8/17 Weems Creek perch and surprises.

[bunnielab]

This morning I launched into Weems at around 9am and fished until 2pm. It was far more windy then the last few days, which was nice for keeping cool but bad for casting light lures. The perch all seemed to be holding under docks and I destroyed a few small spinners smacking pilings. The lure that caught the most fish was a 1/16th oz single hook inline spinner:


I also used a 1/16th oz BigNose, but while it caught a few of the larger fish, the little inline was the champ of the day. Unfortunately, to get that little spinner to cast I have to use a UL/Mod rod, which makes the accidental striper/pickerel a bit more dicey. I think this winter I am going to start making my own inlines. I want the small profile of the 1/16oz ones, but closer to 1/8oz in weight and with a stronger hook and wire.

As for the fish, I caught a lot of little guys like this:

And a bunch of medium guys like this:

I also caught this weird guy, not sure what he was doing in such brackish water:


And then, I caught this bastard, of course on the 1/16oz spinner and UL rod :


16" Striped Bass, my first one. Caught him way back up in the creek in maybe 3' of water. It took like a full minute to get him in and I cut the hell out of my hand when I had to grab the line to keep him from running under my kayak. It was right when I was about to call it quits and head back, so after a few more casts to the same dock I decided to end on a high note.

I had not fished Weems yet this year, the freshwater bass fever has gotten a hold of me in a huge way and it was nice to give some perch a little action for a change. Tomorrow I am going to hit Cash Lake to see if I can get some elusive summer LMBs. There are also a bunch of pickerel in there so I might get a little danger in too.

[bignose]

That is one hog of a pumpkinseed! Beautiful fish!

You should be able to find some heavier spinner bodies on either eBay or Barlows.
Without tooting my own horn, I prefer the Spinner jigs to the inline spinner as they don't get hung up in the crud as much and don't twist up your line.
But, as always, the fish get the final vote in which they prefer. They do love that green color!
For what it's worth, most of my Spinner jigs are 1/8 oz. models made from a Do-it mold.

[bunnielab]

Hah, yea, I was surprised when I pulled him up, I have never seen any of the sunfish posted in reports from the Severn and it's tribs, are they commonly found there?

I have been finding that going to a single hook has mitigated most of the disadvantages of inlines, except for line twist. But, I fish braid/floro leader so the twist isn't that bad. I really like how they cast compared to spinner jigs in both accuracy and distance. I also think they "steer" easier but I might just be imagining that.

My initial (but expensive) thought is to use 1/8 or 3/16 tungsten worm weights as the body of the spinner. That will get me a very compact lure with enough weight to cast a mile and the heft to sink fast and stay down when reeled quickly. Getting them in bright enough green will be an issue, but I can always hand paint them. That would negate any savings from rolling my own however.

[bignose]

Pumpkinseeds and Green Sunfish nest in the shallows in Weems. You can see the circles where they clear out the vegetation in late April/May.
That may be the biggest, boldest colored specimen that I have seen from there.
They are the prettiest of the native Sunfishes, IMO.

Tungsten weights sound like they would work well.
I paint my Jigs by hand, one coat of white vinyl, followed by a coat of Green Chartreuse.
You can also get pre wound wire forms. Tochterman's, eBay, Barlows.

[Mark]

Drew,

Good day for you.

I love fishing the Severn's tributaries. I've caught pumpkinseeds in College Creek but never Weems.

Surprise stripers are always fun, especially on perch tackle.

Like Stu, I prefer jig spinners. I think they hang up less on obstructions than in-line spinners. I can often crawl a jig spinner over downed wood and there are plenty of downed trees in Weems. But the fish are the ultimate judge and if you have confidence in your lure, I firmly believe that helps you catch more fish.

[ronaultmtd]

I have caught white perch as a by-catch on just about every lure I use for stripers, including 5 inch swim baits...while not targeting white perch...sunfish are spunky little critters- pretty fish- I always release them and all small white perch (unless I am fishing for live line bait)...

