Anyone Hit The Occoquan Reservoir Lately?

[quanjig]

Thanks Mike, we did win one this year as well!

I miss Shimmy!!

[HokieDJ]

 

 

Will this do? The tourney only takes length but I did weight it on my scale also.  20.5" is pretty much a rock solid 5lber.

[Eddie-NoVA]

Went out Saturday morning and caught about 10. Largest being 3lb 12oz and many in the 2lb range.  Senkos and bladed baits around cover was what I caught them off of.

 

I launch of out BRM and it was PACKED when I got back to the ramp to go home.  Many double parked making it difficult to back the trailer to load the boat.  BRM seems to be growing with more pass holders and non-pass holders.  If you launch from BRM, please lock the gate on your way in and out.  We pay for the key so lets keep only ones that paid have access to it.  I don't know how many people I ran into leaving the place and locking the gate, then a non-key holder shows up asking to unlock it.  I just leave and tell them it ain't free to come here.

 

[rivafishn]

There are some nice fish being caught.  I'll have to see if I can find some logs down in the water and try that. 

 

I am a yakker as well, but always do my best to play nicely.  I have launched out of LRM a bunch of times and found yaks just piled up from rentals.  I try and help move some when they are like that.  I work to unload my stuff as quick and safely as I can and then get on the water and out of the way.  Even when I am doing that I stay to the side opposite the dock to allow the boaters more room to launch. 

 

Quan - nice work on the tourney!  What are you considering light line for the shakey heads.  I have some 8 pound test running on one of my spinning rods.  

 

Hokie - nice fish!  I was out of town for the weekend and didn't get on my kayak for fishing and fell another 4 spots in the MAKBF Tourney.  I have good numbers for any other tourney, but there are lots of big fish being caught this month.  I hope to get out at least a couple of evenings this week and look to upgrade. 

[quanjig]

Hokie, nice fish! Deff a solid 5! Don't mind Mike and I, you would have had to be here to get the Shimmy/picture jab, for the most part, if you say you caught a 5, we will believe you!! Especially after you were kind enough to post a pic like you did with a board showing length.

Eddie, those are nice bull run fish for sure, several guys would have given an arm to catch a couple like that yesterday!!

Riva, I usually throw 8lb floro on my shakey set up but I'm more of an open water guy with that. They guys that play the tree game, bump it up to 10lb or braid! I don't have the patience to do it quite honestly! Don't get me wrong, I've done it successfully but it really takes a little different mindset to slowly work a bait thru the shaggy trees and when you get one hooked up, constant pressure to get them to swim out of the tree without breaking them off!! Be prepared to loose some tackle and once you've "rattled" a tree, you might as well move on to the next one!!

[HokieDJ]

Riva - When I decided to enter, all I was seeing was 19s and under.  Once I did, all these 20s came out of no where  I'm just trying to make it respectable.  I think I can make it out 1 or 2 more times.  The Rez is my only shot to find big fish.

 

Quan - Thanks.  I was lucky to be there at the right time and place.  There were several boaters working that area at the time.  Now I just need to find her sisters before end of July.

[rivafishn]

Quan - thanks for the information!  

 

Hokie - I know what you mean.  I started the tourney and was even in 7th at one point and had some decent fish and then bam!  Tons of 20's showed up and big numbers.  I am fishing the rez as well and hoping to upgrade some more.  I have 17's and up, just haven't found some big girls yet.  

[quanjig]

There are plenty of 20+ inch fish out there boys!! You just need to get off the grass and banks to get them!! Get out on the points and drops and deeper flats. Do be skert of the suspended fish either, I'm sure you guys have baits that are slow and seductive in open water, get those baits down there and make it happen!

If you guys have graphs, look for the bait, take note of how deep they are. Look for depths that come up to or just deeper that that. With the open water fish, run your baits at or slightly above and below. They will let you know what is optimum!!

If you see them chasing bait, you will notice the shad are not those little bait ball shad, they are the bigger gizzard shad, get your baits out there around that stuff!!

I'm giving you guys way too much!! Get out and get some!!!

[HokieDJ]

Getting outside of the bank is not my comfort zone.  That's what I'm trying to learn to crank and do heavy jigs for the 20 FOW range but my weakness is the ability to read my lowrance.  I see what looks like suspended fish but I don't think I ever

seen a fish at the bottom.

