Tweet
Yesterday I launched very early into the Little Choptank River. John Rentch had arrived ahead of me and was already fishing. The height differential from the 2:45 am high to the 10:27 am low was predicted to be 1.5 ft (quite good).
madison - july 7 tides.jpg
Winds were forecast for 5-6 mph from the SW (a direction that would be blocked by the land mass) allowing for easy trolling close to the shoreline. I had great expectations for strong moving tidal current past several points. But at 6:00 am, the actual water level was already quite low and dropping.
I trolled three lines, and was anticipating a bunch of hits as I paddled out to the main river from the sheltered bay where I launched. I was surprised when nothing bit. After 45 minutes of trolling past points that usually produce, I had a rod go down without much shaking. As I wound it in, the fish woke up and became active. I was delighted to find a 20" speck to bring home for dinner. A few minutes later I caught a 21" striper nearby.
The predicted wind direction was inaccurate. Instead of SW, the wind came from the NW, which allowed waves to build to about 1.5 ft. It was not much fun trying to paddle through waves of this size. After a few passes there, I crossed to the far side of the river and worked past another point. On the first pass, I caught a 22" striper in water less than 3' deep. A moment later, a second speck hit the other line. I was optimistic that I had found a productive spot. But it was not to be. I explored more shallow areas around there as the sun and temperature rose to near 95 deg. I soon realized that I was unlikely to find many more fish. I turned and made the long paddle back to the launch. I trolled for much of the way, but had no more hits.
My final count for the 4-hour trip was 6 stripers, 2 specks, and 1 oyster toadfish that bit a 3" paddletail drifting along the bottom as I untangled two other lines. The area where I fished was productive a few weeks ago and also last October. I think the water is now too warm to support a good bite there until late summer. The trout was quite tasty, and the fresh eastern shore corn on the cob from a farm stand was delicious.
eastern shore dinner.jpg
On the negative side of the ledger, I lost a St Croix Premier spinning rod with Stradic reel overboard near the start of the trip. That combo has caught a lot of fish for me -- I guess it earned its retirement.
madison - july 7 tides.jpg
Winds were forecast for 5-6 mph from the SW (a direction that would be blocked by the land mass) allowing for easy trolling close to the shoreline. I had great expectations for strong moving tidal current past several points. But at 6:00 am, the actual water level was already quite low and dropping.
I trolled three lines, and was anticipating a bunch of hits as I paddled out to the main river from the sheltered bay where I launched. I was surprised when nothing bit. After 45 minutes of trolling past points that usually produce, I had a rod go down without much shaking. As I wound it in, the fish woke up and became active. I was delighted to find a 20" speck to bring home for dinner. A few minutes later I caught a 21" striper nearby.
The predicted wind direction was inaccurate. Instead of SW, the wind came from the NW, which allowed waves to build to about 1.5 ft. It was not much fun trying to paddle through waves of this size. After a few passes there, I crossed to the far side of the river and worked past another point. On the first pass, I caught a 22" striper in water less than 3' deep. A moment later, a second speck hit the other line. I was optimistic that I had found a productive spot. But it was not to be. I explored more shallow areas around there as the sun and temperature rose to near 95 deg. I soon realized that I was unlikely to find many more fish. I turned and made the long paddle back to the launch. I trolled for much of the way, but had no more hits.
My final count for the 4-hour trip was 6 stripers, 2 specks, and 1 oyster toadfish that bit a 3" paddletail drifting along the bottom as I untangled two other lines. The area where I fished was productive a few weeks ago and also last October. I think the water is now too warm to support a good bite there until late summer. The trout was quite tasty, and the fresh eastern shore corn on the cob from a farm stand was delicious.
eastern shore dinner.jpg
On the negative side of the ledger, I lost a St Croix Premier spinning rod with Stradic reel overboard near the start of the trip. That combo has caught a lot of fish for me -- I guess it earned its retirement.
Comment