Potomac River Fishing...

[JShrock07]

It has been several day since I have been out on the Potomac river (Aquia Creek) If anyone has any input on how the fishing is and what is good right now that would help me.

I have a buddy coming home from Iraq on a 2week leave and I promised him all the fishing he could possibly want. I even plan on taking him to a tournament to let him get a taste of tournament fishing so when he gets home for good I will have a fishing partner!!!

But Any help so I could put him on the fish would help us out a lot. I plan on going out on Wed. night and I just don't want him to be dissappointed.

Thanks!!!!

[rondef]

I haven't been out on the river in a couple of weeks so I don't have any new info on it.  I still say go to Mattawoman creek and fish the grass and pads.  You will pull in some nice fish over there.

[Wayne P.]

From reelbassadventures@potomacbass.com    6/21/08----

"There is a good early morning  topwater bite. Bass like buzz baits, poppers and grass frogs worked over grasses and around marsh banks in creeks and on the main river. Chatter baits are productive in the same areas as are motor oil color plastic worms or stick worms. Mann's Baby 1-minus lures worked around shoreline cover draws strikes from quality bass. A jig and craw combo pitched around downed trees, wood or boat docks, will turn up better than average size fish.  All tides are producing but the bite gets even better on the low end of the out going tide."

Water Temp: 76 degrees

Water Clarity: 1-2 feet

[rondef]

Here is a copy of the fishing report I receive each week.

>>> <Nationalbass@aol.com> 6/20/2008 2:32 PM >>>

It's just around the corner; the 12th annual St Jude Potomac Teams Tournament is JULY 11thFridayLeesylvania! I really would like more boats this year! Email me for REGISTRATION forms.

Water temperatures have cooled down to the low 80's! That combined with the ending of post spawn have fish very activefeeding on crawfish and baitfish. I have seen bluegill tails in some bass! My best bait this week was the new chatterbait style bait, the Rock N Runnera Road Runner on steroids complete with small silver willow blade on the underside which gives it a unique action and more flash! This thumper combined with the Mann's HardNose Craw is killer! I am suing green pumpkin and watermelon skirts with contrasting or matching craws! Various retrieves in the grass are working. I look for clear water close to deeper water and to stained water for the best bites. If you are getting catfish, move closer to the clearer water!

Don't overlook topwater bites in the morning, and when the water is low ANYTIME! Mann's HardNose Frogs with a 5/0 Mustad Ultra Point tube hook works well! I like white, when the sun is out, black on very cloudy days or in off color water. In between, green pumpkin! Poppers over clear water or at lower tides are producing on main river grass and in creeks. Find the right speed. I have found a pop, pop, pop, at a very slow pace will get bites. Also walking the dog with baits like the Lucky Craft Gunfish 115 really draws the bigger fish.

After thatStick worms and weightless plasticssplit shot, drop shot, and slow down! Cooler mornings best for other moving baits too! Here you can use cranks or spinnerbaits appropriate for the water clarity. Remember, chop, low light and some color to the water make for the best spinnerbait conditions. The incoming tides produce cooler water. This activates the fish a bit. Otherwise it's a slow patient presentation.

After that, Mann's Baby 1-Minus in Slatterback Holographic is my favorite. In spinnerbaits, the _ ounce Mann's Classicgold blades, white skirt over shallow grass and wood when the skies are cloudy or the water is a bit stained. Vary the speed of the retrieve and rip from grass. Also, waking baits like the Mann's Waker or even the Mann's Mid-Minus in citrus colors or shad patterns are working over grass and around docks and wood!

I am fishing a lot of Mizmo tubes now! Pitching to marsh clumps in creeks and to grass clumps. I am pitching them Texas rigged and with the Gerkin insert heads. I have been using the Gerkin head for 6 years! Made with a Mustad Ultra Point hook...it has a wire weed guard and an elongated lead headthis makes the bait glide. The Gerkin tube head, now owned by R&R Custom Baits can be found at Dance's Sporting Goods in Colonial Heights, VA or by calling804-541-4162. Also, hair jigs like the Punisher work too. Jack's Juice really soaks into the plastics or into the hair on a Punisher jig!

For drop shots, Mann's Hardnose green pumpkin finesse worm is the best. I also like the HardNose Freefall 5 worm. These baits have a tough head to stay on the hook and the soft-bodied pencil point tail does a whole lot of shaking! I also like this worm for the shakey head application. I use the plain lead Gerkin jig heads for shaky head fishingheat the head and coat with BROWN vinyl powdered coat available from lurecraft.com. It's also a good choice for the split shot rig. For the drop shot and the split shot rigs, I am using a 2/0 Mustad Ultra Lite Mega Bite hook. I like to use an 8-inch leader on my drop shot. The Carolina rig is pretty good now to target the last of the post spawners! In Spoils and Smoots and in areas close to deep water! BTW I have found the PERFECT drop shot tool!

[JShrock07]

Thanks Alot guys,

I actually get both of those newsletters. I am more curious about Aquia Creek. I can't believe there isn't that many people on the forums that fishes Aquia.

[Wayne P.]

Nitroman, those guide reports apply to Aquia Creek as well as other sections of the Potomac. Aquia has spatterdock, marsh banks, grass mats/clumps, wood, and docks. It has the railroad supports too and relatively deep water in the narrower creek in the NO WAKE ZONE.

Every presentation plus more is applicable.

[VekolBass]

Nitroman,

Just returned from fishing the river. Caught seven (not including a catfish and a non-keeper), the largest five probably weighed somewhere between 10-11 lbs.

The two quality fish I caught were fishing the outside edge of main river grass with a 3/8 oz green/blue/clear spinnerbait with gold double willow blades. Actually, all but one of the nine fish were caught on this lure. The other one, a 1-1.5lb bass was caught on a 6" pearl Swimming Senko.

The two qualty fish were caught several miles north of Aquia creek on the Virginia side. I started the morning on the MD side, but the combination of rough water and some of the nastiest vegetation I've ever seen ran me out after a fruitless hour trying to hold boat position while cleaning slimy green crud off my lures.

Around noon I moved from the area north of Aquia to the mouth of Aquia itself. I found that as I moved farther into Aquia the more bites I got, but the size decreased. That has been my experience in Aquia since the spawn. All the quality fish I've caught on the river have been on the main river itself.

[VolFan]

We hit it in the canoe, just south of Alexandria on the VA side this afternoon, the fiancee got a DANDY on a gold spinner with  lack and brown skirt, slow rolled through an inflow.  Really nice fish.  We got a few other 1 to 2 lb lmbs on the same pattern and then she switched to chartruese and got a confused 2 lb+ smallmouth.  Again a very good looking, healthy fish for that far south.  We've also been picking up fish on flats as the tide comes in, mostly on Spooks in baby bass color, and mostly over any sort of channel that runs through the flat. It doesn't have to be a big channel!

[JShrock07]

Thanks all of ya'll for all the info... If anyone else has anything to add I'm trying to put together a killer 2 weeks for my buddy.