Megastink Posted February 21, 2012 Posted February 21, 2012 Hey all! I have a tourny on the Potomac April 14th and 15th. We re launching out of Slavins. I have never been to the Patomac, and I am soooooo pumped to finally fish this storied fishery. I imagine the water will be cold, and I know its tidal, but I have NO IDEA how to start. How does the tide effect the position of the fish in prespawn mode? What types of areas should I be looking for? Deep? Shallow? Tide-dependent? Any spots in particular? How should I target them? Any advice would be great. Just "imagine" that your explaining this to someone whos never been there before. Thanks! -Mega Quote
dave Posted February 25, 2012 Posted February 25, 2012 Rattletraps, Baby 1 minus, and chatterbaits.. Surprised at the launch out of Slavin's. No wake, 6 mph zone. I fish the Mattawoman Creek almost exclusively. P O tomac 1 Quote
Traveler2586 Posted February 27, 2012 Posted February 27, 2012 ...........We re launching out of Slavins........ Why??? How many boats and what type of boats are you expecting??? You'll have a slow start if your going out to the Potomac. Quote
Megastink Posted February 27, 2012 Author Posted February 27, 2012 Why??? How many boats and what type of boats are you expecting??? You'll have a slow start if your going out to the Potomac. I dont know. I dont make the rules. Any actual fishing advice? 1 Quote
Traveler2586 Posted February 27, 2012 Posted February 27, 2012 Megastrike, Give me a clue as to your boat and where you would like to concentrate your fishing. If you're going to stay in the Mattawoman both sides of the mouth at the Navy Base, look for submerged grass on flats near a drop-off to deep water; markers 3 & 5; the point on the right just before Thoroughfare Island; Marsh Island area; the outside of bends starting at the 6 mph zone; up from Slavins, again look for deep holes on the bends and work the area; work the area shown in the attached photo. The water temp last Monday was 43.5 at the south side of the mouth, fish were holding on top of the drops that still have submerged grass. I was working small jigs slowly. Everything depends on the tide, the weather and sunlight, and the water turbidity conditions. Hope this helps Cheers, Eric Quote
Super User BrianinMD Posted February 27, 2012 Super User Posted February 27, 2012 By the time your tourney gets here I would bet the bass would have moved up into the shallow grass instead of hanging on the edge. Should be a good bite on lipless cranks and spinnerbaits. Quote
Megastink Posted February 27, 2012 Author Posted February 27, 2012 Thanks guys. Here is a general question: How does incoming/outgoing tide effect fish position during thr prespawn/spawn time? Quote
Traveler2586 Posted February 27, 2012 Posted February 27, 2012 Basically the fish face into the oncoming tide while behind a good ambush point (wood of any type, weeds, bar's, etc.), they let the tide bring the food to them without wasting too much energy. Yes, they may have moved up by mid April (I've been told to look for the Dogwood trees to blossom), depending on water temp and weather trends, but some will be close to the drop-off's as well. They'll go deep if they don't like conditions; and I believe the females return deep to recover after nesting. I'm not sure how much visible weeds you'll see, maybe someone else can advise also. Tip: A longtime Potomac guide by the name of Ken Penrod has written two books on fishing the Middle Potomac; "Fishing The Tidal Potomac River, and Ken Penrod's Tidal Potomac River Fishing Bible". They basically cover the "Middle" creek by creek. Both are good reading for anyone new to the river; he also has other books you may find interesting. He's working on a new book for the Middle, and I wish he'd get off his butt and get it published. Try Penrod's web page at http://www.penrodsguides.com/, or try ebay, or Amazon. Ken is a great guy and has worked hard to protect our fishery. IMHO Again, hope this helps. Cheers, Eric Quote
Traveler2586 Posted February 27, 2012 Posted February 27, 2012 Megastrike, Found this for you: Ken Penrod’s 10 Seasons For Tidal Potomac Largemouth Bass By Ken Penrod; http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/97717-pre-spawn-potomac-river/page__fromsearch__1 Print it out and keep it with you. Cheers, Eric Quote
Traveler2586 Posted February 27, 2012 Posted February 27, 2012 Megastrike, Found this for you: Ken Penrod’s 10 Seasons For Tidal Potomac Largemouth Bass By Ken Penrod; http://www.bassresou...__fromsearch__1 Print it out and keep it with you. Cheers, Eric Sorry, Don't know why the link changed Try this: http://www.penrodsguides.com/LOUmagazineMARCH.html Cheers, Eric Quote
Traveler2586 Posted February 29, 2012 Posted February 29, 2012 Megastrike, This may help you track DC weather. Good fishing http://www.weather.com/weather/monthly/USDC0001 Cheers, Eric Quote
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