Freshwater Fishing Report, August 30 Update:
Fall is knocking on our doorstep which has many anglers excited to finally get relief from the summer heat. The crew from Mossy Creek Fly Fishing let us know that the mountain trout fishing is suffering again thanks to low water in many areas. The sliver of good news is that temperatures have remained cool for the most part in these zones. Anglers targeting brook trout should note that ants, small beetles, and little yellow stones will be the best flies along with size 14 to 16 attractors. Mossy Creek also mentioned that the spring creeks are flowing strong and fishing well with tricos being thick on most mornings. They recommend using cricket, ant, damselfly, and beetle patterns along with jig streamers, and crayfish patterns.
As the weather has started to warm back up, so has the bass bite in the major rivers. Topwater is still a solid choice for bass, but some days the sub-surface bite has produced more action and a better class of fish. If we get some more weather with fall like temperatures, musky fishing will be back on the table. Make sure to keep an eye on the weather and monitor any recent rainfall before heading out for your next trip as conditions can be variable across different creeks and rivers.
After a bump in flows from recent rains, water levels in the major rivers like the Susquehanna, Potomac, Patuxent, and Rappahannock have receded. The upper Potomac is running particularly low and offering excellent wade fishing opportunities for smallmouth bass. There are a lot of shallow grass beds that the smallmouth will be hanging on the edges of. Deeper runs and holes below riffles are also good places to cast a lure. Being stealthy is important because these fish can be very weary of movement. Topwater poppers are an excellent choice to throw in the early mornings and on overcast days. Small crankbaits and tube jigs are great sub-surface options to throw if fish aren’t willing to hit topwater. In ponds, lakes, and reservoirs across the region, largemouth bass are still exhibiting a summer pattern of feeding in low light hours and loafing near submerged structure for most of the day. As temperatures begin to cool of as fall approaches, they will feed more actively throughout the day. Top lures right now are still soft plastic creature baits, buzzbaits, topwater frogs, and spinnerbaits. Bass will start wanting to build up their body reserves soon, so look for them to be a reliable freshwater target over the next few months.
Editor’s note: missing from this week’s reports are the invaluable contributions of FishTalk team member Eric Packard. He took a bad fall on a boat this week and is recovering but will be landlocked for the next week or two; our thoughts are with you Eric—we’re all pulling for a quick recovery!
Freshwater Fishing Report, August 22 Update:
Contributor Eric Packard spent some time at a local lake last weekend and says the bass were biting strong even in the rain. Ned rigs and wacky worms were doing the trick. Bass fishing across the region has been good this week and there has been some very good action at Deep Creek Lake since the summer vacation season is coming to an end. There are a lot less boaters on the water which is making fishing much more pleasant. Largemouth and smallmouth bass can be caught around the floating docks and in the various coves off the lake. Fish will likely be hanging around fallen wood and rocky bottom. Crankbaits, spinnerbaits, and soft plastics are all great options to throw. This pattern will be similar in the other freshwater reservoirs across the state.
Several good reports came in from upper Bay tributaries indicating successful outings for snakehead with swimbaits doing the trick. The cooler weather likely has the snakes more active and feeding and anglers should look to take advantage of the hot bite during great fishing conditions. Upper bay hotspots include the Bush River, Gunpowder River, and the Susquehanna Flats. Topwater baits are still at the top for lure presentations right now and you may still be able to sight fish fry balls, though those are becoming less numerous. Weedless soft plastics are another great option to throw in thick cover. Tidal areas where low tide has brought the water out of the vegetation present good opportunities to throw chatterbaits or inline spinners along channel edges. Live minnows are the best live bait you can use and floating them under a bobber is an excellent way to catch the newly named ‘Chesapeake channa”.
We checked in with Mossy Creek Fly Fishing to see how the trout fishing has been since the major cooldown. Temperatures in the mountains dipped into the 40s this week which is almost unheard of for August. Trout fishing reports have been strong in the mountains and Spring Creeks. They say ants, beetles, little yellow stones, and attractor patterns are working very well for brook trout. Terrestrial insects are also abundant and are all over the spring creeks. Get out now to enjoy the good water levels, because they likely wont last long.
Freshwater Fishing Report, August 15 Update:
It has been much cooler across the region over the past few weeks with daytime highs in the low to mid 80s and the cooler weather has been welcomed by just about everyone after having to deal with near-record heat through much of June and July. It is much more comfortable to get out on the water and fish should be responding in a positive way. Contributor Eric Packard found that to be the case when he fished Mallows Bay this week and found bass, crappie, yellow perch, and bluegill were all in a feeding mood. Red/orange tubes on a Mule jig got the fish biting. However, the snakehead played tought to get. Two reader who went searching for snakes in the Chick also encountered a tough bite, finding just two fish willing to eat their topwater frogs.
