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I watched the wind and rain forecasts all day yesterday and thought I could get out for a short window this morning. I launched at 7:30 this morning into a sheltered area on the Severn. I need not have worried as there was virtually no wind through 10:00 when I finished. Low tide was predicted for 8:49 am, but with the impending storm, that was totally irrelevant. At 7:30, the water level was already higher than a typical high tide and was coming in steadily. With water piled up along edges, I caught perch in areas where they are not normally found and ended up with 30 of them in 2.5 hours.
Just before returning to the launch, I ventured a bit farther away and made a few casts to rocks that are normally exposed (today they were submerged). I caught a perch on one cast, then had a tremendous bite on my 6' light power rod with a small spinner. The fish acted like a powerful redfish as it tore from right to left for 100 ft in just a few seconds and began pulling my kayak. I recall similar experiences last fall as the stripers were fattening up in advance of the oncoming winter. To get that same "sleigh-ride" experience on Sept 1 was an unexpected bonus. After a fight of several minutes during which I could not tell what type of fish I had on the line, I landed the fish -- a 21" striper. It seems like stripers in that size range pull harder in the fall than in the summer.
I don't know what type of lasting impact today's storms will have on localized or regional fishing. Certainly salinity will be lowered, and the water clarity will be compromised. Further, it is likely that various grasses, leaves, Phragmites stalks, and other debris will be moved onto the water surface. I hope that conditions soon return to a level that allows good fishing as we move into the fall.
Just before returning to the launch, I ventured a bit farther away and made a few casts to rocks that are normally exposed (today they were submerged). I caught a perch on one cast, then had a tremendous bite on my 6' light power rod with a small spinner. The fish acted like a powerful redfish as it tore from right to left for 100 ft in just a few seconds and began pulling my kayak. I recall similar experiences last fall as the stripers were fattening up in advance of the oncoming winter. To get that same "sleigh-ride" experience on Sept 1 was an unexpected bonus. After a fight of several minutes during which I could not tell what type of fish I had on the line, I landed the fish -- a 21" striper. It seems like stripers in that size range pull harder in the fall than in the summer.
I don't know what type of lasting impact today's storms will have on localized or regional fishing. Certainly salinity will be lowered, and the water clarity will be compromised. Further, it is likely that various grasses, leaves, Phragmites stalks, and other debris will be moved onto the water surface. I hope that conditions soon return to a level that allows good fishing as we move into the fall.
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