G-Man Fishing

It’s been a fairly warm November. I’ve made a few trips recently and have found that the fish are still biting. One trip to Fountainhead park at the Occoquan Reservoir yielded a nice 15″ bass. Caught that one in the submerged timber at about 10 ft depth on a Texas rigged plastic lizard. A couple of weeks later, I caught a 12″ bass at the pond in the Franklin Farm neighborhood of Herndon. So, to summarize, even though it’s November, the fishing is still somewhat productive; not exactly Spring-time productive but at least the fish will still bite.

This past weekend was my first trip to any Bass Pro Shops. I happened to be driving through the Richmond area and decided to check it out. What a place! I’m not sure how many square feet this place is but its a two level store with a boat dealership, restaurant, hunting/fishing/outdoor sports retail space, and aquariums/landscaped ponds. The highlight was seeing the large aquarium tank in the back with all kinds of freshwater game species represented. There’s also an outdoor landscaped pond with catfish, bass, and sunfish. Inside the store there’s also a small pond with rainbow and brown trout. This place is a fun place for any avid angler, hunter, or outdoorsman. Luckily I was able to restrain myself and left the store without buying any new toys. I was curious about the restaurant, however. Anybody try it out?

The lake is still busy as the weather continues to remain fairly warm. A couple of conditions to note. First, the water levels are very low nowadays. That means there are many weedy shoreline areas that a bank angler can now access. Just find a spot and get beyond the brush so you can cast. Be careful as the newly exposed shoreline can be muddy and/or slippery. The second condition to note is that the water is now very clear. On sunny days, this makes the fishing very challenging. As an example, I walked over to the head waters of the lake on a sunny afternoon. With my polarizing sunglasses I was able to see a few smallish bass parked in the shallows. I then casted a shad colored 5 inch paddle tailed soft plastic bait past them and worked it closer slowly. The two bass darted toward the bait, examined it, and then swam off. How’s that for a rejection? I guess if I can see them that clearly, they can see whatever bait I’m throwing clearly too. Later on, I switched to a Yamamoto double tail grub on a Texas rig with a small bullet weight. I wanted something a little smaller with a lot of natural action that I could still work slowly through water with a slight current. I finally got a bite and reeled in a small 10″ bass. Although it was a small bass, I was just happy to get a bite. I do know that there are big bass in the shallows this time of the year however. My last trip to Burke was a week prior and I was able to spot a LMB in the 3 lb + range roaming the shallows. I wasn’t able to trigger a bite that time either. So… anybody have a proven pattern for clear water Fall fishing at Burke?

Its the summer doldrums again at Burke Lake. Even though the weather has been hot hot hot, my partner and I made it early and on a cloudy day. It seemed to be an excellent day for fishing so we rented a boat at the marina and then worked the weeded shoreline with spinner baits and soft plastics. Much to our disappointment, we had literally no bites whatsoever. We later drove over to a part of the shoreline with some steeper drop offs. My partner was throwing a Rapala DT-10 in the shad color at the shore while I worked a carolina rig. Its great to have a fishing buddy to work as a team with when out on the lake. Working a variety of representations means that we can find the right pattern for the day much faster than going it solo. Before we knew it, a decent sized channel catfish struck the crank bait. It isn’t the first time a catfish has taken an artificial bait and it shows that there are many ways to catch a ‘Cat’. Later on, I caught a 12″ largemouth on the carolina rig. The sun soon came out and we had to pack it in. I’ve now learned that during these hot months, you have to work baits deeper. The carolina rig was working around the 8-12′ depth. Look for places that have drop offs near the shore that provide cooler water. Having a fish finder to track the profile of the lake bottom was crucial. The last thing you want to do is roam all around the lake randomly when your time out on the water is limited.

Ok, been out and about fishing various ponds and lakes in Northern Virginia this month. I’m kind of in a rut. My production during each outing has been decent. Managed at least one catch every time. The problem has been that all the LMB I’ve caught fall into the similar size range: 12″-14″. On average, 1-2 pounds. I’ve been at Burke, Audubon, Newport, the little ponds off of Fox Mill in Herndon, a hidden pond in Sterling, and the Claude Moore ponds in Sterling. My pattern has been pretty similar each time. Work the Texas-rigged plastic worm around targeted fish holding spots. Best times of day have been around dusk or later in the day. The one noteworthy catch I’d like to share occurred today at Claude Moore pond in Sterling. The park actually has two ponds. Both are rather small and shoreline fishing is the only option. There’s plenty of structure to cast to and the ponds are full of sunfish. I caught two small bass during the day and witnessed another fella pulling in a pretty decent sized bass. I found a secluded spot with some submerged timber. The area seemed rather shallow so I casted as far as I could. A few casts later something large took my bait. I fought and fought it and when I finally landed it I realized it was a 4 pound channel catfish. Thats right! A channel catfish went after my plastic worm. It measured 21 inches and my guess was its weight was around 3 or 4 pounds. I’m not into keeping my catch these days so I let it go. Even though the pounds are small, there’s some good fishing at Claude Moore. I read online that the pounds have been restored and that fishing has improved due to the maintenance on the ponds. Its certainly a fun time and a decent little fishery!

