# Fletcher's 4/19



## Otter (Jun 18, 2004)

Got down to fletcher's about 4:30 yesterday. Walked about a half mile up river to a spot I like.

Shad are definitely getting thick up there. I caught one right off the bat and then only pulled 5 or 6 more, but the guy next to me was absolutely killing 'em. He has never even caught shad before, he and his buddy were out there cat fishing, but he saw what I was using and tied on something similar in tandem like I had. He was getting one on almost every cast for about an hour. At one point I saw him catch two at a time three casts in a row. It was cool to watch how much fun they were having pulling them in one after another.

Charles had better luck than me catching a dozen or so. Most of the fish were caught on tandem rigged darts of different colors. The guy that was tearing them up had a yellow dart with a bit of silver hair on it. I switched to a small chrome kastmaster spoon after awhile and had a little more luck with it then I did the darts.

Great time of year to check out the Potomac if you're in the area.


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## Fishbreath (Nov 11, 2004)

Thanks Otter, great report and soooo true about the Potomac and this time of year. Been doing exactly what you said and did ever since I was a kid, been going there. Were they all hickories or did you hook any whites as well? How about perch?

Did you happen to stop in at Fletchers and check out their collection of shad darts? Do they still have a good assortment left? Dan Ward can probably offer up some good advice there. Drop me a PM and lets hook up on Friday maybe...

FB


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## CrawFish (Sep 23, 2003)

Thanks for the update otter... I might have to come up there after work next week before I make my move to Richmond.


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## Otter (Jun 18, 2004)

All hickorys from what I saw. I don't know that i've ever seen anything but hickory shad. I would sure like to see and American on the end of my line though, I was reading yesterday that they can grow up to 30"  

Crawfish- when r u moving to Richmond bro?


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## CrawFish (Sep 23, 2003)

Otter said:


> Crawfish- when r u moving to Richmond bro?


Moving 4/30/06
Yeah, my contract up here will be expired next Friday. I should be in Richmond on Sunday (4/30). When ever you decide to head down to VA Beach or somewhere that area, just give me a shout. If I can't meet you, I can point you to somebody down that way (Al) . Good luck and see you around. 

Teo

ps.. clear your PM box!!!


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## Otter (Jun 18, 2004)

*Thanks buddy- have a safe trip*

...just cleaned out my PM's too.


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## AtlantaKing (Jul 7, 2002)

Hey, Otter, were you up past the first big sandy spot fishing the jagged rocks? I was fishing just downstream of the sandy spot where the rocks are exposed during low tide yesterday at around 5:30. I did pretty well with a 1" green curly tail grub  but caught a few on the darts as well. Good stuff, that shad fishing.


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## Otter (Jun 18, 2004)

yeah, that may have been us. We were just past a little 'cove' I guess you could call it. About 50 yds before the river gets really rocky.

Grubs huh? Sounds like they will hit just about anything.

On a related note- I'm told that shad are plankton eaters, not carnivores. What instinct exactly motivates them to strike at our lures? Do they look like plants? I'm confused......


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## AtlantaKing (Jul 7, 2002)

I think it's more of a reaction bite to see if the aforementioned object is edible...kinda like us touching something before deciding to eat it. Fish just don't have hands so they "touch" with their mouths. Of all the strange things a fish will hit, I'm convinced that if you put a bait/lure of some sort within striking distance of a fish, they'll hit it. 

I like using the little grubs on crappie jigheads cause I'm a cheap bastage  . That, and I can't find anymore of the kind of darts I like: 1/16oz chartreuse with a flashy tail. 

Are you fishing this weekend Otter? I'm interested in trying out Haines Point but I'm not sure where to go.


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## Gnatman (Sep 15, 2005)

*Hey Otter,*

You are right about American Shad being plankton feeders, but the Hickories eat a lot of baitfish. I have caught them at KN on sassy shads, and the hicks that I get every summer at IRI are herding bay anchovies and silversides just like blues. Just about every one I catch at IRI has a baitfish in it's mouth or is spitting a few up. I am probably going to get up to the Susky/Deer Creek this weekend to try for them up here.

BTW - one of the hottest lures for the hicks are the little Nungesser spoons, or a new one I got at Wally-World called a "Gag's Grabber". I like these best because they have single hooks.
I will post a report if I get up to the river this weekend.


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## f210 (Apr 19, 2002)

*Are the white perch in Fletchers already?*

Thanks for the reports. Have you seen anybody catching any white perch from the shore? If you have, are there any size to them?

A couple of years ago, you could easily fill a 5-gallon bucket with big perch (I have never seen them that big - around 12 to 15 inches) just using night crawlers and just fishing from the shore. Lots of double headers too!!

Are the herring also in the area? You could keep the herring but any kind of shad are illegal to keep in Washington DC, right?


