Rappahannoc in Fredericksburg 6/9

[Birddog]

Spent a few hours on the beautiful Rappahannoc with 06reggie Monday afternoon. We caught more small bream and small mouth than we could count. We also caught a redeye and a LMB also small and had great time. We did wind up with a few surprises as the area we were fishing has heavy fishing pressure and loads of tubers.

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I did choose to land the gar standing on the shore as the snakehead in my yak last Thursday was enough teeth inside the yak for a weeks time.

[Snakehead Hunter]

wow cool. I saw many gars while fishing for SH but they never bite my lures

[Birddog]

wow cool. I saw many gars while fishing for SH but they never bite my lures

I have hooked a few but that is the first one I actually landed. It is an awesome looking fish up close and what a fight.

[jsnyd86]

Awesome! Rappahannoc has been on my list for a while. Where are some decent spots to float?

[Berto]

Thats Awesome! Nice looking Fish! Good Job!

[Cowpokey]

Nice work! I've seen a lot of gar in my life, never caught one. What did you get it on?

[MrT]

great ,lots of gar at leesylvania park too, but never catch one.

[Birddog]

Awesome! Rappahannoc has been on my list for a while. Where are some decent spots to float?

There are several places close to Fredericksburg Motts Run, City Dock Park there is a boat ramp just below Fburg by the waste treatment plant all easy access. I like to put in off Fall Hill Avenue. I have not gone from 1 ramp down to the next in many years, I just put in and paddle up river and float back down.

[Birddog]

Nice work! I've seen a lot of gar in my life, never caught one. What did you get it on?

I caught it on a crawfish crankbait, my buddy 06reggie caught one last week at Leesylvania with a small 1/8oz roostail.

I have tried for years to catch one but this time was just by chance I didn't know he was there.

[Birddog]

Thats Awesome! Nice looking Fish! Good Job!

Berto, I haven't gotten my O's swag yet so I tried the Redskins shirt. It worked out pretty good I think.

[Cowpokey]

Cool. My dad caught one on a jig and minnow when I was a kid, he was surprised when he got it too.

[vayakfish]

Hey Birddog,

You catch that Snakehead in the Rap? I had heard that they were starting the move in the lower parts of the Rap.

The Rap is my home water. I enjoy the stretch between Kelly's Ford and the Confluence of the Rap and Rapidan. Some of the best biomass of smallies can be found on that stretch, especially the area between Richardsville and the Confluence, and the Snake Castle stretch will get your blood pumping with great smallie action and the rock gardens are beautiful! You got to hunt them on the Rap but the reward can be citation size smallies over five pounds and the key is fishing them deep and hitting every bit of pocket water. Several other areas that produce big smallies is the main channel directly across the parking lot at Mott's Run and further downstream on the "Big Bend". It's amazing the big smallies you can catch there even after a hundred canoeists have splashed their way through that water.

VAYakFish

[Birddog]

The snakehead was on Potomac below Leesylvania.

I used to fish the Rappadan north of Germana down to Ely's ford quite often. But I really haven't fished much on ether for many years.

This summer if you ever get out during the week i'd like to hook up with you and get reaquainted with that part of the river again and I'm sad to say I have never taken my 16year old son there.
PM me if you are interested.

[vayakfish]

Unfortunately, the put-in at Germanna was closed a number of years ago so access is increasingly more difficult on the Rapidan. You can still put in at Ely's Ford and frankly that stretch between Ely's and the Confluence is the best section for big smallies! In fact, there's one "hole" about a half mile upstream from the confluence on the Rapidan where I consistently see 20 plus inch smallies swimming in water thats about 8-10 feet deep.

I yak fish with a group of congenial yak anglers here in Central VA. You are more than welcome to join us so whenever we hit the Rap again I'll shoot you a PM.

[Birddog]

Unfortunately, the put-in at Germanna was closed a number of years ago so access is increasingly more difficult on the Rapidan. You can still put in at Ely's Ford and frankly that stretch between Ely's and the Confluence is the best section for big smallies! In fact, there's one "hole" about a half mile upstream from the confluence on the Rapidan where I consistently see 20 plus inch smallies swimming in water thats about 8-10 feet deep.

I yak fish with a group of congenial yak anglers here in Central VA. You are more than welcome to join us so whenever we hit the Rap again I'll shoot you a PM.

Thanks, I look forward to it.