several productive rocky humps, and the east side right in front of the boat landing has a large flat that can be good, especially along its outside edges.

Cokato also has many northerns, plus a more unusual species -- channel catfish. The hard-fighting channel cats entered this lake via the Crow River, and they will often strike bottom-running lures.

The lake's public landing and private camping are on the east shore. The DNR Montrose office can be reached at (763) 675-3301. You can research Cokato Lake Campground at www.cokatolakecampground.com