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## AL_N_VB (Apr 3, 2002)

> If I can't meet you, I can point you to somebody down that way (Al)



I'd stay way clear from that guy...he's a nut!


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## Talapia (Apr 27, 2003)

Nice report Otter...as usual.


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## Lipyourown (May 11, 2005)

On a related note- I'm told that shad are plankton eaters, not carnivores. What instinct exactly motivates them to strike at our lures? Do they look like plants? I'm confused......[/QUOTE]

Aren't some forms of plankton just like krill/shrimp and therefore little animals that just might look like a dart?


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## Otter (Jun 18, 2004)

Fishing this weekend- does the pope wear a funny hat? Likely on the bay somewhere, always disappointed at Haines Point.

Hickorys=meat-eaters=news to me, thanks.

Gag-grabbers's- sounds kinda freaky-deeky but I'll check em out thanks.

Steer clear of Al- everybody knows that  

Tilapia-thanks-still want to get into some tog w/ you one day.

Plankton (plants) like krill and shrimp (animals)? Not sure about that one...maybe elaborate a bit...


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## PJDSR (Apr 2, 2002)

*Nice post, Otter*

Good job, my friend. 

Any signs of rockfish that far upstream yet? 

How bad was the litter up there this year? Brad and I fished there last year and it was like fishing in a dump with garbage strewn all over the place. Someone should clean all that crap up and The Man should come through and bust some skulls of people leaving their garbage all over the place. IMHO.


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## Gnatman (Sep 15, 2005)

*Here's a link...*

telling about Hickory Shad being meat eaters.

www.fish.state.pa.us/Fish/anglerboater/2005/03mayjun/spec1hicks.pdf 

They also say that they are a lot of fun on 6lb test or a 6 wt flyrod.
I use my 3 wt fly rod and it's a BLAST!


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## Otter (Jun 18, 2004)

PJDSR said:


> Any signs of rockfish that far upstream yet?
> 
> How bad was the litter up there this year? Brad and I fished there last year and it was like fishing in a dump with garbage strewn all over the place. Someone should clean all that crap up and The Man should come through and bust some skulls of people leaving their garbage all over the place. IMHO.


Just about everytime I've been up there someone has been talking about watching guys on boats pulling in big rocks. Haven't seen it myself, but they're there.

It's a damn shame what people do to that area. It's already completely trashed. I have never been approached by DNR there for anything in the 3 yrs I've been fishing there.


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## CrawFish (Sep 23, 2003)

Otter said:


> I have never been approached by DNR there for anything in the 3 yrs I've been fishing there.


Because you're white. And if you hook up a herring, try live line one out. Cast to the channel, let it drift down current, reel it in and try again.


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## Otter (Jun 18, 2004)

CrawFish said:


> Because you're white.


That may be the case, but I haven't barely _seen_ any of them there in years though either. There was one guy there yesterday, but he was just hanging out by the snack bar.


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## NTKG (Aug 16, 2003)

CrawFish said:


> Because you're white.l, QUOTE]
> 
> , yeah i'd love to be white too. hell... thats hillarious teo.
> 
> ...


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## Fishbreath (Nov 11, 2004)

The white perch have been there since late March.

One minor note on that great post Neil, the Americans (shad) usually show up after the Hickories, or at least, that's the way they've been doing it for the last 35 odd years that I've been feeshin' for 'em.  

I can attest the stripers following the herring up the river. Hook one up live like Neil and Teo said and hold on! They're eating like candy at that point. They've been catching them up and down the river. The reason the people fish Fletchers area so much is because the river narrows down there and the fish are clustered closer together.


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## NTKG (Aug 16, 2003)

Fishbreath said:


> The white perch have been there since late March.
> 
> One minor note on that great post Neil, the Americans (shad) usually show up after the Hickories, or at least, that's the way they've been doing it for the last 35 odd years that I've been feeshin' for 'em.
> 
> I can attest the stripers following the herring up the river. Hook one up live like Neil and Teo said and hold on! They're eating like candy at that point. They've been catching them up and down the river. The reason the people fish Fletchers area so much is because the river narrows down there and the fish are clustered closer together.



yheahp... gotta love nature some times, she's like hey, remember all those cold fishless trips to hatteras... heres a'tem

yeah dont worry about making yoru bait look different wiht cutting of tails or anything, with a hook and or sinker your offering will do all its magic for you.


hm... i've always caught the americans before, and down here in the james its like that as well. maybe my the fish are silly. lord knows?


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## Buffalo (Apr 5, 2005)

Caught a 22" American shad last Friday along with alot of hickory shad. Going tomorrow mroning to try again.


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## Fishbreath (Nov 11, 2004)

*Heading there this afternoon*

If the thunder and lightning holds off this afternoon early, I'm heading down to Fletchers as well. Going to have to check the tide, a little rain isn't bad. Anyone else going?


