Northern Virginia Area, Bass/snakehead Fishing

[venom]

Hey guys,

Wondering if anyone can help me out. Going up to the DC/ northern Virginia area to visit my brother in about a month. Trying to get him into fishing so I was hoping to find either a good guide to use or a good lake/river area to take out his kayaks and get some fishing in. Would like to go somewhere where we could get both snakeheads and bass if possible. Any suggestions would be great! Thanks in advance for the help.

[Huntrava]

Hey guys,

Wondering if anyone can help me out. Going up to the DC/ northern Virginia area to visit my brother in about a month. Trying to get him into fishing so I was hoping to find either a good guide to use or a good lake/river area to take out his kayaks and get some fishing in. Would like to go somewhere where we could get both snakeheads and bass if possible. Any suggestions would be great! Thanks in advance for the help.

Good to meet ya and welcome to NOVA.

 

I've spent an absurd amount of time fishing for bass in the area.  Here are my recommendations-

 

Occoquan will reliably produce bass and it's fun with a kayak.  Some days are better than others, but it's generally what I compare everything else against. 

 

The Potomac will give you bass and catfish.  There are plenty of fish there, but they can be tricky to find. Plenty of places to put in a couple kayaks...Seneca, Algonkian, etc.  Depending on where you put in, it can be a little hairy.  I fished for catfish at the Woodrow Wilson bridge the other day and wouldn't recommend to a novice paddler.  Lots of choppy, fast moving water.

 

Not sure about snakehead. 

 

I've found Accotink, Brittle, Germantown, and Silver lakes to be tough.  They hold fish, but unless you have lots of time on your hands, it's probably best to steer clear of these. I'm no biologist, but they seem a tad overfished.

[venom]

Thanks for the information! Good stuff.

Anybody used or know of a guide in the area?

[CrazyFluker]

I've heard the owner of Sportsman Marine may be a guide. He's out of Woodbridge VA, he is a great electric motor repair guy and does a lot of fishing on the Potomac, you could try him. His name is Todd (703) 583-0300. If he isn't a guide I'm sure he can point you in the right direction. If he can't help you I have another guy that would probably know of some.

 

One thing I would say is, be careful at the mouth of the Occuquan at the Potomac. The currents there have killed a lot of people and the Potomac river can turn rough quickly. I would be a little hesitant to get out on the Potomac in a kayak. The Occoquan should be fine as most of the creeks. Aquia creek has a lot of snakeheads.

[venom]

Thanks for the advice. Been reading about the Aquia, sounds like might be a good place for the kayaks. Debating now on whether to get a guide for the Potomac for bass or Chesapeake bay for stripers and others. Thanks to both of you for the information.

[Huntrava]

I'd never been to Aquia before, so I checked it out today.  Learned a few things.  Bear with me, grumpy post ahead-

 

First, traffic in the area is a *****.  Usually I tell people to avoid travelling south of DC on interstate 95.  Could have taken my own advice today.  It took me about 3 hours to get from Manassas to Aquia.  

 

Second, didn't have a lot of luck finding public launch sites.  Couldn't find my intended launch point, Widewater State Park. Ended up paying to drop my kayak into a marina.  As a side note, after getting home, I pulled up the BR forum and saw there's a place where you can shimmy a kayak over a wall and down to the water.  That's better than nothing, but there's no way I'd be able to do that with my kayak.  One would think they'd be able to fit a small public park with water access somewhere in the area.  

 

Third, the fishing was marginal.  It's clear Aquia is favored by recreational boaters who need a wide, protected bay for waterskiing and tubing.  Looked like fun.  But the fishing topography wasn't ideal.  It was typical of many places on the Potomac--wide, shallow, and full of thick green salad.  The entire bay area is about 5 feet deep. I paddled up toward the creek as well as out in the bay.  For future reference, while I caught more fish in the bay than toward the creek, I think the creek area probably holds more fish. 

 

To top things off, I gill hooked a small striper, one of the few fish I caught during the day.  Once I lifted him on the scale I realized he was bleeding profusely.  Dropped him right back in the water. 

 

In all, it was a learning experience.  

