Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Calm before the storm



Was pleasantly surprised when the clouds and rain cleared around 6 Pm. The river was dead clam and I was all alone on the river. Started out working the river side of point and picked up a healthy 18. Moved across the river to the "nest" and immediately picked up a 20. Tried the " Oak Tree" for a good 10 minutes, but had no action. It was now 6.30 and I decided to try some new spots and see if I could at least get a blow up. Worked several spots on the south shore of the river downriver from the eastern shore of the mouth to Beards Creek. I was specifically looking for sandy beaches. About a quarter of the way to the route 2 bridge I had a blow up right up against a small boathouse. I was not expecting the explosion and pulled the plug out of the fish as he jumped. The rule of thumb with topwater is to "wait for the weight" before setting the hook. Well not to panic, tossed back into the same spot and like clockwork, the fish exploded and I had a new spot to add to my quill...a nice 20. Headed in early as it began to spit some rain.

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Beautiful day in the neighborhood




Left the dock around 5:45 tonight to a light breeze, 75 degrees, and glass like conditions on the river. First stop was of course "Al'sSpot". My first cast netted me a healthy 20 that exploded from the corner closest to the pier. Moved from there to the river side of point and again did a slow drift like last night. Only managed one blue. Off to the "nest" where I had a nice explosion that missed. Took 5 cast's, but finally boated the 22 inch fish. Moved under the bridge and tried the "Oak Tree". This spot is on the western shore of the mouth of Beards Creek and has a huge Oak tree that hangs over the water. It has always produced in the past, but usually later in the fall. Took a while, but I finally picked up a smallish 16 that hit closer to the point in 1 foot of water. Next I hit the "6 mile marker". This is a small cove on the northern shore right before the route 2 bridge. I used to catch fish there all the time, but have been shut out for nearly 2 years now. Moved on the marker 16 and met up with a fellow TidalFish member. We talked for a while, but had no action. Ran across the river to the "Brown House" and hit the mother load. There were baitfish breaking everywhere and even saw a good size Rock jump several feet out of the water. Picked up 2 20's here and headed in to a beautiful sunset. A very nice 5 fish night :)

Monday, September 27, 2010

Eye of the storm




It had been raining all day, so I had not planned on fishing. After dinner, around 6 Pm, the rain had stopped and wind had died down enough to give it a try. Made a few casts at "Al's Spot" and had a nice blow up, but could not relocate the fish. Moved downriver to the river side of point. The wind and tide were moving the boat at a steady clip, so I was able to work the shoreline with the motor off. Picked up 4 fish, all around 20 inches. Made a second pass and managed to pick up one more 18. All 5 fish hit right up against the grass shoreline on the first or second pop. Moved across the river and made a few casts at the "nest", with no action. There has been a small center console working the shoreline for the past 2 nights, so I decided to shoot across the river to say hello, but he took off to avoid the pending downpour. Made one more cast into the "jetty' and picked up another 20. So ended with 6 fish and 1 missed blowup in 45 minutes. I'll take it. Ran home just as the sky looked like it was about to open up.

Friday, September 24, 2010

Home again




Left the dock early tonight to hit a few Lake Riva spots before going out to dinner. The first spot was a place a caught a 22 two years ago. I call this spot the "Old Man's House" because naturally an old man lives there. He always stands on hit deck and asks how the fishing has been. The spot is about 200 yards from the marina and tucked in behind what was once a fairly good sized island. It took a couple of casts, but I was able to boat a smallish 14 incher. Next spot was once again "Al's Spot", where I boated a decent 20. After that I worked the south shore of the river moving towards the Riva Road bridge. I have never even had a blow up along this shoreline and was once again disappointed. I then worked several spots between the bridges, but again had no luck. Ran towards home and slowly worked the river side of the point and finally had a nice blowup and boated a very healthy 22. One hour of fishing and 3 fish...I will take it. I wish Sept. would never end.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Home sweet home




