Little Seneca Lake

[Shoobs]

Greetings - for my second kayak fishing expedition I fished Little Seneca Lake yesterday and was skunked. My freshwater fishing skills were dull and my tackle was lacking. I used a variety of jerk/twitch baits more in line for specks and reds and stripers. Looking back I probably fished too fast. I also threw some spinners and soft plastics - some of the baits I find that can catch almost any species. No signs of fish. The trip was helpful getting used to kayak fishing, launching, cart top-loading, and figuring out how to integrate my fish finder - a new tool for me. It was awesome to be able to see depth and water temperature and structure. The lake is beautiful and crystal clear water. I was shocked at the deep drop-offs (20 feet) only a few feet from the shoreline. I fished mostly the shoreline, then ventured into the middle areas when I saw some other boats fishing those areas and was shocked to find depths over 50 feet. I never fished freshwater so deep - and actually probably still haven't because the heaviest jig I brought was 1/8 oz! I gained some skills in using the rudder with the wind and just learning to position the kayak to work certain areas.All in a great day on the water and signs of spring.

[Turtle]

I'm guessing you went from Black Hills Park? There's a few kayak-able launches from there. I've fished there plenty, from a bass boat, from kayaks, and from the shore... and I've definitely been skunked plenty. It isn't a "numbers" lake as they say. But glad you got your kayak "sea legs" working, should be the start to a good season.

[Mark]

A worthwhile outing, nevertheless.

The fish will come later.

[Shoobs]

I'm guessing you went from Black Hills Park? There's a few kayak-able launches from there. I've fished there plenty, from a bass boat, from kayaks, and from the shore... and I've definitely been skunked plenty. It isn't a "numbers" lake as they say. But glad you got your kayak "sea legs" working, should be the start to a good season.

Thanks Turtle - I launched from here: Little Seneca Boat Launch, 21614 Clarksburg Rd, Boyds, MD 20841

[Red_Beard]

Little Seneca is a tough nut to crack. I've only fished it once, but I'm planning to hit it up again this year with Tridelphia shut down again. YoutubeFISHINGVIDS is a local guy that has posted a lot of videos fishing there, although he never IDs the lake. Just calls it his "local lake." He seems to do well fishing deep grass line with drop shot rigs, and fishing shallower in the spring with power fishing techniques (blade baits, square bills, etc.). The western arm is super deep, and the middle arm gets tons of pressure because that's where the Black Hills ramp is located. To find good shallow water to fish you need to head up the far eastern arm of the lake. That's the place to be this time of the year, but its a good paddle from either of the launches.

[Shoobs]

Thanks for the info and knowledge.Very helpful. By chance, I fished that Eastern leg for most of my trip. So many points and coves that looked fishy - lots of submerged trees and stumps - which also freaked me out a bit. I paddled through it all telling myself well this is why you got a kayak! Good practice in navigation for me. The very tip of that eastern finger also had a pretty dramatic ledge that went into about a foot of water covering rock, and that was the reason I started to see the water temps rise just a bit as I got closer to it. I fished those shallows thinking the warmer water might hold some fish. Disappointed I won't get to try Tridelphia this year. I saw last night some social media posts the first shad are running at Fletcher's.

[Red_Beard]

All that shallow cover is where the bass will be. Kayaks bounce off that stuff pretty easily, but bumping it will spook the fish so best to keep some distance. I was catching bass down in Virginia on Saturday, but a suspending jerkbait was all they would hit. I fished Fletchers on Sunday without a bite, but I also heard reports of the first shad being caught on Monday before the front went through. I plan to try it again later this week when it warms back up, but the wind forecast for next weekend is looking brutal.

[Shoobs]

Cliff do you kayak or bank fish at Fletchers?

[Red_Beard]

I mostly bank fish at Fletchers, although I'll take my kayak out sometimes during the early days and late days of the shad run. When it's at its peak, jockeying for spots between the row boats and bank anglers just gets to be a bit much. During the peak of the run I can easily catch 50 shad from the bank anyways. Plus if I want to use my kayak, I have to park on the far side of the canal anyways because the clearance in the tunnel (only 7 feet) isn't quite enough to squeeze it under there when I'm using my Hullavator. So taking it there is a bit of a pain. When I do take my kayak, its usually because I want to target the stripers, smallmouth, and walleye that also visit the area in the spring.

[Shoobs]

Thanks for this - I didn't think the kayak would make it through that tunnel. I appreciate you sharing this info.