Recent rains have replenished many of our freshwater rivers, lakes, and ponds. Smallmouth anglers are dealing with high and muddy water in most cases, but flows are receding and fishing should get back on schedule. The murky water may hang around a bit longer in some waterways and anglers encountering them should use dark natural colors while fishing with soft plastics. Topwater fishing is also very popular this time of year for both smallmouth and largemouth bass. Any form of structure or current break could be holding fish, so seek out these areas on your excursions.
The big news from the western trout areas is the rain that fell from the remnants of Hurricane Debbie that moved through our region last week. Much of the Virginia, West Virginia, and western Maryland region saw anywhere from three to six inches of rain with some locally heavier amounts. Mossy Creek Fly Fishing gave us the latest report after the wet weather and said that reports from early in the week were very good with water temperatures around 60 degrees in the afternoons in many areas, which led to a lot of brook trout being caught on dry flies. Anglers fishing on Mossy Creek and Beaver Creek caught good numbers of fish on streamers in the high and murky water. The larger warm water rivers ran high most of the week but have since crested and are falling. Water is still muddied up in most places, but visibility should be steadily improving. Anglers looking to bass fish on the larger rivers should take advantage of the cooler weather now as it is uncharacteristic for August to be so mild. We can hope that the dog days of summer are behind us but were not totally convinced.
Freshwater Fishing Report, August 9 Update:
We finally got the soaking rains we desperately needed this week which helped replenish many of our waters. Contributor Eric Packard reports that a midweek trip to St. Mary’s Lake proved the bass are still biting despite the heat of summer, with early morning proving the best bet. Another reader reported similar results while fishing a private lake in southern Maryland. Bass were eager to hit soft plastics and once the sun got down, topwater frogs along the banks were getting hit. Once the wind and rain blow through, the extended forecast shows much cooler temperatures compared to what we have been dealing with for most of summer. This should lead to more active fish in our freshwater locations. Panfish are still a great summertime target, and they can be found in just about any lake or pond throughout the region. Bluegill, redbreast sunfish, and pumpkinseed are the most common species and can usually be enticed by small jigs or worms under a bobber.
Trout anglers have been praying for rain all summer and the remnants of Hurricane Debbie have come to the rescue, although four to six inches of rain over a two-day span might not be what some people had in mind. The heavy rains have led to flooding and many of the main rivers will be high and muddy through the weekend. The god news is that most of the western zones in the Shenandoah Valley got the rain they were looking for. The water should flush out areas clogged up with weeds or algae and replenish flows in the feeder creeks and streams. Things will be flooded out for a few days post-storm, but once the waters recede bass and trout fishing should be good for the following few weeks.
Anglers fishing in the D.C. area have reported a slower bite on most days, but that the night bite has been great. Largemouth bass have been very active in the waters that run through the city and any area with lights near the water has attracted both bait and gamefish. One angler says that he has caught largemouth up to five pounds and schoolie striped bass up to 22 inches on trips this week, but that daytime fishing is way less productive. The exception to this has been anglers chasing after carp. These fish have been much more willing to bite at locations along the Anacostia River and Washington Channel on the Potomac. One angler caught his personal best mirror carp this week which weighed in a 17.5 pounds. Common carp can be found all throughout D.C. and the big ones can get well over 30 pounds. The most common bait is dough balls or pack-bait which is usually a combination of corn flour, corn meal, Jello, vanilla extract, flour, or sugar. Small hooks are required because the carp can be picky at times and won’t bite if a large hook is exposed. If you do hookup, be ready for a hard fight.
Freshwater Fishing Report, August 2 Update:
Afternoon thunderstorms have become common in recent weeks, but they still haven’t done much to help with the drought this summer. Downpours have briefly bumped water levels in the major rivers, but all are still running very low right now and on the upper Potomac, James, Rappahannock, and Susquehanna anglers can enjoy some wade fishing for smallmouth bass. Topwater spooks, Whopper Ploppers, and poppers are very effective at getting topwater blowups during low light hours. On overcast or rainy days, this bite can extend well into the day. The most common sub surface lures are natural colored tube jigs, crankbaits, and spinnerbaits. A kayak angler fishing the Monocacy this week reported catching 31 smallmouths up to two and a half pounds. Swimbaits did most of the catching. FishTalk intern Adam Greenberg reports that despite being low the Potomac was pretty dirty this week, and smallmouth fishing was tough. Subsurface lures went untouched, but throwing a Whopper Plopper did result in several blow-ups.
Mossy Creek Fly Fishing emphasized the need for rain this week as the infrequent afternoon thunderstorms have not done much to help with flows in the western trout areas. They report that water levels are still very low and that early mornings on the spring creeks will be the best bet for trout anglers. Morning trico hatches are best and overcast days have been productive with terrestrial patterns. Until there is a big change in the weather, they encourage anglers to focus on bass, carp, and gar fishing in the major freshwater rivers. Gar are fairly easy to catch and are usually willing to hit a piece of cut bait under a bobber. On the Potomac River in DC, gar are abundant around the many marinas and docks along the river. If you don’t want to baitfish for them, a swimbait or crankbait can get them biting. An angler fishing on the Washington Channel in DC this week landed a nine-and-a-half-pound gar which was his personal best.