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## AtlantaKing (Jul 7, 2002)

I might be going after work, depending on when I get out. What time are you thinking about going?

I went down to Fletcher's yesterday after work, arrived around 6pm. Walked down to the rocks just downstream of the first big sandy spot and started casting. A couple of casts in, I hook up with a nice shad on my green curly tail grub. Sadly, I lost aforementioned grub a few casts later to a big Potomac river rock (the hard mineral kind, not the striped fishy kind  ) I then switched over to a yellow dart, and then a white and red dart and couldn't buy a strike, while the people to the left and right of me were just slaying them. I pull out another jig head and green grub, tied it on, and Bam! Another shad. I fished until sundown, caught around 10 or so shad and had a blast, as usual.


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## Texas-Rigged (Apr 17, 2006)

If you don't mind can someone tell me where fletchers is, thanks.


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## Otter (Jun 18, 2004)

http://www.fletchersboathouse.com/directions.htm


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## Gnatman (Sep 15, 2005)

*Hey tex,*

Here's a link to the boat rental place at Fletcher's. You can get their address and directions from it.

http://www.fletcherscove.com/index.htm


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## Fishbreath (Nov 11, 2004)

Hey CJ, I will be looking to slide outta here around 3 or 3:30 p.m. (to try and beat traffic and lightning) and head to Georgetown from Key Bridge and drive up with the flow of traffic right into Fletchers. PM me if you can shake free. Like you noted with your green grub, they are finicky feeders and often will hit only certain colors based on the water color.  I have a decent selection of darts you're welcome to try and can show another way to rig up.


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## Fishbreath (Nov 11, 2004)

Here's a tip....once rush hour kicks in, traffic only flows in one direction on Canal Road. That's why I start in Georgetown and drive straight outbound, then down into Fletcher's parking lot.


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## Fishbreath (Nov 11, 2004)

*Best Laid Plans Of Mice And Fishermen...*

Well, here I sit at work, just got off the phone with AtlantaKing, he's stuck at work too. Was planning to get out on the river and throw darts at the shad today at 3 or so but haven't been able to shake free of work.  Grrrrrr....I'm feelin' the need to wet a line...oh well  I may still get out there but the later it gets the greater chance of thunder and lightning not to mention other evening obligations. So it goes sometimes...


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## AtlantaKing (Jul 7, 2002)

Yep, some Fridays are just fantastic and some definitely blow the big one. Today was the latter, I'm afraid. However, I got all my gear cleaned up and I'm ready to go so I'll be on the water bright and early (provided it isn't a hurricane outside tomorrow morning)


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## Buffalo (Apr 5, 2005)

Slammed them today at Fletchers. Around 9 AM
we were catching a fish every cast. It slacked off and on for the rest of the day. Pink was the hot color for us.


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## AtlantaKing (Jul 7, 2002)

Rub it in, why don't 'cha  How far upstream were you fishing?


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## Buffalo (Apr 5, 2005)

about 500 yards. there is a small stream coming
down on the Virginia Side.


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## AtlantaKing (Jul 7, 2002)

How do you get down there from the VA side? Do you park at the little lot near the bridge and hike it down the side of the mountain? Is it an easy hike, medium hike, "someone get the rappelling gear" hike?


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## NTKG (Aug 16, 2003)

very easy... 


i think the arlington side is better to fish too


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## AtlantaKing (Jul 7, 2002)

OK. Fark that, rain or no rain, I'm going fishing. Later fellas!


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## Fishbreath (Nov 11, 2004)

Ok, guys, here is the report from yesterday evening once I got out of work. Got there around 6:30 got my DC license along with a few darts from Leslie and hiked up to my favorite spot up the gorge. Leslie had said a nice school of whites had made its way up river. It was still very nice outside, cloudy, threatening rain, with very few folks around. Saw a couple of egrets, fish jumping out in the middle of the river, one solitary boat out there, with an umbrella up. The tide was on its way out, probably a little more than half way. As soon as I rigged up, here comes the rain... No worries, put on the rain gear and went to work. Took a while and had to move around a little bit to find the right water to work. Rain turned harder but at last, fish on! Nice white shad. He took his turn with acrobatics, jumped clear of the water 3 times, doing a nice tail walk with head shaking each time. As I brought him in, I saw he had hit the upper dart (color xxx). Gently released him and went back to it. Got a couple more before it got dark. Also hooked a rock monster! Not a monster rock but a real rock that stole one of my darts  Almost too dark to tie up again, I did anyways, hooked one more fish, a hickory this time. Time to call it a night as it was just about dark. On my way back to the car, I saw what looked like a dog slinking around but with a long bushy tail with a white tuft on the end of it. On closer inspection it turned out to be a fox! I kept an eye on him and he leerily eyed me. Didn't want any rabid animals around as they can be on occasion. Not bad, not great. Seen times with many more fish but always a good time on the river, especially catching feesh.


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