So, what do you do whenn you cann't sleep?????

[manlystanley]

You watch fishing videos, of course: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f10VdEH4snU

Do any of you guys use this technique of jigging with a small jig? Use a slow retrieve and then a giggling motion??

How long do you think think the white plastic was? 2 or 3 inches??


Thanks,
Stan

[manlystanley]

You watch fishing videos, of course: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f10VdEH4snU

Do any of you guys use this technique of jigging with a small jig? Use a slow retrieve and then a giggling motion??

How long do you think think the white plastic was? 2 or 3 inches??


Thanks,
Stan

In the comments, he said that he uses 2 and 3" grubs. What kind of jig do you think he used??

Thanks,
Stan

[Mark]

I know the area and the technique well.

Looks like he used a 1/8 oz. jig with a 3 inch Mr. Twister (or knockoff) plastic trailer. White and yellow twister tails are popular colors for perch but when they're hungry color does not matter. I believe the movement and profile of the lure is most important.

A 1/8 oz. jig is perhaps the simplest perch lure to use. Brand does not matter. Color of the jig head does not matter. Others add a safety pin spinner to it or use some form of a spinner jig with bucktail or artificial materials tied to it in lieu of a Mr. Twister. The 1/8 oz. size is good because you can cast it far on light tackle and it will also attract stripers.

Perch respond differently to various retrieves. Some days they want it fast and steady. Other days, they like it slower with a pause. Experiment with different retrieves until you find the one they want at that particular spot. I do not jig it with the rod tip per se. I generally keep the lure moving at a steady pace with the rod tip low to the water. However, a pause is often deadly and they may hit your lure as soon as you stop turning the handle of the reel. Then you raise the rod tip and they are hooked. They do most of the work to hook themselves. There's very little hook setting technique when it comes to white perch.

Notice that the person in the video was fishing structure. He was tight to bulkheads, piers, riprap. Perch love to be near something. Also, notice that it was an overcast day in the video. Had it been a sunny day, the angler would have done well to target shady areas. That's especially true in the heat of summer.

White perch in the Severn and elsewhere are great fun. They're usually agreeable to bite when other species are not. Often on my tidal trips I will include at least one rod rigged for white perch. If the stripers fail me I know the white perch will not.

[YakCapn]

Are the perch active now in the Severn? Striper fishing right now seems really dead in the Bay. I was at BT last weekend and saw plenty of bait fish on the fish finder, but little else and got no bites in 3+ hours of trolling.

[J.A. Veil]

White perch move into the Severn shallows about the second week of May historically. With this year's cold weather, their arrival may be a bit later. Once they arrive, they stay in the shallows until early October.

[YakCapn]

Thanks, looks like I may be at the Shad again this weekend then. The bite at Fletchers on the Potomac has been great again this year. I hope the rain doesn’t raise the water level too high. Fletchers Cove is great place to fish but the water levels get high and fast often in the spring making it either hard or downright dangerous to fish from a kayak.

[manlystanley]

My first fishing trip this year, on the Severn is May 15th. If I don't get rained out, I'll make sure to give a status of my trip.

Mark: I'm going to get that jig, and give it a try......


Best Regards,
Stan