Did not leave the dock until 6:30 tonight, so I decided to stick close to home. There is a spot directly across from the marina that I refer to as "Al's Spot". It is named after my buddy Al, who I met through the Tidalfish message board. I had posted to the board 10 years ago asking for help from anyone with experience fishing the South river. Al responded that he had fished the river for over 25 years and sent me detailed directions to his "go to" spot. He did not know where I lived so his 2 paragraph directions were from his home close to the route 2 bridge. After following his directions to a T, I had to laugh when his spot was literally 200 yards from my house. So for the last 10 years I have always started my night with a couple of casts to his spot which is up against a single piling at a pier across the river from me. I have caught quite a few fish in this spot over the years, but nothing close to the bad boy who blew up on my first cast tonight...a fat 26. After one of the best fights of the year, I hit a few other Lake Riva spots. There was quite a bit of debris from last nights storm and a lot of boat traffic, so I only managed a few small blues. On my way in I hit "Al's spot" for a few more casts, and was amazed when I boated another 18. Two fish without passing under the bridge and a beautiful full moon made for a great night.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Storm Chaser




The weather was hot and humid when I left the dock at 6 tonight. The river was like glass, but again the forecast was for high seas and wind on the bay. My gas tank is almost on empty and of course the pumps were closed. So about halfway to the point I made and executive decision to fish the river. My first stop was the "brown house". On my first cast I picked up a healthy 20 that gave me quite a dance. Not long after, I picked up a 2nd 20. It was then that the first lightning appeared on the horizon. The storm was moving from the southwest right for me. I could not decide whether to scurry home or wait for it to pass. The next minute the sky lit up and the roar was deafening, so it hightailed it home. After I passed under the Riva road bridge the rain had stopped and I felt safe enough to make a few more casts. I hit the SR side of point and on about my tenth cast picked up another 20. Under those conditions, I was quite pleased with a 3 fish night. Interesting sunset to boot.

Tuesday, September 21, 2010

The BEST of times and the WORST of times.




I left the dock at about 5:45 to sunny skies and and a light wind. I knew from reading the wind forecasts that things would be a whole lot different at Thomas Point. Just like last night, the tide was ebbing and the wind was from the north, so it was quite choppy when I arrived at my spot. The waves were 2 to 3 feet, but were expected to grow to 5 feet. The moon was full and it was a beautiful night, but unfortunately the forecast was dead on. It was the WORST conditions of the year by far. On my first cast I had a blow up that missed and the fish followed with several other attempts. It did not take long to boat his brother though. A very fat and healthy 22. I can honestly say it was non stop action the rest of the night. By far the BEST night of the year. Not sure of the exact count, but would say it was close to 20. Dab's called and said it was too rough for him to make it out, but he finally showed up around 7 with a buddy. They anchored right next to me and immediately started bailing fish. There were a number of newcomers that surrounded us, but I did not see many fish being caught. I think most casual fisherman to the shoal do not understand how shallow it gets in spots. There is not a specific area one needs to fish. It is more of a process. I only use topwater this time of year, so its hard to say if plastics or divers work, but I find you cannot cover enough water. On a night like tonight the only option is to toss with the wind on keep the plug in constant contact with the water. I keep my rod tip down (almost in the water) and use a fairly steady pop with several pauses on the way in. I am one tired guy right now. The pictures do not do justice to how rough the conditions were for topwater fishing.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Another Tow In




Last night I met up with Dabney at Thomas Point at around 6:30. The wind and boat traffic had really died down, so it was a very nice night. It was a lazy night, but we both managed to boat 3 fish between 20 and 24. My camera battery had died, so I will have to figure out how to migrate the photo's from my cell phone. Pn my way in around 8, I was hailed by a broken down boat at the mouth of the river. He offered me $100 to tow him in. I of course refused the money and offered to help. He needed to go to the route 2 bridge, which took us the better part of an hour. I hope next time I break down, someone will help me.

