Mid-Atlantic Freshwater Fishing Report, 5/25/2018:
It’s been a great spring run for freshwater anglers up until now, even as many folks plying the Bay and coast were flummoxed, but the Great Deluge of 2018 has brought this phenomenon to an end for the time being as far as fishing in rivers go. Reports up and down the region are of flooded-out, muddy waters and poor fishing. Bottom line: right now freshwater anglers are best off sticking with bodies of water that have very low or zero flow. Even in some reservoirs, up-lake areas fed by streams and rivers are also muddied up. All of that said, reservoirs are clearly the best freshwater bet at the moment. Bass are in post-spawn mode but are still being caught relatively shallow, with spinnerbaits and crankbaits proving effective. Up north B&B Tackle reports that the first bridge in Lake Marburg has been a hotspot for both bass and crappie. Soft plastics such as Senkos are also taking their share of the bass here. The Baltimore area reservoirs are producing crappie for anglers fishing small minnow on darts and jigs, mostly at bridge pilings and deeper structure, as the fish have moved back out off the spawning areas. Reader reports from St. Mary’s Lake and Piney Run Reservoir indicate that largemouth bass, crappie, pickerel, and yellow perch are all active. Casting small pearl and silver swimbaits has been a good bet for the panfish and at St. Mary’s, shoreline anglers have been doing as well as boat anglers but high water means wearing rubber boots is a good move. Reports from Lake Anna indicate that water quality is off but not horrible and bass are hitting on spinnerbaits, crankbaits, and plastics in post-spawn locations. In areas where water color is stained, root-beer and similar dark colors are out-performing lighter colors.
Snakehead anglers have been set back a bit by all the rain in some areas, but in others the bite continues to be decent on large live bull minnow. Some of the creeks off the Potomac are in decent shape, and the Blackwater is also fishable. The upper Potomac, however, is reportedly still a wash and even fishing for blue cats was a difficult proposition this week; we'll see if the weekend brings more rain or allows the water flow to drop a bit. Captain Bones reports that the Eastern Shore ponds are also a bit overly full but the spillways at Laural and the Nanticoke have produced a few snakes plus catfish for anglers soaking minnow.
Mid-Atlantic Freshwater Fishing Report, 5/18/2018:
Snakeheads seem to be the word on the street in the freshwater fishing zone right now. Jake’s Bait & Tackle tells us that as this time of year the snakeheads are spawning and to catch them on their beds there are multiple tactics for success. If you’re more of a bait person, tossing a big, live bull minnow in front of a snakehead’s mouth makes the bait almost irresistible. But, both topwater lures and swimbaits work in order to land a snakehead as well. Hot zones include the Blackwater complex on the Eastern Shore, the creeks off the upper and middle Potomac, and the upper Patuxent. We can’t move on from the Potomac just yet, though… bass anglers were doing well within sight of the nation’s capital down to Piscataway recently, on spinnerbaits and crankbaits. And as usual, anglers soaking hunks of cut fish had all the blue catfish action they could handle. Unfortunately, however, the upper Potomac is running high and considering how much rain we’ve had in the past two days, bass fishing here may prove a wash-out in the near future. The cats shouldn’t care a whole heck of a lot, thought the bite may not be as fast and furious. We did also hear about a monster blue catfish that allegedly just broke the 100-pound mark, coming from Bugg’s Island lake a couple weeks ago.
Set’s Sport Shop said they heard stocked trout were still being caught, although they told us that this type of fishing has already slowed because people have pretty much caught many of the stocked fish out. If you want to take home some stockers, better act fast before they're all gone. The region’s reservoirs were in prime form the past week with awesome bass fishing reported in the Baltimore area reservoirs, St. Mary’s Lake (lots of pickerel being caught here recently, too), and Lake Anna. The fish are spawning or in post-spawn mode right now; if you’re not sure how to target them at this time of year be sure to read Jim Gronaw’s Bass After the Spawn article. Oh, and cross your fingers that the torrential downpours don’t mess it up. For the time being, we’d suggest fishing larger bodies of water that have an easier time absorbing a big influx, and staying away from areas where large volumes of flowing water run in.
Of course shad fishing is on the mind of many freshwater fishermen right now. With the bite improving every day but still not exemplary, northern anglers are heading for Deer and Octararo creeks, while anglers to the south are hitting the Potomac, the James near Richmond and the upper Rappahannock. Small tandem rigs with silver and gold spoons and darts have continued to be the best arrangement for targeting the shad but again, we have to note that with all the rain we’ve had recently, conditions in many areas are likely to deteriorate a bit.
Out to the west, Bill’s Outdoors said the bass fishing has been on in Deep Creek lately, with a heck of a strong bite. Right now the bass are transitioning from deeper waters to shallow in order to spawn. This gives anglers good insight as to where their beds may be, and swimbaits, spinnerbaits, and shallow-running crankbaits are all effective at this time of year.
