Lake Accotink Va

[JSPOONE]

has anyone fished lake accotink in springfield va... want to know if its worth going and is it back too full pool since it has been drained awhile back

[georgeyew]

I haven't fished there since last summer (around the dam area - didn't catch much). I plan on trying it out again, further back in the lake this time.

[DJ 6_6]

I went with my cousin about a month ago.  seemed to be at normal level, but I havent been there since I was a kid.  a few people fishing below the d**n.  above the d**n bunch of floating debri and sticks and stuff...

 

Didnt catch a thing, but my cousin caught a bass and a shad in the creek below the d**n the week before.

[shimmy]

It is very clear water. The bass are very finicky and the lake is pretty long. There are tournaments on there occasionally and i have heard of 8 pounders being caught. It is also a deep lake and almost every  spot has a ton of wood or nice rock drop off. It's a tough lake. I caught several at the grass point that comes way out after you launch and head to the main lake to the right. It seems like it would be a tough lake to learn and would definitely take a lot of time. I wouldn't hit it again unless i lived nearby and wanted to put my time in to it to learn. Otherwise, i think the lake will be brutal. Good luck. 

[DJ 6_6]

Is he  above me talking about Accotink?   its not a clear lake, its stained, and with the rain we had it'll be muddy for a few days.  It's not tht deep either, its a fairly shallow lake.  Its mostly fished from shore, so I wouldnt even know where y ou would launch from.   I've only been once  recently, but Im pretty sure the guy above me is not talking about Accotink near Backlick/495

[DelfiBoyz_One_and_Only]

I know that back in the day they use to stock below the d**n with trout in the fall or winter.  The trout I use to catch were jumbo's (good size ones over 17 inch). I have not heard of anyone fishing there in a good long while though.  Keep me posted if you find anything out!

 

Jay

[mudkart]

Definitely not Accotink, you can PM shimmy to be sure, sounds like he's talking about Occoquan Res.  There is a marina @ Accotink and you can launch electric only boats.  I've never heard of Txs there, would seem kinda pointless; I've never heard of anyone catching a limit at the lake.

[quanjig]

It used to have a nice population of good sized bass. I caught a 4lber a couple years ago and saw a few decent sized fish spawning last year. Most of the time I've spent fishing there was along the riprap with small blades and buzz baits. That was before they pretended to dredge the lake! If you are standing at the marina and look way back to the right you will see a couple of big lay downs. you might be able to still catch a few back there with some small t rigged worms.

[beergogglin]

Just curious about the "pretended to dredge" bit. I took that train over the lake to work every day and that dredging barge looked like it was there for almost a year. They didn't haul any material away?

[shimmy]

Is he  above me talking about Accotink?   its not a clear lake, its stained, and with the rain we had it'll be muddy for a few days.  It's not tht deep either, its a fairly shallow lake.  Its mostly fished from shore, so I wouldnt even know where y ou would launch from.   I've only been once  recently, but Im pretty sure the guy above me is not talking about Accotink near Backlick/495

oh boy, it was late at night and i was showing my late night IQ. I was thinking of Abel lake. They don't even sound alike. I have no idea what happened. Maybe we can all just forget this ever happened. I am doing the jedi mind trick right now and waving my hand. I hope this helps. 

[quanjig]

The dredge was there for a year. The lake was still full when this was taking place. They spent thousands of taxpayer dollars running a tube from accotink to the upper pond off industrial dr. It took so long because the equipment was always broken down. They said the dredge was running into soo many root balls and tree trunks on the bottom, they were unable to break it apart.

After that, they drained the lake for dam repairs. I've lived in Springfield since 1971 and have seen the lake down several times and have fished it when the water was down. Defiantly one of the biggest scams I have ever witnessed.

[DJ 6_6]

WOW...Govt screwing us in all guys of ways LOL...

[quanjig]

Just for grins, I tried a little today at accotink. 3 lil fellas in the spillway below the dam and missed a good one up in the main lake on the end of a tree!

[DJ 6_6]

Quan what were they hitting?

 

bunch of others fishing the Spillway?  When i was there last month must have been bout 6-7 others fishing the Spill way.  does anything BIG ever get washed over the spillway?

[quanjig]

Finess worm t rigged with a 1/32 bullet sinker pegged. In the spillway, throw to the areas where the water is rolling over the dam and swim/twitch it thru the disturbed water. I would try a small shad looking crank you can throw on spinning gear. The fish I caught were so fat with minnows it was funny. In the lake, same bait, try and find some lay downs and fish it as close to the tree as possible. You used to be able to catch some nice bass below the dam in the spillway. Have not really tried extra hard to see if they are still in there but I wouldn't be surprised. Right before dusk and the park closes, I used to throw a smallish buzz bait along the edge of the spillway and thru the little flows and catch some nice fish!

[JSPOONE]

i plan on going to lake accotink tomorrow... where can i park to access the lake?

[georgeyew]

You can park under the train tracks to get access to the dam.

