Cold Water Fishing - Potomac

[kanvery]

I think we all have our favorite (sometimes top secret) cold-water fishing spots and many are looking for some new ones or tactics on how to fish them. This is a short article but informative about fishing the Potomac. Most of the information people probably already knew. But, for those that dont, here ya go!

Original Article Copy and Pasted Below
http://www.csnwashington.com/02/13/1...62&feedID=7167

It’s Still February!
February 13, 2012, 3:27 pm



By Steve Chaconas
Fishing on the Potomac
CSNwashington.com

Water is still a bit stained and has dropped into the upper 30s. All lures must really be fished slowly!

Tides are low to start the day with high tides coming in early afternoon. NBC Ch. 4 meteorologist "Weather Kim" Martucci says, “Sunny skies to start the week with temperatures reaching 50 all week, but overnight lows are still in the low to mid 30s. A good chance of rain on Tuesday and Thursday with sunny skies for the weekend.”

If you can get to the warmer, clearer waters at Blue Plains, try Lucky Craft Pointer 78 suspending jerkbaits and Lucky Craft Bevy Shad crankbaits. For both lures, use 8-10, pound test GAMMA fluorocarbon and a spray of Real Magic line treatment for longer casts. For Pointers, use natural patterns and work very slowly, pausing between snaps. Find a cadence that will trigger strikes. Work Bevy Shads on the drops because this bait will go deeper. Crank and pause. A few twitches also work.

In all other cold water spots, like the Spoils, Belle Haven, National Harbor and Occoquon, work Silver Buddy lures down drops. For Silver Buddys use GAMMA 12-pound test fluorocarbon line. Fish are locked into specific depths on the drops near deep water! Take time to find the depth and work it over with short burps of about 3 inches.

To follow up in these spots, use Punisher hair jigs on 6-pound test GAMMA Copolymer. Keep them soaked in Jack’s Juice crawfish attractant. The hair will soak it up, but a spray every now and again will encourage fish to hold on. I also use Jack’s Juice on Mann’s Stingray grubs and Mizmo tubes. When it’s cold, use baits with open hooks when you can! It’s easier to set the hook on long casts.

[kanvery]

Charlie Taylor's Fishing Report

FISHING REPORT

February 22, 2012
By Charlie Taylor

http://mysite.verizon.net/vzeqbewt/id8.html

POTOMAC RIVER - D.C. - The white perch should start moving in this weekend. A few small to medium perch were taken this week in the area of the 14th Street Bridge. Most of the fish were caught on nightcrawlers or bloodworms. Walleye anglers are taking 5-9 pound fish around Chain Bridge and Little Falls on live minnows and nightcrawlers. Channel catfish anglers are taking good numbers of fish in the 2-3 pound class, along with a few over the 10 pound mark. Bottom fishing with smelt or cut bait is the key. Bass are moving into the prespawn stage. This means that they are holding in 10-15 feet of water and moving up on shallow banks or flats to feed. Jig 'n pig, small plastic grubs and slow-rolled spinnerbaits are the successful baits. Crappie are schooled and moving into shallow water. Live minnows and tiny jigs are the preferred baits. Carp are taking three inch, smoke metalflake grubs retrieved very slowly in a swimming motion. Outflows from the Alexandria power plant and Blue Plains are attracting schools of gizzard shad, followed by channel catfish and largemouth bass.

POTOMAC RIVER - BELOW WOODROW WILSON BRIDGE - Bass are being caught on main river points on jig 'n pig baits cast into the shallows and worked down the dropoffs. Plastic grubs, retrieved in a swimming motion, will also take nice fish. Larger creeks are producing good catches on jig 'n pig baits, retrieved down dropoffs on outgoing tides. Crappie are schooled tight and holding in 8-12 feet of water, adjacent to shallow gravel banks with good cover. Live minnows and plastic grubs are the ticket. Blue catfish are foraging on flats adjacent to deeper water. Cut shad baits are taking the larger ones, with fish
to 40 pounds being caught.

POTOMAC RIVER - UPPER - Smallmouth bass and channel catfish are beginning to move in the area from Algonkian Park to the mouth of the Monocacy. Live minnows, small hair jigs and plastic grubs are the more consistent producing baits. Lots of good size smallmouth are being caught along the Maryland shoreline below the Dickerson Power Plant discharge canal. Crappie schools are located around the mouth of Broad Run and Goose Creek. Small minnows are working best for these tasty fish. Reports of white suckers are beginning to filter in from the White's Ferry area. A good number of walleye are being taken at the base of Great Falls on live minnows and nightcrawlers. A couple of nice largemouth have also been reported in the past week. Most of the fish are coming from the area west of the Loudoun County line. Only one report of walleye above Great Falls, and that was taken just below the mouth of the Dickerson Power Plant discharge. It is only a matter of a week or so before they start biting throughout the upper river, assuming that the rains don't raise the water level too much and the weather continues moderate.

OCCOQUAN RIVER - Crappie are suspended around boat docks throughout the river. Bass are hugging bottom along the rock walls on the north side of the river and on the rocky points on the south side. Small grubs, jig 'n pig or slow-rolled spinnerbaits, fished slowly along the bottom, will take the bass. Yellow perch are still conspicuous by their absence.

OCCOQUAN RESERVOIR - Water temperatures are in the low to mid forties, with fair fishing success. A little warmer weather this weekend should find main
lake points producing bass for anglers fishing jig 'n pig and large spinnerbaits, very slowly from shallow to deep water. Most of the fish should be caught in 3-5 feet of water on a 15-20 dropoff. The bass should be staging for the spawn and moving into the coves. Crappie are staging and moving from deep to shallow water near brush. Crappie fishing is fair on live minnows and tiny jigs.

LAKE ANNA - Big fish are on the move and are beginning to feed heavily. Live bait is at it's best now for trophy bass. Lots of fish are being graphed in 10-40 feet of water. They are making their way into the shallows. The water temperature throughout the lake is in the mid 40's, but should continue to warm up over the next two weeks. As it approaches the 55 degree mark, the fishing will get better and better for the larger bass. Shad-imitating crankbaits, jigs and grubs are taking good numbers of bass, but live jumbo shiners are producing best. Walleye action is fair throughout the lake. Gitzit grubs and live shiners are the best baits for the walleye. Crappie are schooled up and taking small shiners and jigs. Best action is found under the bridges and suspended over creek channels. Yellow and white perch are found on
dropoffs adjacent to deep points. These fish are taking small minnows, jigs, and Hopkins spoons. Stripers are taking four inch Sassy Shads in pearl color. Early and late in the day, Zara Spooks and Cordell Redfins are productive.

BURKE LAKE - This Saturday should see anglers out, and some fish caught. Some warm, sunny days should turn them on, with bass being taken on crankbaits and spinnerbaits, retrieved slowly. Water temperatures are in the mid forties, but hopefully, will increase this weekend. Warm rain runoff, combined with warm, sunny days the beginning of the week will put them heavily on the feed.

RAPPAHANNOCK RIVER - White perch fishing has started, downriver, with bloodworms being the bait of choice. Yellow perch are still biting well on minnows and nightcrawlers, in the downstream sections. Crappie fishing is good in the tidal sections, as is largemouth bass. Lots of good bass are being
caught on jig 'n pig near the blowdowns on the South shoreline. Some good sized blue catfish are being caught on cut bait, fished in the main river channel bends. Above the city, smallmouth fishing is red hot, with trophy fish taking large crankbaits, live minnows, plastic grubs and hair jigs with pork rind trailers. Best area is around the I-95 bridge and upstream.

[jsquare]

Good info. Thanks.