[J.A. Veil]

I fish Weems frequently throughout the year. I typically catch 1-3 pumpkinseeds a year while casting to perch. Nearly all of my perch casting is done with Bignose, Woody's, or similar type small spinnerbaits. Those lures catch white perch, an occasional yellow perch, pickerel, and stripers from tiny to the low 20s. I used to use Mepps lures (inline spinners) but have tried to avoid treble hooks on all my lures. Once I began using the little spinnerbaits, I have not gone back.

[Mark]

...I used to use Mepps lures (inline spinners) but have tried to avoid treble hooks on all my lures...

Yes, the treble hook is my biggest deterrent in using store-bought in-line spinners. I have never modified them to a single hook but I'm certain they would work.

A Mepps spinner was the first artificial lure I caught a fish with. That was many years ago and I went through my "Mepps Period" using a variety of Mepps spinner colors and styles. In-line spinners are fantastic lures. But white perch especially have knack for biting all three hooks simultaneously. I didn't like dealing with that.

Single hook lures are much easier to remove and I have noticed no decline in hookups in the lures I have modified. I do wish the lure makers would offer more single hook choices.

[manlystanley]

Very nice! I found that my 'little cleo lure' was the best by far for me. It is like a bent spooner. Worked great till I lost it. I need to get another one.

It seems to be, that people get different results with the same lures. I wonder if that is because certain lures better matches certain peoples fishing style??


BTW: I am amazed about the 16 inch bass that was caught in 3 ft of water. I would think they would be deeper, with this heat.

Best Regards, Stan

[Mark]

It seems to be, that people get different results with the same lures. I wonder if that is because certain lures better matches certain peoples fishing style??

Certainly, fishing style matters. Even a subtle changes in retrieval methods or lure placement can improve your results. But I truly believe confidence is a major factor. If you've had success with a given lure in the past your trust in that lure is greater and your expectations are higher. Often your success follows suit.

I actually use a relatively small variety of lures and flies. I stick with those that I know work for me.

[bunnielab]

BTW: I am amazed about the 16 inch bass that was caught in 3 ft of water. I would think they would be deeper, with this heat.

I was pretty shocked as well. I always forget how shallow the back of Weems gets, I see the docks and just assume there is more then a foot of water under them. In any case, there were many large schools of baitfish in the shallow ends of the coves/creeks, I assume the bass was back there having a late lunch.

Upon further reflection (I fished for 5 hours today for 2 LBMs, I had a lot of thinking time), I am going to hunt down some appropriate hooks and make a few test spinners using 1/8 tungsten worm weights. It looks like a small wire bending jig will be pretty inexpensive, so I can try the idea out on the cheap. While out today I rescued a Mepps spinner stuck in a floating plant cage. On a whim I tied it on and threw it under the pier. Got a tiny crappie on my first cast, so clearly the universe is telling me to use inline spinners!

[Mark]

Drew,

I get many of my lure making supplies from this company:

http://www.jannsnetcraft.com/lure-making-parts/

I also use this one:

http://www.barlowstackle.com/How-to-...ures-C270.aspx

[bignose]

Ditto Barlows, very good service.
If you are in the Baltimore vicinity, Tochterman's on Eastern Ave. has a real nice selection of lure parts, pre-bent wire forms, blades and paints, plus are just great folks to deal with.

I also get a lot of blades and parts via eBay: "Rock Island Custom Jigs and Rigs" Store. Tremendous service from them.

[Mark]

Ditto Barlows, very good service.
If you are in the Baltimore vicinity, Tochterman's on Eastern Ave. has a real nice selection of lure parts, pre-bent wire forms, blades and paints,...

Thanks Stu. I didn't know that. I haven't been there in years. I'll have to pay them a visit.

[bignose]

Just ask them to take you upstairs to the "fly tying" department. Everything you'll need and more there.
Tony and Dee are just nice people!