Skunked on the Severn

[john from md]

Went out this morning, on the water from 0615 to 1000. I fished the river and Weems creek. I tried casting, trolling and bottom fishing with gulp. NADA!

I got a couple of hits by small Rock but they didn't get on the hook. I painted plenty of fish holding but not taking my offerings. Besides me, the only other people on the river were one recreational crabber and two commercial crabbers. No one was even fishing from the old bridge!

I must have missed the memo about no fishing today.

[Mark]

John,

Depressing!

But thank you for the report.

It was definitely more productive for me to stay home to mow the lawn today.

[john from md]

Mark,

It was such a beautiful day on the water though. The other thing was that the visibility looked to be about 2.5 to 3 feet, not bad considering all the rain lately. I didn't count, but I think I may have hit all the docks on the Severn and 25% of those on Weems.

[Mark]

John,

I know. I was being facetious. It's always better to be fishing than riding the Deere. But the lack of tidal fish is troubling.

After I answered your thread I decided to look at the latest Mid-Bay fishing report from the MD DNR.

Here's what it says about white perch:

White perch have been providing plenty of fun fishing action for all ages. This type of fishing can be as simple as dropping a small sinker and hook baited with pieces of bloodworm or grass shrimp straight down off a dock. White perch love structure and often can be found hugging dock piers or bulkheads. In areas such as Eastern Bay, bottom rigs with bait or dropper flies can work well for white perch holding on oyster bottom. Casting beetle spins and small lures is another way to fish along shoreline structure.


I'm convinced they write these reports in January and queue them up for publication each week during the year.

[john from md]

I think I read that exact statement about 20 years ago.

[J.A. Veil]

I fished in College Creek and a tidal pond this morning. I launched about 10:30 -- just about high tide. The tidal pond was heavily filled in with SAVs and produced one small perch. A stretch of shoreline in the river that usually is productive for perch yielded none this morning. I did find 7 or 8 solid perch in the upper end of College Creek where there was natural shoreline and shade. Whenever I found a large tree leaning over the water and creating a patch of shade, I caught fish or at least had a nibble here and there. But overall, perch are nowhere near as thick as they should be for late June.

[Crotalus]

It seems that a lot of folks have been really struggling with perch in the Severn area this year, but in the three trips I've taken looking for perch I've been able to find decent numbers of fish. I will say that I have not had much success with the spinner baits that I have used almost exclusively in years past. I have done much better with a small jig on the bottom. Almost every dock I have fished that has a range of depth from 2-12 feet or so has had fish, it was just a matter of finding what they will hit and at what depth. If folks are having trouble getting bites by casting spinners, it might be worth slowing down and trying a different tactic. If the fish are holding a little deeper, 1/8 oz. spinners may not get down far enough and shoreline riprap and woody debris may be too shallow.

[john from md]

It seems that a lot of folks have been really struggling with perch in the Severn area this year, but in the three trips I've taken looking for perch I've been able to find decent numbers of fish. I will say that I have not had much success with the spinner baits that I have used almost exclusively in years past. I have done much better with a small jig on the bottom. Almost every dock I have fished that has a range of depth from 2-12 feet or so has had fish, it was just a matter of finding what they will hit and at what depth. If folks are having trouble getting bites by casting spinners, it might be worth slowing down and trying a different tactic. If the fish are holding a little deeper, 1/8 oz. spinners may not get down far enough and shoreline riprap and woody debris may be too shallow.

Good point about the light weights, especially with all the suspended stuff right now.

[Mark]

Kevin,

Thanks for your tip.

What are you putting on your jig?

In addition to spinners, I have used plain 1/8 oz. jigs with grubs being patient to let them sink.

My success has still been limited.

P1040836 (2).jpg

[Crotalus]

I've been putting a white panfish assassin grub on a 1/4 oz. jighead. Sometimes with a 1/16 oz. fly on a dropper loop above. I've been working it with short jerks, making sure to keep anyone tension on the line so I can feel it as it falls. When throwing a spinner I've been going heavier with a 1/4 oz. as well, and sometimes letting that sink to the bottom before retrieving. I've found slower and closer to the bottom to be the key so far.

[Mark]

Thanks Kevin.

[CHOC]

John,

I know. I was being facetious. It's always better to be fishing than riding the Deere. But the lack of tidal fish is troubling.

After I answered your thread I decided to look at the latest Mid-Bay fishing report from the MD DNR.

Here's what it says about white perch:

White perch have been providing plenty of fun fishing action for all ages. This type of fishing can be as simple as dropping a small sinker and hook baited with pieces of bloodworm or grass shrimp straight down off a dock. White perch love structure and often can be found hugging dock piers or bulkheads. In areas such as Eastern Bay, bottom rigs with bait or dropper flies can work well for white perch holding on oyster bottom. Casting beetle spins and small lures is another way to fish along shoreline structure.


I'm convinced they write these reports in January and queue them up for publication each week during the year.

Agreed. I think they just look at previous year’s reports and change a few words around. I go to Fishtalkmag.com for my reports.