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I visited three different Maryland Eastern Shore ponds and a nearby stream this week with my kayak. All were within 45 mins of the Bay Bridge. On Mon, I began fishing in an Eastern Shore tidal freshwater creek and caught white perch and yellow perch. I started out throwing live minnows on a jighead, but had only an occasional bite. I switched over to a 2" twistertail and began catching more frequently. These fish came from deeper pools in an otherwise shallow stream.
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Next I visited a nearby pond where I had no bites. On my way home, I visited a second freshwater pond and caught a little largemouth bass and a bluegill - both on the twistertail.
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On Wed I visited another Eastern Shore pond. For the first hour, I had no bites and was getting a bit frustrated. By then I had moved to the rear of the pond and switched over to the shoreline that got exposed to the sun all morning (I suspect it was a bit warmer, which got the fish moving better). I had two quick bites then caught my first pickerel of 2018. I threw live minnows on a 1/8-oz jighead to the shallow area near the shoreline and swam it back at a speed fast enough to keep it off the bottom. The stiff breeze moved me steadily along the shoreline from the rear to the front of the pond. I caught consistently along the entire distance and ended up with 17 pickerel caught and several other follows. Most were in the mid-teens in size, but one of them was 20".
The water in these ponds is still cool. The bite seems to improve later in the day as the water warms a bit. At this season, the grass, lily pads, and other vegetation has not yet reached the surface. In a few months, it will cover large areas of these impoundments. For those of you who are not ready to get out into big open waters of the bay or large rivers yet, pond fishing is a good alternative that offers a reasonable potential to catch something.
2003-08-01 00-06-13.jpg 2003-08-01 00-00-03.jpg 2003-08-01 00-50-25.jpg
Next I visited a nearby pond where I had no bites. On my way home, I visited a second freshwater pond and caught a little largemouth bass and a bluegill - both on the twistertail.
2003-08-01 05-16-50.jpg
On Wed I visited another Eastern Shore pond. For the first hour, I had no bites and was getting a bit frustrated. By then I had moved to the rear of the pond and switched over to the shoreline that got exposed to the sun all morning (I suspect it was a bit warmer, which got the fish moving better). I had two quick bites then caught my first pickerel of 2018. I threw live minnows on a 1/8-oz jighead to the shallow area near the shoreline and swam it back at a speed fast enough to keep it off the bottom. The stiff breeze moved me steadily along the shoreline from the rear to the front of the pond. I caught consistently along the entire distance and ended up with 17 pickerel caught and several other follows. Most were in the mid-teens in size, but one of them was 20".
The water in these ponds is still cool. The bite seems to improve later in the day as the water warms a bit. At this season, the grass, lily pads, and other vegetation has not yet reached the surface. In a few months, it will cover large areas of these impoundments. For those of you who are not ready to get out into big open waters of the bay or large rivers yet, pond fishing is a good alternative that offers a reasonable potential to catch something.
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