Slow Day on the Severn 8/15/2020

[UnkleRob2020]

Launched from Jonas Green at 5am. Fished up and down the Severn and some tributaries. The bite was nothing like the week before. I had forgotten to bring the most important thing...humility. After such a good day the week before, I thought I had figured everything out and was sure I was going to have another amazing day.

God had other plans. I caught almost nothing on my gold kastmaster, but I did manage to get a few perch on a bignose spinner which was by far the best producing lure of the day for both me and my buddy.

Also, a couple of the fish looked different....longer and skinnier than a white perch without the arching spiny dorsal fin. Are those features of only the male or female of the species or could they have been another species of fish alltogether.

All in all, I am glad I got out that day...even though we didn't catch much. I found out the next day that a member of my household had been tested for covid-19 and the results came back positive yesterday. Looks like I am quarantined for a minimum of two weeks.

Good luck to all of you.

[rugbyfish]

Best wishes to you and your family member. Hoping for a speedy recovery. Do you have any pictures of the fish? I’ve been catching a fair number of small spot and croaker in the Severn lately, and others have caught puppy drum. With it being August, it could be almost anything.

[J. Rentch]

Did your fish look like this one? If so, you caught a Puppy Drum (Small Redfish).
DSCF0001.jpg

[bignose]

I'm glad that my lures helped you catch some fish.

Believe it or not, the original batch of lures I shipped out to you are still knocking around somewhere between Washington, Baltimore and places nearby.
They have made 10 stops so far and have been stuck in Baltimore since Sunday according to USPS tracking info!
They are the only package that USPS has messed up, so far.

Good luck with the quarantine, perhaps you can quarantine by some body of water.

[Mark]

Launched from Jonas Green at 5am. Fished up and down the Severn and some tributaries. The bite was nothing like the week before. I had forgotten to bring the most important thing...humility.

That's fishing...A creature with tiny brain working purely on instinct can reduce all all our logic and angling skills to humility. I carry a lot of that in my kayak and use it often.

Good luck with your COVID struggles. I wish you and your family member the best.

[baynovice]

Launched from Jonas Green at 5am. Fished up and down the Severn and some tributaries. The bite was nothing like the week before. I had forgotten to bring the most important thing...humility. After such a good day the week before, I thought I had figured everything out and was sure I was going to have another amazing day.

God had other plans. I caught almost nothing on my gold kastmaster, but I did manage to get a few perch on a bignose spinner which was by far the best producing lure of the day for both me and my buddy.

Also, a couple of the fish looked different....longer and skinnier than a white perch without the arching spiny dorsal fin. Are those features of only the male or female of the species or could they have been another species of fish alltogether.

All in all, I am glad I got out that day...even though we didn't catch much. I found out the next day that a member of my household had been tested for covid-19 and the results came back positive yesterday. Looks like I am quarantined for a minimum of two weeks.

Good luck to all of you.

I know that feeling - just when I think I'm closer to figuring it out, I realize that I still have a long way to go. Best to you and your family for a quick recovery.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[UnkleRob2020]

Yes, my unidentiified fish resembled the photo that John R posted. Thank you all for the support and comradery.

[J. Rentch]

If so, congrats on the Puppy Drum. Great to hear of more of them being caught in local waters.

[baynovice]

Yes, my unidentiified fish resembled the photo that John R posted. Thank you all for the support and comradery.

Must've been fun to catch. I've heard that redfish are very strong for their size and a blast to catch.

[J.A. Veil]

On my last three trips fishing in the Severn, including this morning, I have caught all three species of the Severn Slam - perch, pickerel, and striper (the stripers caught this week were inadvertent catches while casting for perch -- I am not again trolling until Sept 1). However, I have had to work a lot harder to catch perch than I did two weeks ago or for most of July. During those earlier times, perch were all over the place in near-shore shaded areas. On these recent trips, I am throwing the same lures to the same spots (including some of my go-to locations) and getting far fewer bites.

Typically perch begin to leave the shallows in early October to spend the cooler months in deeper water. I don't think they have begun their migration yet. I suspect that the large amount of rain we have had during the past two weeks has somehow changed the perch's distribution or interest in feeding. I am still catching perch, but have to work harder to catch fewer of them.

There were several comments about small redfish made above. Here are some thoughts on those. The unidentified silvery fish caught by Unkle Rob may have been a small red. The easiest distinguishing feature is a sizeable black spot near the tail. In the absence of a spot, you may have caught a croaker (I have found them in the Severn this summer over oyster bottom). For any angler who is not familiar with the local species, take photos for later verification.

Someone else said they had heard that reds fight harder than stripers. While that definitely is true for larger fish, I have not noticed much difference when the reds are small. For example, over the past month, I caught two 12" reds in the Severn. I caught each of them immediately after catching perch from the same area. I could tell a difference in how the red pulled compared to the perch, but it was not really harder than a 10" perch. The perch tend to dart around as I am winding them in with frequent head shakes, whereas the reds pulled back more in a straight line (same pull, but different feel). I have caught fewer than 50 redfish in my fishing years. Based on that admittedly small sample size, I find that stripers and reds fight about the same up until about 16". As they get larger, the reds provide more pull. The differential increases as the fish get larger.