 

I think I may be able to make it out Friday morning.  It's my only shot left this week.  

 

Thanks for the tips Quan.

[quanjig]

If you just back off the bank half a cast and look for the depth changes, you might start to get a little better feel for getting away from shallow water doldrums. Pay attention to bank changes like where the bluffs start and end. If you are uncomfortable away from the banks, try inverting your casts. Get on the points and cast out deep and bring your cast up the incline.

When it's super hot like this, it really gets the fish grouped up. When you find an area that you have caught a good fish, chances are there will be others that same size in the area. So if you are constantly on smaller fish in one area, try to move around a bit to find the bigger fish!

[rivafishn]

Thanks for the information Quan!  That is one of the things I am working on this year, trying to get better at fishing deep and reading my depth finder better!  I am hoping to get out an evening or two in the next three if the storms would not roll through, we shall see.  I have caught 20's in the rez before just not any lately.  I have heard good of good fish coming around the road bed, so I might need to check that out.  

[rivafishn]

I went out last night and made an effort to fish deeper and a new rig to me.  I manged to catch this guy in what I would consider deeper water for me, about 15', and I also caught my first fish on a c-rig.  It is a far cry from a lot of the big fish out there, but it is a start.  I'm hoping to get back out and try it again.  

 

 

[Choporoz]

That's a beautiful fish, riva. 

 

I put the kayak in at Bull Run last night for 3 hours.  Headed down from there for the first time.  Good numbers evening; 9 total; 6, all about a pound on plastics, and three between 2 and 2.6, all on a med/shallow crank (DT-4, I believe.)

[rivafishn]

Thanks Chop!  I'm headed out today as soon as I get out of work, hoping to find some good ones.  I haven't had much luck on a crankbait yet, all plastics, but I will keep at it. 

[HokieDJ]

Nice fish Riva!.  I went out this morning and meet Pepe Le Pew.  Nothing in the reeds.  Tried looking for some at the 10-15 FOW using cranks and jig but nada.

[bigbasshunter]

Got on the reservoir early this morning, got a few bass but unfortunately got hooked into a snakehead.

[quanjig]

Yea, I saw a rather large one in Sandy run this spring and reports are there are some bigger ones in the res now and, they have been seen surrounding fry balls in a few places. Sooooooo I guess in the not too distant future, we will be having snakehead round ups!!!!

[The Bream Reaper]

All great info. Thanks Quan, et al.

 

So i am considering getting a kayak.  Hokie, Riva and Chop, any suggestions?  Thinking about firing in on that Jackson Big Rig but I want something I can transport on top of my Pathfinder.  Also want something stable enough that I can take out on some bigger water (and potentially salt water)...and also that I can bring my 70lb dog with me and he won't tip.  Just had our first baby last week, so the kayak is my compromise with the wife!  Concerned about transport and ease of launching if I were to launch out opt Fountainhead or maybe even Bull Run if I purchased a launch pass.  What do y'all think?

[novafx4]

Was anyone at Fountainhead yesterday afternoon? My daughter and I arrived at the launch at around 4pm and there were several firetrucks and rescue vehicles on scene and it looked like a couple of rescue boats as well. No details in the local paper or FB pages. I'm assuming it was either someone falling out of a boat or a mountainbiker getting evac'd.

[Choporoz]

Trolled north out of Fountainhead for a few hours Saturday morning.  Tried working on a couple of my weak areas - swimbaits and deep (worked jigs, c-rig, and drop shot) with no success.  Gave in and switched to senkos and jigs and boated a limit in rather short order; largest was only 2.44#, though.

 

Bream,

    Jury is still out on the kayak for me.  In the last 6 days I put in at Pohick (Gunston Cove), Dogue Creek and Bull Run.  Haven't kayaked from Fountainhead or Lake Ridge yet.  I really like the possibilities of the Potomac, but I don't enjoy that bigger water all that much yet.  Too much paddling and not enough fishing, I suppose.  Crossing the mouth of Gunston Cove yesterday between waterskiers, jet skis and 50 foot cabin cruisers was a little hairy at times.

 

Paddling from Bull Run is totally different and always a great experience. 

