Lake Roland, its growing on me.

[Cliff]

After an unlucky morning at Mariner Point Park, I decided to head out to Lake Roland again and try to catch some small bass. I fished there last week with a buddy in the yak and had some success. We paddled up the creeks and explored quite a bit of the lake. The lake itself has a very muddy bottom and the water is rather cloudy. However, I found an area of the lake that has a nice sandy/rocky bottom and offers visibility to about 6 feet. I worked this area last week with my friend and we caught seven fish altogether. He beat me by one... Anyways, I went back to this area today and worked it slower. I threw a Mepps Aglia #1 all day and caught 13 small bass in about 3 hours of fishing. This might not seem that great but the area was a lot of fun. 15 foot wide streams with deep pools on one side or the other. Felt more like fly fishing for trout... In fact, I got out and waded at one point to work a tree over. I just leashed the PA to my wader belt and started fishing. Towards the end of the day, I found a pool that was about 20 feet wide and 8 feet deep. I worked it for about 30 mins and caught my last five 8-10 inch bass there. As I was leaving, I finally saw some bigger bass on the bottom of that pool. They were schooled up with the fish I had been catching but they were twice the size. I did not think there were bigger bass in Lake Roland but I was wrong. They never even turned at my lure and I finally gave up and headed in. I fished for about 14 hours over two days at Mariner point and only caught one fish. Sometimes the best waters are in our own backyard. Lake Roland was exactly what I needed.

Thanks for reading,
Cliff

[HJS]

Way to go. There's no reason why there aren't bigger bass in there. The bass you caught seemed to be in good shape and were not skinny. So I'm guess there is enough feed in there to keep them growing.

[Yak Fish]

Way to go. There's no reason why there aren't bigger bass in there. The bass you caught seemed to be in good shape and were not skinny. So I'm guess there is enough feed in there to keep them growing.

Time to throw some large spinner baits! Sounds like a nice lake.

[Shady]

That first one has a nice looking stripe on it. Actually I think there is a reason there isnt bigger bass in Lake Roland. I heard that only a few years ago the lake was basically drained because they had to repair the dam and none of the fish were moved....

[Memory Maker]

......... just remember ........ big bait big fish ........ especially in a lake that is WAY over populated .......... the big bass can eat when and where they want ........

[bignose]

I grew up in the Mount Washington area of Baltimore, and used to fish lake Roland a good bit.
We caught lots of carp on corn in the shallows at the head of the lake, and bass and crappies in the shorelines.
Some of the lake has very steep banks and drop offs, but there are also lots of dead falls that provide ample cover and structure. I have seen some very good sized bass in there, albeit 30+ years ago. Access was a problem both from shore and from the water for many years. There is no reason to suspect that there is still not a decent population of fish in there.
We used minnows and worms back then, but I suspect that soft plastics, spinner baits and crank baits would work just fine. The last time I fished there, maybe, 5-7 years ago, I did O.K. with a texas rigged plastic worm.

[Cliff]

true

That first one has a nice looking stripe on it. Actually I think there is a reason there isnt bigger bass in Lake Roland. I heard that only a few years ago the lake was basically drained because they had to repair the dam and none of the fish were moved....

Very true. I read about it on another online forum and confirmed it myself with the local park ranger. He said back in 2008 much of it was completely drained except for a small creek running through the low point of the lake. Kinda sucks, but I have hope for the bigger fish. On another note, the park area is very nice and there is also a nice dog park. There is actually a swimming area for dogs only haha. It would be a nice place to take the family on the weekend to grill out and fish.

[HJS]

That first one has a nice looking stripe on it. Actually I think there is a reason there isnt bigger bass in Lake Roland. I heard that only a few years ago the lake was basically drained because they had to repair the dam and none of the fish were moved....

Oh yeah, I forgot about the draining thing. I'm guessing that State DNR-Fisheries probably restocked the lake with small fingerlings after it refilled. Based on how the warmwater hatcheries work I'm also sure the fingerlings would not have been stocked until the spring of 2009 at the earliest, maybe 2010. And the size of the bass you caught would be about right for 3-4 year old fish. Lets hope that most of the carp got flushed out of the lake. They can churn up a mud-bottom lake pretty bad.

If indeed the State was involved in restocking then crappies may not have been restocked. I don't think the State grows any crappies at their hatcheries. I'll see what I can find out.

[edwonbass]

I am going to check this lake out soon. I'm trying to figure out where to go to launch. Looking at it on a map there seems to be a couple of roads leading there but im not sure what road to drive down to get close.

[Cliff]

I am going to check this lake out soon. I'm trying to figure out where to go to launch. Looking at it on a map there seems to be a couple of roads leading there but im not sure what road to drive down to get close.

Take lakeside Dr. off of Falls Rd. by the lite rail. The turn is just after or before a bridge depending on which direction you are coming form. Turn in and look for the Robert E. Lee Park sign on your right. It is blue. Turn right into the entrance and take the road all the way down. There is not a very distinct launch point but if I can get my Pro Angler in and out of this lake, it shouldn't be a problem. If looking down from the parking lot, I launch between the tree on the left and the concrete dock thing sticking out. Just look for the sandy area more towards the tree and you should be fine.

Have fun!
Cliff

[Cliff]

Anyone interested in going tomorrow? It is only 10 min. from me.

[edwonbass]

Take lakeside Dr. off of Falls Rd. by the lite rail. The turn is just after or before a bridge depending on which direction you are coming form. Turn in and look for the Robert E. Lee Park sign on your right. It is blue. Turn right into the entrance and take the road all the way down. There is not a very distinct launch point but if I can get my Pro Angler in and out of this lake, it shouldn't be a problem. If looking down from the parking lot, I launch between the tree on the left and the concrete dock thing sticking out. Just look for the sandy area more towards the tree and you should be fine.

Have fun!
Cliff

Thanks! I appreciate you taking the time to write that out. I will get over there soon. Probably can't make it tomorrow but maybe sometime over the weekend.

[mi327]

Thanks! I appreciate you taking the time to write that out. I will get over there soon. Probably can't make it tomorrow but maybe sometime over the weekend.

Ditto the directions were perfect went out this morning for a few hours. I launched right on the left side of the concrete dock, made getting in and out of the yak easy. The small bass were hitting, though I missed a few due to the larger hook in the worm. I even had a Bass almost the same length as the rubber worm slam it right by the boat. I even tried a larger spinner bait but didn't get any strikes.

Oddly enough I briefly talked to the one of the Park Rangers, and mentioned I was going fishing and she didn't bother asking to see a license (yes I have one). From the sound of other people on here they seem to check them frequently.

[tech11165]

Just found this old thread. Is fishing here any good. It's close to me so I would like to try it versus going to Columbia and hitting those lakes.
Thanks