Keeper rockfish in Severn

[Tom Lagana]

Hey guys,

I read the thread last week regarding stripers in the Severn. I am not a troller so I take the info at face value that it’s not producing. I never had much faith that this type of fishing would produce quality fish during this time of year. It is not my intent to debate this, just my opinion.

I have fished the Severn probably more in the last two weeks than the last 2 years primarily to see if I could catch keepers. I would say I fished 10 times. I limited out every time. I fished daybreak and sunset exclusively. I did not troll at all. I caught all the fish on topwater. The keeper sizes ranged from minimum up to 23 inches. I caught many 15-18’s also.

I went this morning and had the same result. I do believe the evening bite is better and longer. Morning obviously shuts down much quicker.

I landed on both a spook and chugger. Sometimes it was enough to just throw the lure and wait, dead stick and they hit it. I never stayed in any one place very long. Main thing to remember is to keep moving. If a location didn’t produce and strike after 2-3 casts I moved. Good luck and hope you guys grab some too!

Hope this helps.IMG_2931.jpg


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[Mark]

Tom,

Thank you.

Good to know larger fish are present and rising.

[J. Rentch]

Tom,
Thanks for sharing!

[J.A. Veil]

Good work Tom. I'm glad to see that some keeper-sized fish are around.

[ronaultmtd]

A rare fish...with 79% of the commercial harvest taking place in the Chesapeake Bay...getting rarer...personally I have had a fairly decent year with C&R for 19 inch and larger fish, much more here lately...but they are in jeopardy and there will be regulatory changes...no one can say it has been a great year for Stripers...

[Jim McFalls]

Hey everybody,

A productive EARLY morning on the Severn. This is one of about a dozen I caught, and it was a 22"er. I caught them all on topwater - a spook. By 7:00, the bite totally shut down. I generally no longer troll so much, except going from point A to B, and this is a drastic change in my fishing habits that has evolved mostly this year. I trolled today, moving from one spot to another, and caught nothing.

The stripers are there, you just have to work a little harder to get them.

Tight lines everybody, and catch 'em up!

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[Tom Lagana]

I don’t think work hard. Trolling is a lot harder than top water. I’d say work smart.[emoji16]


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[Jim McFalls]

I don’t think work hard. Trolling is a lot harder than top water. I’d say work smart.[emoji16]


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My MAN!!!

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[rugbyfish]

Jim, it was nice to meet you out there this morning. I had a similar experience, albeit with smaller stripers. Once the bite died down I switched to perch fishing and caught a few dozen, along with some other small panfish. Couldn’t have asked for a nicer morning to fish.

[Jim McFalls]

Jim, it was nice to meet you out there this morning. I had a similar experience, albeit with smaller stripers. Once the bite died down I switched to perch fishing and caught a few dozen, along with some other small panfish. Couldn’t have asked for a nicer morning to fish.

Likewise! I'm glad you snagged some! A beautiful morning indeed.

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[Yakmac]

Hey everybody,

A productive EARLY morning on the Severn. This is one of about a dozen I caught, and it was a 22"er. I caught them all on topwater - a spook. By 7:00, the bite totally shut down. I generally no longer troll so much, except going from point A to B, and this is a drastic change in my fishing habits that has evolved mostly this year. I trolled today, moving from one spot to another, and caught nothing.

The stripers are there, you just have to work a little harder to get them.

Tight lines everybody, and catch 'em up!

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Jim, I went back the next day and found the topwater bite you spoke of the day before it was awesome. After the bite died down on my way to do some perching I actually caught a striper trolling! It was a great day on the water. I was looking for you and rugbyfish.

[yakscientist]

I haven't fished the severn in months so it's nice to see some positive reports. Maybe I'll make a quick weekend trip, or an evening trip after work. This area used to be my favorite spot to fish in late 2016 and 2017 as well, but 2018 was a very poor year in the river and I started going less and less. However, when the fishing is good, it's truly excellent. I've had a few trips there where I've caught upwards of 40+ fish trolling 2 lines (absolute mayhem) in a few hours, and other quality fall trips where I'll catch 10 fish in an hour or so, and 8 of them will be over 22". Hopefully the severn is returning to its glory days.

[Yakmac]

I haven't fished the severn in months so it's nice to see some positive reports. Maybe I'll make a quick weekend trip, or an evening trip after work. This area used to be my favorite spot to fish in late 2016 and 2017 as well, but 2018 was a very poor year in the river and I started going less and less. However, when the fishing is good, it's truly excellent. I've had a few trips there where I've caught upwards of 40+ fish trolling 2 lines (absolute mayhem) in a few hours, and other quality fall trips where I'll catch 10 fish in an hour or so, and 8 of them will be over 22". Hopefully the severn is returning to its glory days.

I agree, I always enjoyed fishing in the Severn and Weems but the last couple of years have been really off even with perch. That was the best day of fishing I've had on the Severn in way to long. When it is on it is one of the best fisheries in the area IMHO.

[Fish123]

What water depths are you targeting early mornings for top water? Do you throw the top water even if you’re not seeing breaking fish on the surface?

[Yakmac]

What water depths are you targeting early mornings for top water? Do you throw the top water even if you’re not seeing breaking fish on the surface?

I did not see any fish breaking when I was catching on top water not sure of the depth but I’m pretty sure it was no deeper than 15 feet. I took Tom’s advice and cast a few times in one area if I didn’t get any hits I moved on.