 

    At this point, I'd rather have a boat.  Between the expense and an HOA that prevents me parking it at home, I'm still putting it off.  At $12-$25 bucks, I'm fairly happy renting when I want to get on on the rez, except for the limited range. 

  

    To get more from my kayak, I think I need to concentrate on smaller bodies of water.  

 

At only 10' and 55#, I have a pretty small kayak.  And still, putting it on top of my full-size SUV is a little bit of a struggle, especially at then end of 6 hours on the water.  I sure wouldn't want anything heavier without a lower roof, or a trailer.  

  

    No way I'm going to be standing in my yak, and I miss that when I'm out on it.  I haven't thrown a jig from it yet, because I am not confident I could flip accurately, nor set the hook.  I need to work on that. 

 

    Let me know if you want to meet up sometime if you would like to try it out for a bit.  Paddle around, try casting, etc.

[Choporoz]

Forgot to mention/ask....that 2.44 I caught on Saturday was the second LMB I've caught in the Occoquan with large (bigger than silver dollar) size black spots.  Anyone else find those?  Natural markings?  Hopefully not indicative of any sort of disease or anything.   The other was even more pronounced, with the spots probably covering 1/4 of all exposed skin.  Never seen that anywhere else.

[quanjig]

Nova, I was pulling my boat out as the fire and rescue fold were launching. Not sure why they were out there. They didn't seem to be in that big of a hurry to launch tho. I did see a couple more race down with lights blazing thru the upper lot!!

Don't take this the wrong way but it looked like the old joke "how many people does it take to screw in a lightbulb" type of thing! Must have been 15 responders trying to get 3 people into that one boat. Lots of Chiefs, only a couple Indians!!!

[quanjig]

Chop, almost like a birthmark, nothing to be worried about!!

[HokieDJ]

All great info. Thanks Quan, et al.

 

So i am considering getting a kayak.  Hokie, Riva and Chop, any suggestions?  Thinking about firing in on that Jackson Big Rig but I want something I can transport on top of my Pathfinder.  Also want something stable enough that I can take out on some bigger water (and potentially salt water)...and also that I can bring my 70lb dog with me and he won't tip.  Just had our first baby last week, so the kayak is my compromise with the wife!  Concerned about transport and ease of launching if I were to launch out opt Fountainhead or maybe even Bull Run if I purchased a launch pass.  What do y'all think?

 

If you are considering saltwater use, then checkout the Hobie Outback.  You can stand on that for the most part and it can handle saltwater with no issues but I'm not sure about your dog being on it.

 

A PA 12/14 would probably be better if you want your dog to come along since it's ultra stable but it's heavy.  I have seen people put it on top of their SUVs tough.

[rivafishn]

All great info. Thanks Quan, et al.

 

So i am considering getting a kayak.  Hokie, Riva and Chop, any suggestions?  Thinking about firing in on that Jackson Big Rig but I want something I can transport on top of my Pathfinder.  Also want something stable enough that I can take out on some bigger water (and potentially salt water)...and also that I can bring my 70lb dog with me and he won't tip.  Just had our first baby last week, so the kayak is my compromise with the wife!  Concerned about transport and ease of launching if I were to launch out opt Fountainhead or maybe even Bull Run if I purchased a launch pass.  What do y'all think?

 Bream - i love having my kayak, but in order to have something that is big and stable, for both you and the dog, you are going to add weight to it.  You are looking at about 85 pounds.  I car top mine on my subaru and don't have any issues with it.  I like being able to go anywhere.  I have fished everything from the upper potomac, to smaller creeks that boats can't get into all the way up to the bigger creeks in the potomac.  I have not tried any saltwater at this point, but have that on the list of things to try.  

 

A good suggestion is the hobie pro angler 12/14, but they are going to run you the most.  You can find plenty of them used.  I would love to take my dog out on wilderness systems ATAK, but I don't believe I can get him to stay in the kayak.  He loves the water.  There are some good places to look at kayaks around here. I know backyard boats in woodbridge sells hobie's, not sure what their stock is like.  Hudson Trail Outfitters sells a bunch of kayaks and if you are down in the Ashland area go and see Appomattox River Company.  They are a further trip, but that is all they do and they know their stuff.