April Meet & Greet at Fletcher's Boat House, DC :: April 14

[Splitscreen]

Rigging up my anchor trolley system this evening. I will try to find myself a nice 20lb flat rock
Sounds like the strong currents will make it very difficult to fish without an anchor or without mirage drive.
I don't have wheels for my yak yet. Hopefully I will be able to get it down there. It will go on top of a nissan altima so it should be able to fit through the tunnel. Should be...

[Meadeo]

I am in as well as my brother. Look forward to fishing the Potomac at fletchers for the first time in many years.

Time to purchase the online fishing licence.

Meadeo

[bigfluke45]

I'm also in. Is the plan still to meet at 8 am? I'm training for a marathon and have to get in a 10 mi run before or after we fish.

[jsnyd86]

Ill be there around 8, willing to help anyone who needs a hand carrying their yak in. Especially if I cant get a cart in time and need to carry mine as well

[chex]

I'm definitely in. 8 am sounds good to me. Those poor shad will stand no chance with all of us floating above them.

[new2yaks11]

I'm so psyched for Saturday. Never fished that area. Hoping to catch some shad. If not, hoping to find some hungry catfish. Hopefully winds will be down.

[camelbird]

I'm also in. Is the plan still to meet at 8 am? I'm training for a marathon and have to get in a 10 mi run before or after we fish.

Big Fluke - Dude, you are hardcore, that is awesome.

Just got the thumbs up form the wife so I'm there. I'm going super early but will most likely see you guys there.

I'll be in a tan Shakespeare Angler / yellow pfd / Dr. Bill-ish hat.

Planning on going up river early to throw poppers and swimbaits for stripers, then to the shad...

Hope to see you guys out there.

Justin

[ictalurus]

I'll be in a tan Shakespeare Angler / yellow pfd / Dr. Bill-ish hat.

Justin

Good think I have a yellow yak. How would anyone tell us apart?

I'm planning on being there around 7 to do some shad fishing before it gets too bright. However, given my previous experiences navigating DC, I'll probably end up there at 8 anyway.

[camelbird]

Good think I have a yellow yak. How would anyone tell us apart?

I'm planning on being there around 7 to do some shad fishing before it gets too bright. However, given my previous experiences navigating DC, I'll probably end up there at 8 anyway.

Yeah I'm totally crampin your style, but hey it works

I'm probably going to be out a little earlier, but will most likely catch you out there - good luck with the navigation - thank my lucky stars for gps.

Justin

[J.A. Veil]

I fished Fletchers today from the shoreline with Bignose (Stu). Stu is a veteran shad fisherman, while I am a raw rookie. He was patient with me and showed me how he rigs up. I listened to some of his tips -- I should have listened to all of them .

We started fishing about 10:45 with low water levels. The water kept rising throughout the morning until I could no longer stay out on the rocks and safely return to the shore in my knee-high boots. As the water rose, the bite picked up.

I ended up with 4 hickory shad. Stu's hip waders allowed him to stay on the outermost rock longer than me. He was picking off hickories one after another, while I cast from closer in and did not reach the target zone. Some other anglers just downstream from us were catching consistently too. It became clear to me how important it was to be able to cast far enough out into the flow to reach where the fish are. When you are fishing from a kayak tomorrow, you will be able to move anywhere you want. Just be cautious about the current and have fun.

[new2yaks11]

John,

Can you offer any pointers for rigging to try and catch shad? I've only caught them by accident while perch fishing on choptank and susky. I was using 2-3" twister tails.

I'm really wanting to hit Fletcher's tomorrow just not sure of current flow. Definitely not trying to anchor in the current because of potential danger.

[PotomacTide]

I fished from the bank at fletchers this afternoon for about an hour and got skunked for the first time out there. I got there around hight tide as it was turning, so I think the weak current contributed to it being slow. The boats out in the current were still catching them even during the weak tide, so I think all of us out in our yaks in the current will do just fine tomorrow. Greens darts seemed to be doing the trick today for those who were catching shad.

I won't get there tomorrow until a little after 9 AM tomorrow due to a dentist appointment.

I grabbed a couple of flat rocks for an anchor tomorrow. So if someone needs an anchor tomorrow, I will probably have a spare flat rock. Just be sure to bring your own anchor line.

[bignose]

Here is the rig I showed to John:

First, I use 10 lb braid as my main line. I really have learned to like the Sufix neon orange.
I tie a surgeon's loop in the end of the braid (double over hand knot)
I loop this end thru a small ball bearing swivel. I prefer solid rings rather than split rings in case something bigs hits the darts.
From the bottom of swivel I use two leaders, one about 24-30 inches long, and a second one at about 12-15 inches long.
I use a heavier dart-generally about 1/8 oz on the shorter leader, and a lighter dart, about 1/16 oz on the longer leader.(think about a miniature tandem trolling rig). Little chartreuse twister tails will work as well. I cast and tie my own darts.
On the Potomac, since the river at Fletcher's is pretty deep, I cast out pretty much straight across and let the combo swing and drop with the current. On the Susky, I may cast at more of an angle downstream. Do not cast at an upstream angle unless you want to hang up and replace darts. You will still hang up a good bit. If you are not losing darts, you aren't where the fish are, especially if it is a bright sunny day.

Visualize on the Potomac that the rocky ledges coming off of the Maryland shore are at about a 45 degree angle to the river. I generally find the shad hang just where the current breaks over the ledge, so cast 3-10 yards upstream from where you think the ledge is and let it settle down. Expect the hits on the swing.

From the shore I prefer a longer rod 6 1/2 to 7 feet. It obviously doesn't matter if you are fishing from a craft.

If you anchor upstream from Fletcher's (John and I were about 3/4 of the way up to Chain Bridge-about a 20 minute walk-where the river becomes narrower and rocky), please give some leeway to the guys perched up on the rocks. They are limited in where they can reach.

[PotomacTide]

DC fishing licenses are for sale at the shop right near the parking lot. Very quick and easy to get (easier than online). Great selection of darts.

Also, keep in mind that you are not allowed to keep Hickory or American Shad in DC.

Link to DC fishing restrictions is at http://ddoe.dc.gov/page/dc-fish-field-guide

[bignose]

Catfish rig

I used a 2 or 3 oz disc sinker, which is less likely to get hung up, along with a standard bottom rig/fish finder rig. Two hooks (legal limit) about 4/0-7/0 baited with chicken livers, on short 6 inch leaders.
Nasty to cast but if you're interested in taking some kitties home for dinner this will work.
I caught some cats two weeks ago from the same rocky area I fished with John today.

Not my favorite type of fishing!

There will be a lot of rowboats in the cove immediately adjacent to the boat house. It thins out about 1/2 mile upstream.
With the river at a low (for this time of the year) flow, the current shouldn't be a major problem, especially for those used to fishing under the Bay Bridge. Just use common sense, a long rode and have a knife handy.

Good luck to all.