Freshwater Fishing Report, March 25 Update:
Multiple readers sent in trout pics this week, which no wonder considering how many have been planted in the region’s waterways in the past few weeks. Reports indicate that Berkley Trout Dough, spinners, and float-n-fly rigs have all been productive offerings. For whatever reason, maybe the rain that recently passed through, most of the anglers reporting success were fishing ponds as opposed to rivers. Remember that there are certain area closures still in effect, so you’ll want to check the state webpages closely for both recent stockings and to see what waters are fair game. See them at:
On the reservoir front, Contributor Eric Packard hit St. Mary’s Lake a couple of times in the past week with varying levels of success. Bass were hitting wacky worms and spinners accounted for both bass and crappie, but he reports that a four-inch paddletail swimbait took the bulk of the strikes. He also paid a visit to Tridelphia Reservoir where a northern pike joined in the multi-species fun, and he notes that the same paddletail was the best bait there, as well. The pike was near shoreline brush but he says that the bass were over points in the 15-foot depth range feeding on small shad. (Note: Packard reminded us that Tridelphia will be closed to boat traffic from mid-May, exact dates not yet specified, through October, for a sediment removal project. Visit the WSSC to learn more). We also heard from a reader who fished Lake Anna this week and posted a similar report, noting that the bass were fairly deep there as well while chasing after schools of bait. Fishing spoons and jigging plastics did the trick.
Up the tributaries throughout the range yellow perch seem to be in the late stages of their run or have completed spawning, while areas that hold white perch runs are seeing good action on shad darts fished with grass shrimp. Multiple reader reports also came in of catfish in similar zones, from just below fall lines into tidal areas. Speaking of fishing near the fall lines: shad have been confirmed in the rivers from the Potomac south. Contributor Eric Packard and two readers said they caught up to 20-ish fish casting spoon and dart rigs, with the Potomac just north of Fletcher’s noted as producing mostly hickory shad bites but also a handful of American shad. If you haven’t yet seen our how-to feature and video and want to try this fishery check out Spring Shad Fishing for all the info you need to be successful. We also have a new video up on the FishTalk YouTube channel on How to Tie a Tandem Rig for shad.
Snakehead hunters are doing pretty darn well during afternoon hours when we get a full day of sun. Several readers reported good afternoon bites on subsurface baits (paddletails and swimbaits; one did report a solid topwater bite on frogs one day as well) in the shallows. One to six fish was the range and many of the fish reported were in the five-plus-pound range. All the reports we received were from the Eastern Shore except one (and that was a single fish) possibly because the large stretches of shallow water there can warm up very rapidly.
Freshwater Fishing Report, March 18 Update:
Freshwater fishing has been good to fine for anglers when they can get out and do it, but unfortunately, this week's weather kept many anglers tied to land or away from the water, limiting the scope of our reports. While we’ve slowed down, the trout stocking efforts surely haven’t. In fact, Contributor Eric Packard stopped off at some recently stocked ponds this week and caught a few quickies, noting that both casting flies and using spinning gear did the trick. He said other anglers were catching, too. Remember that some areas in some states remain closed at the moment, so checking the stocking schedules and local regs is in order. Here are the links:
Packard also noted an up-and-down reservoir bite, finding that one day at St. Mary’s produced a skunk, but a couple days later bass and crappie were hitting with abandon. Bass also seem to be on and off in Virginia’s lakes and ponds, as several participants in the VB Hawg Fight this week came back to the dock empty handed. So, like the perch run this year, things have been a bit hit or miss lately. With spring arriving and (hopefully!!) more stable weather on the way, we should see the bites become a little more reliable in the coming weeks.
What about the snakeheads? Um, yeah, what about ‘em? Thanks to the unreliable weather we’ve had recently (we think) the word of an epic spring breakout did not come this week. With the forecast for warmth and some sun coming, however, the snakes should turn on strong any day now.
Freshwater Fishing Report, March 11 Update:
Reports of oddball snakeheads continue to trickle in throughout the region as they wake up here and there on warm, sunny afternoons. Though we haven’t heard any reports of multiple fish days and certainly no hot bites as of yet, reports of onsies and twosies on either minnow or chatterbaits have been coming in with some regularity at this point.
The Maryland DNR continued trout stocking this week, adding 8,750 total rainbow, golden, and brown trout to waters across Montgomery, Howard, Garrett, and Allegheny counties. At Big Elk Creek in Fair Hill, flyfishers reported that golden trout were active. All the states in the region currently have stocking underway but some areas do remain under closure; check your state’s trout stocking web pages to learn the latest:
With weather swinging back and forth between spring-like and chilly over the past week, those harbingers of spring, perch, have been the main target of many anglers throughout the region. Reports from virtually all locations have been swinging as wildly as the temperatures, with banner catches reported one day and a slump in the action the next. We receiver photo-documented reports ranging from catches of up to 50 yellow perch (on a mix of grass shrimp and minnow fished on shad darts bounced along bottom) to total skunks. As a general rule of thumb, the outgoing tide has been much better than high or incoming tides. Interestingly, white perch are already present in some locations as well even at times when yellow perch appear absent. We heard at least one (unverified) report this week that the yellow perch spawn was beginning in some locations this week and that fish were sighted doing the deed (up the Magothy).
Contributor Eric Packard hit the millponds this week and reported a so-so pickerel bite, with a handful of fish hitting swimbaits and jerkbaits. Some bass were also in the mix, but bass were hitting better a couple days later in west side lakes (he hit a couple different ones this week), where he reports that the crappie were also willing to bite, with small spinnerbaits triggering the hits. One reader who hit St. Mary’s Lake this week checked in to report that bass and pickerel are biting, having hooked up on both species around the stumps and a cove near the spillway. They didn’t hook up on any crappie despite the Lake’s reputation for a good bite. Various lakes throughout Virginia are also producing great bass bites — throughout the week, we had reports from anglers catching them with crankbaits, chatterbaits, and on the stray minnow meant for crappie.
Freshwater Fishing Report, March 4 Update:
FishTalk kayak fishing Jedi Zach reported a wide-open pickerel bite in the Eastern Shore millponds in Salisbury last weekend, racking up dozen-plus catches multiple days on fish up to 26.75-inches. He noted that a white Roadrunner tipped with a minnow was a killer bait, and it also fooled some very chunky bass and yellow perch into biting. We also heard from a reader who soaked minnow in a northern millpond and also enjoyed good pickerel action plus put a couple of crappie that were headed into the cooler.
The recent warm days have also been spiking the bass bite recently, and both Zach and Contributor Eric Packard report solid hits from big bass this past week. Packard experienced an excellent bite this week in a southern Maryland lake, with wacky worm rigs getting utterly pounded. He also notes that large crappie are active as well, and were hitting the same wackies.
Many freshwater anglers have set their sights on the perch running up the creeks and tribs throughout our region, which have been providing mixed results to date. Solid catches can be made if your timing is good, but as a general rule mid-day hours and high tides have been stifling the action at times and overall the run thus far is best described as on and off. Minnow on darts, suspended under bobbers, and on bottom rigs have all been working when the fish are in feeding mode.
What about those stocked trout? There are plenty now in the water, though some areas are also soon under closure. Check the state stocking pages to see what’s happening in the spots close to home: