Weems Creek - Monday Aug 17

[J.A. Veil]

Several of us will be launching from the Tucker St ramp to Weems Creek Mon at 7:30 am. This is a great spot to launch for targeting perch along the shorelines in Weems and nearby creeks. Others are welcome to join us.

Just as a heads up, trailers may not be parked at this location unless you are a City of Annapolis resident and have the appropriate permit. You must carry your kayak in or on your vehicle.

[rob-kayak]

Sounds like a lot of fun... but then I'd have to give up my secret identity as Maxwell Smart and my associate Agent 99 .

But we'll let MOC and the DOJ exploit that KAOS..... all good and have a great day !

[EMSer]

Wish I could join you all. Gotta be at work at 9....

[J.A. Veil]

Weems Creek and the Severn were glassy calm this morning. The perch were biting well -- once I found which stretches of shoreline they preferred today. I quickly caught 10 perch in a 50-yd stretch of shoreline, then moved on to the next stretch. I only found 2 perch there, so returned to the previous spot. I quickly caught 8 more plus a pickerel.

At another location, I caught 10 perch in about 15 casts, all in a footprint the size of my vehicle. If I threw away from that zone, I got nothing. But using prior experience in Weems, and other preferred search criteria (less than 5 ft depth and in the shade), I found a fast bite. I ended with 35 perch and 2 pickerel in about 2.5 hours of fishing.

I saw many small minnows today. They were about 1" to 1.5" long and as big around as a pipe cleaner. I was throwing a well-used Bignose spinner. More than half of the hair and fibers have worn away from catching many fish. The remaining hair bundle, when wet, looked the same size and shape as the minnows. A new Bignose spinner is at the top, the used one at the bottom. I tried throwing several longer or wider lures but had no interest from the fish.

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I trolled for about a mile as I moved between creeks hoping to find some stripers. I had no bites on the trolled lures.

At the risk of sounding too obvious, the two keys to fishing are:
1) Figure out where the fish are and spend your time fishing there. If they are not where you expect them to be, try somewhere else. and
2) Throw something at them that gets their interest.

Figuring out those two points on any given day may not be easy. But once you get it right, you are likely to catch fish.

[silasvirus82]

nice report, doesn't sound like a bad day

[Mark]

I launched with John Veil and John Rentch today into Weems and did quite poorly until I rendezvoused with them and learned today's secret: shade. Actually, I should have known because shade has worked in the past. But I was trying all sorts of locations until both Johns confirmed their catches in the shade. Then I was in double digits of perch in short order. Also I should add that a slower presentation of my spinner worked better than a faster retrieve.

Here is a typical area in Weems that held fish today. (Ignore the geese. They left shortly after I took this photo.)

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I pulled 4 perch out of this location on consecutive casts of a spinner bait. The key was definitely the shade provided by overhanging trees. Add a little downed wood to the mix and you had a winning combination.

So after I separated from my buddies I worked the shoreline to the very end of Weems hitting every shady spot along the way. Most held fish. All were Weems Creek clones -- 8 to 10 inches and fat. I even got a 15 inch pickerel toward the end of the fishable creek. I could see Route 50 traffic from where I caught this guy.

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After releasing the pickerel I was soon in 1 foot of muddy water. I believe some enterprising person could market Weems Creek mud as a super adhesive. I just spent a lot of time washing it from my boat and my tackle. Spraying it with a hose doesn't work. It takes a rag and elbow grease to remove it from your hull and rods and reels.

Lastly, I'm sorry to report that flies were not productive today. I caught only one perch on a fly -- a Clouser Minnow. Unfortunately just before returning to the Tucker Street ramp I managed to bury that Clouser past the barb into my thumb right at the corner of the nail. A quick tug and a wince solved the immediate problem.

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Then I cleaned and doused the wound with alcohol pads that I always carry and secured it with a Band-Aid.

So I got off to a slow start today but redeemed my day thanks to some on-water coaching by my friends. Thanks guys! And even though the end of my day was a little painful, the middle portion of the trip more than made up for it.

If you want some easy fun get to Weems and enjoy the fish it has to offer. Just remember...shade is good.

[EMSer]

Sounds like a winning day for all involved. Sorry about your Finger Mark..

Thanks for the report Gents!

[Cowpokey]

Unfortunately just before returning to the Tucker Street ramp I managed to bury that Clouser past the barb into my thumb right at the corner of the nail. A quick tug and a wince solved the immediate problem.

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Did that happen on a back cast? Did you push it through, or rip it out backward. Ouch!

[Mark]

It happened as I was getting ready to use my fly rod. I picked up the rod with my right hand and pulled the hook from the hook holder with my left thumb and forefinger. There was a tension on the line of course, the rod flexed, the boat rocked a little and the next thing I knew a Clouser Minnow was embedded in my thumb.

Safety suggestion: It's probably wise to pull a little line off of a fly reel or to strip some line from the drag on a conventional reel before disengaging a hook from a rod's hook keeper. A taut line can drive the hook into you. Better yet -- de-barb your hooks.

Fortunately the barb sunk into the tip of my thumb near the nail where there is not a lot of tissue. I yanked it out fast rather than pushing it through and cleaned the wound immediately with alcohol. That actually hurt worst than the hook's removal.

Anyway, that particular Clouser caught a white perch today but it also got me. I've retired it!

[Cowpokey]

I'd put that Clouser in a frame and hang it on the wall as a reminder. LOL

[Skidsteer]

I'd fish that clouser just for revenge - hang some fish by the lips to teach them a lesson ...

[Mark]

The offender:

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