Tonight I started out fishing close to home around 6 pm since the wind was predicted to pick up as the night went on. Dab's called at 6:15 and said it looked good at Thomas Point, so off I went. When I arrived at the spot there were 2 boats anchored dead on the mark. I did not recognize either boat, but muscled my way in as close as possible. They were both using cut bait, which rarely if ever works at the point. It took a while, but I finally picked up a 22. The forecast was dead on as the wind and waves picked up around 7. Dab's called and said he was into fish up into fishing creek, so I pulled anchor and joined him for the final 15 minutes. Only managed to pick up one 16 inch blue and headed in early. Back home by 8 PM.




Friday, September 17, 2010

Last minute fun



A big storm moved through last night which kept me off the water. The wind forecast for tonight at Thomas Point was 25 knots, so it was Lake Riva for me. Hit the water around 6:45 and headed straight for the "nest". The tide was extremely low and still going out. Gave up after 30 casts or so, and moved to the "spot" on the broad creek side of the point. On about the 10th cast I had a nice blow up and quite a dance. After a good 3 minute fight, I boated a healthy 22. Headed in early and was home by 7:30.

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Fishing with the boys





Had a few friends from work join me tonight. Picked them up at my friend John's at exactly 5 Pm. The wind was howling against an incoming tide and there were whitecaps on the river. Despite the wind we headed to Thomas point and Anchored up wind from the spot. Did not take long for me to pick up an 18 on the big Chugger. It was my friend Mike's first time fishing the bay, so I gave him the Black Stillwater and the hot corner. John and I picked up several more in the 20 class until Mike finally picked up his first topwater rock. Needless to say he was excited. Mako Chris showed up around 6 and immediately picked up 2 fish. It was steady action the rest of the night with 20 plus fish from 20-24 boated. The wind and waves never really laid down, but at least it was fishable. Great sunset to boot. I love Sept.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

The gangs all here





Got out early tonight, so I headed to Thomas Point. The tide was still going out, but looked to be turning. Mako Bill was anchored up right on the marker, but moved over to make room for me. Not much was happening for the first 1/2 hour and Mako Chris showed up. Dab's saw the action from his house on the point, so called and said he would be right out with the beer. So by 7 we had circled the wagons with plugs flying everywhere. Finally the tide turned and I immediately hooked up with a nice 20. Fairly steady action until dark, with Chris and I having the hot hand. The biggest was a 24 boated by Chris. My final count for the night was 6 keepers from 20 to 23. Beautiful sunset to boot. Home by 8.30 to clean up a serious mess of blood.


Monday, September 13, 2010

Pressed for time




Had guests for the weekend and rain Sunday night, so I was anxious to get out tonight. Unfortunately, I had to pick my daughter up from school. With the Ravens on at at 7, the window was about a half hour. Figured my best shot would be the "nest". Made my first cast around 6:40 with black Stillwater. The water was very calm, but quite a bit of debris from all the rain. After 30 casts or so, I was getting ready to head out. When the plug was about 10 feet from the boat I paused to access the situation. Just then the water exploded and a nice size fish took off with my Stillwater. He darted left and right close to the surface, so I wss able to watch the entire fight. Grabbed the net and boated a 26 inch class fish that although fat, did not look healthy. Hit a few other spots on the way in, with no action.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

They are in the river



Spent the Labor Day weekend in Ocean City. We returned home Monday afternoon to tons of boat traffic and a stiff breeze. I decided to fish close to home and was not disappointed. Started at the "osprey nest" and had several blow ups that missed. One of the fish was a biggie, but could not get him to come up a second time. Moved over to the river side of broad creek and picked up a nice 17. Finished the night on the broad creek side of point and had a nice blow up at "the spot". This was good to see, since this spot had not produced anything the last 2 years after being my go to spot 3 years ago.

Tonight I headed straight to the "osprey nest" to get the biggie from last night. On the first cast I had a huge blow up that missed. I continued a slow twitch on the way in and picked up a 16. Tossed back into the same spot and finally got the biggie. My tape measure is too worn to get a reading, but my guess would be a 24. Headed over to "the spot" and once again had a big boil followed by a blow up from a biggun that missed. Could not get him to reappear, so moved over to the river side of point and picked up a small one just as the sun was setting. The biggun at "the spot" is going down tomorrow night.


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