[DJ 6_6]

•  

  Finess worm t rigged with a 1/32 bullet sinker pegged. In the spillway, throw to the areas where the water is rolling over the dam and swim/twitch it thru the disturbed water. I would try a small shad looking crank you can throw on spinning gear. The fish I caught were so fat with minnows it was funny. In the lake, same bait, try and find some lay downs and fish it as close to the tree as possible. You used to be able to catch some nice bass below the dam in the spillway. Have not really tried extra hard to see if they are still in there but I wouldn't be surprised. Right before dusk and the park closes, I used to throw a smallish buzz bait along the edge of the spillway and thru the little flows and catch some nice fish!

   

  Any color this time if year you noticed produces best? 

[quanjig]

Watermelon candy

[bluezed]

Will probably pack my gear one day and hit Accotink on my way home from work.  Sounds like a good place to let traffic die down.  

[Huntrava]

First post :-)

 

I realize this is an old thread, but I'd like to update this with a short fishing report.

 

Since I've lived in the area (about 3 years) I've been kayaking on Lake Accotink on a regular basis.  Pretty much every time I've been to the lake, there's been heavy pressure near the boat docks/bridge.  I've even seen a guy fishing there with a net, no joke.  So forget that portion of the lake.  

 

At first I was reluctant to fish the lake (I've only heard bad things) but didn't have enough time to make it anywhere else on a Friday here in NOVA, since 66 and 95 turn to parking lots between 2PM and 10PM.  If you have a small watercraft, such as a canoe or kayak less than 15 feet, you can just walk down to the lake and launch on the beach.  That's what I did tonight.  

 

There's a bunch of cover that lined the dam.  Seems like it would be prime real estate for bass, but I didn't have any luck there with pig n jig.  Switched to some weedless spinners and got a nibble, but no luck.

 

I decided to continue along the bank (immediately across from the pressured area) where I noticed more light cover/fallen logs.  Decided to switch to rubber worms, that was the trick.  I reeled in 5 panfish and a 2 lb bass 1 lb bass within an hour.  Almost every cast brought in a fish.

 

What does this mean?  *Much* of the lake is inaccessible if you don't have a kayak, but with a small boat there is stuff to be caught in Lake Accotink.  I realize the lake has a poor reputation, and I don't presume this post will change the reputation.  That said, if you live in the area and only have a few evening hours to fish, don't overlook some modest fishing at Accotink.

[Huntrava]

Hate to double post, but here's a worthwhile update for this lake:

 

We had a front roll in over the weekend, and I wanted to make it count.  So, down to the lake with the kayak, my new Zebco micro spinning rod and reel (it works, sue me!)  and a bunch of lures.  I started with topwater lures after having success at Occoquan with poppers the day prior.  No dice.  Then I went to jerk baits/crank baits/diving baits...nothing. 

 

At this point I was starting to worry I'd missed the window and the feeding was slowing down.  Boy was I wrong.

 

I slapped on a black/chartreuse spinning bait and WHAM, two small bass on back-to-back casts.  I've gotta say, catching with a spinning bait is fun…they hit it harder than with other baits. 

 

The sun was getting low, and I didn't have more than 30 minutes before sunset when I bagged by new PB, somewhere between 3-5 lbs (I guess) with the spinning bait.  Unfortunately, since Lake Accotink has a reputation for poor fishing, I didn’t even consider bringing my Go Pro.  No proof, no pictures, no exact weight.  Dang. 

 

In a nutshell, Lake Accotink continues to surprise.  And I might have caught it’s biggest fish (ha).  When there's rain and mud at Accotink, give a spinnerbait a try.  

[rpb1723]

Anyone give Accotink anymore of their time? Seeing Huntrava's posts above makes me think it might be worthwhile as I live close by.      

 

And FYI - I recently explored Accotink Creek along the paved bike trail off of the parking lot with the train bridge (entrance to trail is in the rear left hand corner as you enter the parking lot). While much of the creek is shallow, found a few holes with decent cover about a 1/2 mile in. Caught one dink on a lipless crank and a few decent sunfish on a floating grasshopper. Exploring further on the trail while on a recent bike ride looks more promising; haven't brought my rod with me yet but plan to soon.  Not that it's great by any means, but there's certainly more life as you get further down the creek.   

[Huntrava]

Anyone give Accotink anymore of their time? Seeing Huntrava's posts above makes me think it might be worthwhile as I live close by.      

 

And FYI - I recently explored Accotink Creek along the paved bike trail off of the parking lot with the train bridge (entrance to trail is in the rear left hand corner as you enter the parking lot). While much of the creek is shallow, found a few holes with decent cover about a 1/2 mile in. Caught one dink on a lipless crank and a few decent sunfish on a floating grasshopper. Exploring further on the trail while on a recent bike ride looks more promising; haven't brought my rod with me yet but plan to soon.  Not that it's great by any means, but there's certainly more life as you get further down the creek.   

 

Just got back from Accotink today.  Pulled in a single largemouth on a spinnerbait.  For large fish in Accotink that's been my most successful lure.  

 

Definitely not the best fishing in NOVA, best get that out of the way.  However, if you've got a kayak/canoe, there are some decent spots.  Most 75% of the lake is probably 2-3 ft deep and muddy. Fun way to kill some time if you only have a few hours.