[Mark]

I’m no redfish expert. I’ve never caught a so-called “Bull”. My experience has been with “Puppies”. I’ve caught only one in Chesapeake waters and that was under 20 inches. I’ve caught one in FL at 20 inches. I’ve caught another 30 of various sizes in TX. My largest were those in TX. On one TX trip I caught 14 on the fly. Most were between 22 and 26 inches.

I've caught many more stripers of course, but I've never caught one over 30 inches. I have caught a lot between 22 and 26 inches. When I compare redfish to stripers in the mid 20-inch range, reds pull harder and longer. That’s the difference in a nutshell.

I characterize stripers of that size as fish with instant anger issues. They vigorously headshake and go on a short speedy run after they’re hooked. But they’re mad for only a bit. They’ll pull drag but not for long in comparison to reds. Then it’s as if they become resigned to their fate and succumb to your retrieve with a little bit of headshaking and moderate resistance on the way in.

Reds will give you a headshake too at the moment of hooking. But I don’t think it’s as animated as stripers. What reds do best is take flight. They flee the area where they were hooked. If deeper water is nearby that’s where they head. If you catch them near shore, they will instantly swim away from it. They will not follow the contours of the shoreline. If you’re surrounded by shallow water, they may circle your boat if it’s anchored pulling hard on the entire circuit. If you’re in a kayak that’s not anchored, they will pull you through the water. Their forte is strength and endurance. They will engage your drag longer than a striper – again given that both fish are 24 to 26 inches. If you have them on a fly reel watch out for the handle because it will be spinning fast if your drag is not cinched tight. You may even see them take all of your fly line (roughly 90 feet) and some of your backing before they’ll slow down. Stripers of the same size rarely run that far.

Both fish species in the mid 20-inch range are fun on light tackle or the fly. I think stripers hit lures/flies harder and perhaps give the angler a quicker rush of adrenalin for the relatively short tussle that’s in store. But a red will give a better account of itself for the duration. Most certainly it will take you longer to meet your redfish catch face to face than a striper of the same size.

[ronaultmtd]

I have caught lots of “bull” reds...big fifty-sixty pound fish...They are drag burners...not like a “Screamer” Like king mackerel or a false albacore, but long, steady sustained runs..and nothing is going to stop that first run...let them go, they will eventually run out of steam after fifty or so yards...they usually have at least three good, long runs in them...and then it is the slugfest at the boat or pier.Want to catch bulls, go to Nags Head in October or Cape Hatteras on November 5...always been the “D” day for redfish blitz...Pound for pound they will pull the scales off of a striper...no contest, but both are great sport fish for inshore anglers...every species is different, fights differently...the inshore champion in my book are jacks...a fifty pound Amberjack will kick your butt...a 35# Jack caravelle will do the same! Big tarpon (disclaimer- never landed a full-grown adult) are as well...Cobia are individuals...no two seem to fight the same...one will put up a jack type fight, while the next likes to fight at the boat...weird fish...Up here we never see some of these fish so our horizon is somewhat limited to our native species and the king of our waters have long been the mighty striped bass...unfortunately it has been abused, overfished, polluted waters, and is in serious trouble. Into every vacuum something fills the role...our area has seen an influx of non- native species, most notably the “Franken fish” Northern Snakehead, but a much bigger, more prevalent fish, the blue catfish is taking over the waters in unprecedented numbers. Blue catfish get huge...over one hundred pounds, and they can be a real handful unless you are equipped for these bigger fish...slow days chasing our “target” fish Is an opportunity to fish for what is there...

[UnkleRob2020]

Rugbyfish,

Best wishes apprecatied. Hoping for a speedy recovery. No pics. I am sorta minimalist (not cuz im proving something but because i prefer less distractions. I’ve been catching a fair number of small spot and croaker in the Severn lately also, and of course white perch too....this didn't stand out. Your pick shows a thicker, scalier fish than what I recall....i mostly remember thinking maybe it was difference between male n female perch. Also, didnt know i had covid yet so perceptions may not be gospel :----)

[UnkleRob2020]

j rentch. I cannot be sure that fish looks whiter, larger scales and different dorsal fins than what i was catching. Definitely wasn't croaker or spot unless there are croakers that don't have raised dorsal fins and no vocal cords. Definitely wasnt spot unless someone used a spot remover to fool me.

Thanks everyone for keeping my mind on fishing while my body is almost 1 month Covid positive and not improving.

UnkleRob2020 - hoping theres another trip in my 2020 but ok if thats not Gods will

[UnkleRob2020]

John Veil's scenario seems to be the most likely after the fact and not having pics or a sketch artist or Jeremy Wade

thanks so much