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Today I went down the eastern shore for my first snakehead trip of the year. April is historically my best month for snakehead fishing. It turned out to be a relatively slow day. I caught a few fish with good variety, but there were hours in between bites.
First fish of the day was a decent bass that hit a 3.5" paddle tail. The colors on this bass were interesting, dark yellow and black. I attribute this to the clear (i.e. low turbidity) yet heavily tannin-stained water in this river.
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Next was my first snakehead of the year, this one came on a frog. I actually wasn't paying attention when the fish took my frog, I was setting my anchor pole in place. I heard the telltale "pop" of a snakehead taking topwater lure, looked up and saw my line start to go tight so I set the hook. The frog was deep in its mouth and I got a great hookset. You can see just the tips of the legs poking out in the photo.
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The next catch was my largest crappie of the year at 12", which hit a 3.5" paddle tail. I thought it was a bass until I brought it into the kayak. Pretty colors on this one too
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Last fish of the day was another colorful bass, this one a little smaller but still chunky. I believe this was a male as he "spawned" on me. Ew.
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That sums up the day's catches. 4 fish in 5 hours... not too bad, I've had worse days. There were at least 9 other kayakers on this small river. This location has really blown up. Fortunately there are an infinite number of "spots" to fish - every little nook and cranny along the shoreline could potentially hold a snakehead (or a bass, or a crappie, apparently). So it's not like everyone crowds the same places on the water. The most challenging part is ensuring you get a parking spot at the launch. Everyone I spoke to on the water had a similarly slow day, with just 0 to 3 fish reported.
First fish of the day was a decent bass that hit a 3.5" paddle tail. The colors on this bass were interesting, dark yellow and black. I attribute this to the clear (i.e. low turbidity) yet heavily tannin-stained water in this river.
20230414_114011.jpg
Next was my first snakehead of the year, this one came on a frog. I actually wasn't paying attention when the fish took my frog, I was setting my anchor pole in place. I heard the telltale "pop" of a snakehead taking topwater lure, looked up and saw my line start to go tight so I set the hook. The frog was deep in its mouth and I got a great hookset. You can see just the tips of the legs poking out in the photo.
20230414_120631.jpg
The next catch was my largest crappie of the year at 12", which hit a 3.5" paddle tail. I thought it was a bass until I brought it into the kayak. Pretty colors on this one too
20230414_122842.jpg
Last fish of the day was another colorful bass, this one a little smaller but still chunky. I believe this was a male as he "spawned" on me. Ew.
20230414_133258.jpg
That sums up the day's catches. 4 fish in 5 hours... not too bad, I've had worse days. There were at least 9 other kayakers on this small river. This location has really blown up. Fortunately there are an infinite number of "spots" to fish - every little nook and cranny along the shoreline could potentially hold a snakehead (or a bass, or a crappie, apparently). So it's not like everyone crowds the same places on the water. The most challenging part is ensuring you get a parking spot at the launch. Everyone I spoke to on the water had a similarly slow day, with just 0 to 3 fish reported.
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