Mid-Atlantic Freshwater Fishing Report, 5/10/2018:
The freshwater scene in the Mid-Atlantic region remains strong as water temperatures continue to rise, with many fish - largemouth bass included - entering their spawning mode. This means most have moved shallow, and can be effectively targeted up close to shorelines and in the shallows. Just remember that if you catch large females, now's the time to treat them with care. Swimbaits, spinnerbaits, and shallow-running crankbaits are all effective at this time of year. We've had reader reports of good action in one to three feet of water in the Baltimore reservoirs, St. Mary's Lake, Lake Anna, and Buggs Island. In the eastern shore millponds, which warm a bit more quickly, expect these fish to transition into post-spawn mode a bit sooner (read contributor Jim Gronaw's Bass After the Spawn, to get the low-down on targeting these fish as they change their patterns). Crappie are also biting in the same bodies of water, and in areas where perch are present they're feeding hard, too.
Along with the full-force spring bite, the shad fishery is the big news of the week. It's been a slow start for shad but things are improving every day; northern anglers are heading for Deer and Octararo creeks, anglers to the south are hitting the James near Richmond and the Rappahannock in the Fredericksburg area, and plenty of both are trying the Potomac just north of the nation's capitol. Don't forget to check out American Made: Shad Fishing, to get in on this action.
And yes, in these same general areas (slightly down-stream in most cases) blue catfish are still chewing on just about any cut fish placed on bottom in a channel or deep hole.
An interesting bite that's cranked up lately is snakeheads, being taken in the Blackwater complex, the upper Patuxent, and creeks off the Potomac. What's new is that these fish have now also made an appearance in the Susquehanna, on the flats, with four reported this week. While they have begun hitting topwater as the water's warmed up, anglers have found big bull minnow under a bobber are proving quite effective on the snakes.
We're also still hearing of plenty of stocked trout being caught, although this has slowed in the more popular areas as the stocked fish are being caught out at a rapid rate. If you want to get a few for dinner before they're all caught up, scroll down to last week's report to see links to the stocking schedules. Then grab some Powerbait, ball up a pea-sized wad on a hook, and toss it out with a split-shot for weight.
Mid-Atlantic Freshwater Fishing Report, 5/4/2018:
Freshwater fishing has remained stellar throughout the region as we've finally began to experience some spring weather, giving more anglers the opportunity to spend time on the water. Many anglers have been spending their time crappie fishing, as they've been in vast abundance recently. In northern areas of our range Taylor Tackle recommended using minnow when targeting them and heading to Broad Creek, where they're hearing a large number of reports coming from. The Baltimore area lakes are also producing, with Clydes Sport Shop also mentioning Loch Raven, Centenial Lake, and Piney Run as hotspots. Anglers are also heading for Deer Creek, where the shad run is on though not yet in full swing (but is improving every day, with the recent sunshine). The shad are snapping at tiny spoons and darts.
Bass are on fire throughout the region. Reports coming in from St. Mary's Lake in Maryland and the Virginia reservoirs including Lake Anna, Kerr, and Smith Mountain are all good, with swimbaits fished in three to five feet of water repeatedly mentioned as a top pick. Chatterbaits have also been ID'd as effective recently. The upper Potomac is also producing some bass, although the bigger news is the presence of shad up near Fletchers. And, as has been the case through the spring, blue catfish are providing constant action for anglers soaking cut fish and chicken livers on bottom near channels and holes. The Rappahannock and James are also producing hordes of catfish from their fresher zones. The western shore perch run, however, is essentially over.
In the Eastern Shore rivers, with water temperatures finally above the 55 degree mark, large blue catfish have also begun to hit a bit better in the Nanticoke. Many have been mixed in with a few remaining perch, though those runs are for the most part complete. Snakeheads have come alive to fill the gap, though, with the Blackwater complex head-lining the options for snake-hunters. Large bull minnow fished under a bobber or wobbled across the surface have been the top pick. We've also had a few reader reports coming from the Eastern Shore millponds, where crappie, bass, and pickerel are all hitting. Minnow have been best for the crappie (two or three feet under a bobber) and pickerel (wobbled along the surface on a bare hook) and bass have been hitting plastic shad swimbaits and crankbaits.
Trout stockings have slowed in some areas (Delaware is finished planting) but in Maryland it's continuing for a couple more weeks (see the Trout Stocking Schedule for more info) and Virginia stocked in the past few days. The spring flurry is winding down and these fish do tend to get caught out fairly quickly, so if you want to get in on this fishery, it's time to act soon. Powerbait trout bait fished on a single hook weighted down by a split-shot is commonly the top producer.