MKFS: Fishing Conditions Archive

May 21

Fishing on the upper Potomac this week was hit or miss, though even the misses were pretty good. Low river conditions and fluctuating water temperatures made fish fluky and kept the proportions of active fish low, but those that were active or that could be provoked into striking were big, strong, and lusty.

Until heavy and diffuse thundershowers Saturday afternoon and evening, the Potomac and Shenandoah valleys had seen very little rain in almost a month. Though the year’s totals aren’t yet below normal, the rivers are in an odd range for May.

Small white slider flies--and little else--proved to be the ticket on Saturday, my most recent trip. When well presented the it provoked only occasional strikes, but from nice fish; the first two to hit the deck were fifteen and seventeen inches each, both strong and healthy fish. Spin lures and repeated flycasting moved only a handful of smaller fish between 10 AM and two PM, though one fish was a fly-caught walleye of about 16 inches, the first of that toothy species to fall to a fly for our outfit.

After lunch the skies clouded over and the thunder grumbled and the fish bit well and the clients totaled 40 fish or so with several in the 14-17 inch range; not bad for a bad day. Zoom flukes and topwater crankbaits performed best, especially into the evening, and the fly guy changed often but still caught every quality fish on the small white foam-head slider. (a Prissy Miss, I believe, or the Orvis product that looks just like it.) We pulled off at about 8 PM with another thunderstorm threatening.

Fish were holding in a typical pattern for less than active or sulky fish: long channels with steady current and broken rock or sand and rock bottoms. The large calm-water pools that would normally have held fish, at least on the edges, were deserted except for the walleye mentioned above. Current breaks and riffle pockets which will be hot in a month were dink territory only. The larger fish were twitchy and deep, but when presented a lure in their zone they were more than willing.

Fish are also tough to catch close to the boat. Make longer casts and stealthy approaches, and fish downstream and across from a drifting boat. In one particular area we have had great success--but only the first boat through. It’s a long secondary river channel but a narrow approach. On Saturday I waited out the thunderstorm then African-Queened the boat back up for a second drift (that’s wading and dragging the boat upstream for the never-Kovached among you). We caught four fish and had another three or four chances on the first drift through that 300 yard section, but had only one hit on the second try. As soon as we got into new water we began picking up fish again. Moral: be ready to fish carefully and thoroughly through your water. Smallmouth may be difficult but they’re rarely impossible.

Two words on technique for early summer fish:

First, when fishing spin lures that dead drift, such as the Zoom Fluke or other finesse baits, or when fishing flies that dead drift, such as zonkers, clousers, nymphs, or the Butch Minnow, be patient. Keep the lure in the water. Fish well out from the side or downstream quarter of the boat, or down-and-across from the wading angler. Keep your rod tip high; this keeps some tension on the line but allows you to lower the tip and “settle” the lure further downstream in a natural movement. Keep jigging action at a minimum. Let those flies and plastics sink out of sight. Get hung up once in a while; it's a good sign. For the finesse plastics remember to let the line be slack and the lure still; it’s still moving with current, and even the most sulky smallmouth have trouble resisting a lure that’s a) falling, b) turning downstream, c) dead-drifting, and d) pretty big.

For flies, remember to stack some line with stack mends to get the fly downstream and deep, and resist the temptation to strip it in. I like to strip it out--that is, actually feed line into the system when the fly is falling downstream so it’s going down, but not much across. This also lengthens the cast and keeps the fly in the water, where it is most likely to attract the attention of a fish.

Second word: for picky smallies, set the hook firmly but gradually. Fly rodders should use a strip set, not a rod set. Long, slow casts make for bellied line and distance, and a strip set may be necessary to take out the slack in the line. Don't worry; you'll feel the bite. Spin anglers fishing finesse lures should tighten drags and reel up sharply into a strike, delaying the rod set until they feel a fish. Lately larger fish have been taking aggressively and smaller fish have been nipping at lures, so every bump does not warrant a Bill Dance-magnitude hookset. The fish worth really sticking will also contribute to the situation by covering some ground from the point where they hit, so they will generally close the deal themselves.

Incidentally, wet-wading season has officially begun for me, though there's still a bit of a hunch-shouldered shiver when the water reaches a certain depth. Don't worry; you'll get used to it. The Shenandoah, however, may not be an excellent wading location this year; low water has contributed to an extraordinary growth of vegetation, including one form of algae that is so slick it is the primary lubricant for all Peugeot automobiles. The good news, of course, is that low water will also contribute to deep growth of star grass, which makes for good fishing. We'll see in August.

Make your plans to fish now. We still have a few weekend spots left in June and July.

Dave Motes

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