The weather was great today so I made a trip to Burke Lake. We’re in the middle of a deep recession and its obvious that people are cutting back on other forms of recreation and instead spending their recreation time fishing. I commend people for that since I think enjoying outdoors is a great and affordable way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Much of the shoreline near the parking areas were crowded with anglers as a result. I saw one angler pull in a decent channel catfish. I, however, decided to hike around the lake and work selected spots without spending too much time on any particular place. I figured that if there are fish I would get bites pretty quickly. I was right. The best spots I found were weeded areas near shorelines with a somewhat steeper drop off. I caught two LMB in total; both of which were in the 1-2 lb range. It was very efficient fishing given that most of my time was spent hiking around the lake with just a few casts here and there. I didn’t spend more than 10 minutes at any particular spot. The places where I caught fish I didn’t spend more than 5 minutes or so. That says to me that the pattern I used was the right one for that day. It was more a matter of finding the right spots while on foot- not always easy given that the shoreline is pretty wooded with few clearings near the ideal fish holding areas. See the videos below for the fishing action.

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This was my first fishing trip in Northern Virginia in a year! The evening was a really pleasant one right after the thunderstorms rolled through. Currently, I’m operating on a limited set of tackle since I’m sort of transitioning back to Virginia and haven’t moved the bulk of my things down yet. I opened up the mini travel-sized tackle box to find just panfish sized jigs, some spinner baits, and other random stuff. My soft plastic selection was kind of limited. So instead of using a plastic worm, I texas rigged a Yamamato double tail grub. Had a few bites from small bass and then caught a feisty 14″ bass that was parked underneath one of the docked boats. It was quite a fighter and even fought like crazy while I was trying to get him unhooked. The sun soon set and unfortunately I had to wrap it up. I’m sure I’ll be back again soon- hopefully with the complete set of tackle! Also hoping to make some trips to the usual NoVa spots. Burke, Occoquan, Brittle, Frederick, Potomac River, here I come!

One year ago, I usually found myself the only angler at Grover’s Mill pond. What a difference a year makes. The last few times I’ve been at Grover’s Mill, the short boardwalk waterfront was crowded with anglers. This has to do with the resurgence of Grover’s Mill pond as a natural habitat. Last year, the pond was dredged to remove silt buildup. The maximum depth now is 9 feet. This improves the water flow and increases oxygen. The pond was also recently stocked with bass, sunfish, and catfish. In fact, the mayor of the town along with the Governor of NJ were there during the fish stocking event. Word is that Governor Corzine released a 7 pound bass into the pond. That extra stirred up attention is probably fueling the fishing attraction at Grover’s Mill. Just about the last three outings have been successful with at least one largemouth bass each time. Average length about 14″-15″. As for the other angling opportunities, it looks like a lot of people are targeting carp and catfish. One guy using bread as bait thought he hooked up with a carp but then reeled in a ginormous snapping turtle! Here are some pics from “the Mill!”

Ok, Gmanfishing.com is back online. After almost a year of international travel, I am back in the states and ready for some spring fishing. Today was a blustery NJ early spring day. My dad and I went to Dick’s Sporting Goods to get me a NJ license so I can fish legit. Afterwards, we drove over to Grovers Mill Pond. Normally, during the warmer months this pond is overgrown with weeds and lily pads. Given that its early in the season, there wasn’t much vegetation and the water was cold and clear. I worked a plastic lizard along the shore but with no real structure to target it seemed futile. I then walked over to the small pier and saw some submerged timber close to shore. After a few casts and working the lizard slooooooow, I had a bite and saw the flash of a fish. Another cast and this time a good hookset brought in a 19″ chain pickerel. I was kind of surprised to reel in a pickerel since I’ve caught bass using the same pattern and at the same location. After thinking about it, it seems to make sense. Pickerel are more active in cold water and the bass bite hasn’t really picked up quite yet. Well, not a bad start to the 2009 season. Looking forward to more fishing adventures soon!

Two days ago I made a trip to Lake Carnegie. There were heavy winds as a front was moving through so I added a bullet weight to my Texas rigged lizard. Worked the lily pads and enticed a fish to bite. Didn’t hook him the first time. My second try was a success but…as I yanked it through the lily pads my line broke! Darn. I had just set up a rod with 8 lb mono. Apparently, thats not strong enough for pulling fish out from heavy cover. Fast forward 48 hours. This time I brought my medium-heavy action rod with 15 lb mono. Took a long time to get any bites but then I noticed my line moving away. First try was a miss. Tossed the bait back to the same spot. This time I opened the bail on my reel and let the fish take off with it. One good hook set and I pulled in a nice 14 inch bass. This was a bruiser of a bass! Stocky body with some heft to it. I noticed the last couple of times out that I’ve found fish next to downed timber mixed with lily pads. Both bites came as the bait drifted next to a large log in the the middle of the lily pads in about 1 foot of water. Definitely the type of situation for heavier line. Anyways, I’m glad I was able to avenge my previous lost fish by make a simple tackle adjustment.