Near-citation perch in less than pristine waters

[J.A. Veil]

On the previous two days I fished at several Eastern Shore locations that have been spared the onslaught of floating debris. This morning I anticipated rain, but found sunny skies instead. I launched at about 10:15 into the Severn River. I was surprised and dismayed by the amount of floating logs, branches, and trash. I had to fight my way through large logs and branches just to get the kayak in the water.

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I paddled to a tidal pond and found at least one quarter of its surface to be covered by debris. Those areas were not fishable.

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I moved around looking for an open area that was in some shade. There was just one patch (no more than 15' wide by 100' long) that met those criteria. Although the water was brown colored, quite a few perch had congregated in that area. Over the next half hour I drifted back and forth along this zone and caught 15 perch -- all on my trusty Bignose spinner. This particular spinner has a small brass blade that has grown dark with oxidation. I probably should polish it again to make it shiny but the darn lure keeps catching the way it is.

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Most of the perch were at least 8" long. Fish #9 pulled a bit harder then dove under some floating branches and spit the hook. I was disappointed. I cast again and had an even stronger pull. This fish (#10) bent my ultralight rod and gave me quite a fight. It measured out at just under 13" (citation size). I might have been able to squeeze it and position it to show a full 13", but I wanted to get the fish back into the water. Whether it was 12.5", 12.75", or 13" does not matter. It was still my largest perch in the past 5 years and was an unexpected bonus in less than pristine waters.

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I fished for only an hour then came home.

[Mark]

Nice catch, John.

That fish was probably glad, however briefly, to get pulled from that filthy water.

[bignose]

The last time you caught a Perch that big, you ended up winning a boat!

I know it's hard to clean up "Old Faithful" but you may end up catching even bigger fish. Lol
I'm surprised that the swivel hasn't worn out on that one. The paint and skirt look like they held up pretty good.

[bassguy84]

Nice biggest one I've seen all year. I haven't gone out in the last few weeks with family fun and tragedy. I hope the debris clears out soon.

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[J.A. Veil]

The last time you caught a Perch that big, you ended up winning a boat!

I know it's hard to clean up "Old Faithful" but you may end up catching even bigger fish. Lol
I'm surprised that the swivel hasn't worn out on that one. The paint and skirt look like they held up pretty good.

I tie on one of your spinners and leave it there until it breaks off or all the hair is gone. This one has held up to over a hundred perch, a largemouth bass, and a few stripers. Other than the oxidized blade, it still looks pretty good.

[J. Rentch]

Nice going John, those have been scarce this year, as has fishing in the Severn.

[sprirobass]

Nice perch! Thanks for the report.


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[gliebig]

What brand yak is that?

[mjkeith13]

Wow! That is a serious perch! He is probably twice as big as most that I catch. Thanks John for getting him back in the water so quick.

[J.A. Veil]

What brand yak is that?

That kayak is a Native Manta Ray 11 paddle kayak. Admittedly, it is shorter than optimal on the water, but I can slide it into the back of my Toyota minivan and shut the rear hatch. The Manta Ray wedge seat is the most comfortable kayak seat I have found for my body. That boat is sturdy, lightweight, comfortable, and has multiple gear tracks.

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Sadly, Native does not make that model anymore. Native makes its slightly longer sibling, the Manta Ray 12. Last year Native introduced two newer versions of the Manta Ray with a lawn-chair style seat and other newer features. The Manta Ray XT 12 is made from polypropylene, like most other kayaks. The Manta Ray LT is made of thermoformed plastic and is very lightweight. I am considering buying either or both of those models to add to my fleet.

[ronaultmtd]

Really Nice perch, John- congratulations...

from the Slower Lower-I brought home eight white Perch for supper tonight...3 were 11 inches, but all were over 10 inches...water was nice today, some loose grass, but clarity and conditions were as good as it gets this time of year...saw a couple of fish chasing minnows in the sod banks but could not coax a bite from them...just finished a big fish fry supper of fresh perch filets...in my opinion one really fine eating fish...oh yeah, I also caught some keeper Stripers, but today was C&R for everything but big perch...