Occoquan Crappie

[Snakehead Hunter]

Since SH action is pretty much over and I'm too lazy to drive long distance. So, I hit Occoquan looking for crappie. I fish for couple hours with a friend and another kayaker. We each caught couple crappie. They are not here in huge number yet, but my crappie was a nice slab. It's bigger than my hand so I'm pretty happy. I'll be back again in couple weeks

[d16daily]

Nice job on the crappie, I know they don't fight like a SH but at least you had fun/caught something. There are some SH in the Occoquan though...

[FishAholic929]

I love Occoquan Crappie fishing in Dec/Jan, nothing but slabs, limits in a couple hours......good fish fry that night!

[Runnin]

Where do the SH go in winter?

[lordofthemanor]

I've been told that they bury into the mud on the bottom.

[Mark]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv...es/130430.html

Those slimy devils are indeed preparing for a long slumber.

[Memory Maker]

Do you need a VA lic to fish the occoquan or will a Md Lic do ......... is it considered fresh or salt

[lordofthemanor]

You need a VA freshwater license in the reservoir or in the upper part of the river above the I-95 bridge. Below the bridge, you need a VA saltwater license or a MD saltwater license.

[Memory Maker]

do you catch crappies below the bridge

[M_Duong60]

I know people have luck underneath the I-95 but so far I have only caught fish around the Marina and boat docks. ComeOnFish has a few videos of him crappie fishing these areas and there are a few threads out there regarding crappie fishing in general.

[Snakehead Hunter]

I caught mine under 95 bridge. They should be around the boat dock now too. Sorry for the late reply, I haven't been on for a while

do you catch crappies below the bridge

[Moschedmi]

Jeff S., (the administrator of virginia kayak angler, Facebook site), and I went crappie fishing this past Friday. We caught 10 keeper and a bunch of smaller ones. The larger were approximately 2 lbs. Conditions on the River were tough. We caught most between boats and under the docks. Jigging straight down most we're caught between 10'-11' deep. Toward the end do the day security for the docks came out tried to run us off. We were told that you can fish the docks from the outside in but you can not physically go underneath. The picture shows the fruits of our labor. Most of which were caught by Jeff on a one inch gulp minnow . I like to refer to crappie by what the are called in Louisiana Sac-A-Lait sound much more appetizing. image.jpg

[Moschedmi]

I just did some research on the Va Marine resource commission web site. They provided the following info regarding salt vs fresh water licenses on tributaries of the Potomac:

"Persons fishing upstream of the designated lines on the following waters must have a valid freshwater fishing license while those fishing below the lines must have a valid saltwater fishing license:

…..Potomac River: Route 301 Bridge (freshwater license required in tributaries above Rt. 301; PRFC, VA or MD saltwater license good in mainstem up to DC border)"

So if fishing the Occoquan all you need is a fresh water lic.