[venom]

Thanks for taking the time to post your experience. Yeah as much as I like the area and seeing my family, I never miss the traffic when I leave. And fishing the lake of the ozarks I understand all about dealing with recreational boaters. It makes it tough in season and on weekends.

It looks like my brother found a guide service through someone he knows so we will be fishing on the Potomac with a guide. Not knowing the area and never fishing a tidal area I think we will have much better luck with someone that knows the area.

Thanks again for the help!

A little off topic was just wondering what kind of kayak you have and how do you like it?

[Huntrava]

Thanks for taking the time to post your experience. Yeah as much as I like the area and seeing my family, I never miss the traffic when I leave. And fishing the lake of the ozarks I understand all about dealing with recreational boaters. It makes it tough in season and on weekends.

It looks like my brother found a guide service through someone he knows so we will be fishing on the Potomac with a guide. Not knowing the area and never fishing a tidal area I think we will have much better luck with someone that knows the area.

Thanks again for the help!

A little off topic was just wondering what kind of kayak you have and how do you like it?

 

Good luck to you.  

 

The "kayak" is a Pro Angler 12.  It's more like a 1 man bass boat than a kayak though.  I love it.  

[JStevens]

Hey Venom, I know I'm late to reply but I figured I'd share anyway.  I've had some success in the waters around Fort Belvoir.  I've caught bass, catfish, and snakehead in Accotink Bay, Accotink Creek and Dogue Creek.  Below is a link to a pic of a 9.5 lb snakehead I caught at Dogue Creek.

 

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

 

http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/uploads/gallery/album_1804/gallery_56307_1804_383263.jpg

[Choporoz]

I, too, am sorry I missed this.  If I was going to pay for a guide (and I probably should), I would call either Steve Chaconas' or Ken Penrod's outfits first.  I can't read enough from those guys and I'm sure a trip with them or their crews would be awesome.

[Sam]

Contact Teddy Carr.

 

http://outdoor-action.biz/

[venom]

Thanks for the info guys and nice snakehead Jstevens, would love to catch something like that! We are actually set up to go with Steve, looking forward to it. Will let you guys know how it goes.

[bigfruits]

for snakehead id like to add:

mattawoman creek (when tide goes up, fish something in the gap between the weeds and the surface)

pohick bay (head up towards the creek to the left of boat launch)

 

best at dusk and throughout the night. the eerie lights from the bow fishing boats will tell you where theyre at.

[DrDSays]

Well I am late to the party but September has really slowed down as far as snakeheads are concerned.  Catching mostly smaller ones 20" or less.  Had a fair summer with some niice 10 and one 12 pounder at 34".  

 

I prefer Aquia and Potomac Creeks, Potomac being the best spot for me the last summer but launching your boat or kayak is tough as most of it is private.  Aquia is easy; exit 143 off I-95 to Washing rd, make a right go into the gated community and tell the guard at the booth you are heaed to the marina and the let you in.  Go straight to the end of the road 1-1.5 miles then park over by the canoes and put your kayak in for free.  If you are launching  your boat pay the ramp fee and use the launch right there. I go out of there all summer with no isuses.

 

Paddle out to the large weed beds just past the marina and start casting your top water weedless frogs!  I catch 90% of all my snakeheads on the Stanley Top Water Toad it is awesome as well as some nice big bass.

 

See you on the water!

 

Dr D

 

I will be guiding next Spring and summer for snakeheads so find me on my blog.  www.SnakeheadFishing.net

 

[georgeyew]

Thanks Dr D for that great info. I am going to try and catch some snakeheads before it gets too cold.

[JStevens]

Nice snakehead DrD and thanks for sharing the info.  Hopefully I'll be able to make it out to Aquia soon!

[DrDSays]

I am glad to share!  But now with the huricanes,the heavy rains, the cold nights and the shorter daylight( I think this is the main trigger that sends them deep) the snakeheads are for sure down pretty inactive.  But this is still new to me so if any of you catch any during the Fall or Winter please post here or on my blog, www.Snakeheadfishing.net. I would be very interested to know if they bite now or not.

 

Dr D,

www.totalchiro.net