Here's where I don't write about the fish I caught but how I caught fish. It's been three years since I started chasing them brown fish in Maryland and Pennsylvania rivers and streams, so this might be a weekly column revealing some of my knowledge to the three or four people who actively read my blog.
The last few weeks on the Potomac, I fished different pools without success. But then when I went back to the same area and threw lures at a different angle, the fish started biting.
Maybe it was just a different time and the angle of the moon and the solunar tables just aligned.
Probably not. After three years of chasing river smallmouth bass, maybe I'm starting to identify some patterns.
Exhibit A from The One That Got Away:
Parked downriver in the current below that rock, a plastic worm, swimbait and a topwater lure launched into the middle of the pool didn't catch a a thing. Not even a bite.
I trudged upriver past the rock formation and landed one or two fish. Then I waded down right where I took that picture -- and cast the lure to the top right and worked the worm parallel to the rock and slow water.
The action was hot for awhile. There was the One That Got Away plus landing three or four smallmouth. All because I think the presentation was different.
On Sunday, I fished a similar rock formation that split the current with fast water running along either side. The water downriver from the rock created a slow, swirling pool. Really fast water all around, but there was that enticing pool of water.
Again, casting a plastic worm toward the far side and working it parallel through the pool of water, I had a ton of action. I only landed one fish but had several misses and hooked one briefly that looked to be in the 14- to 15-inch range.
So that's the tip for today: Sometimes when an area looks "fishy" but you can't entice anything, try a different presentation.
The last few weeks on the Potomac, I fished different pools without success. But then when I went back to the same area and threw lures at a different angle, the fish started biting.
Maybe it was just a different time and the angle of the moon and the solunar tables just aligned.
Probably not. After three years of chasing river smallmouth bass, maybe I'm starting to identify some patterns.
Exhibit A from The One That Got Away:
 |
| A typical river rock parting the water. |
Parked downriver in the current below that rock, a plastic worm, swimbait and a topwater lure launched into the middle of the pool didn't catch a a thing. Not even a bite.
I trudged upriver past the rock formation and landed one or two fish. Then I waded down right where I took that picture -- and cast the lure to the top right and worked the worm parallel to the rock and slow water.
The action was hot for awhile. There was the One That Got Away plus landing three or four smallmouth. All because I think the presentation was different.
On Sunday, I fished a similar rock formation that split the current with fast water running along either side. The water downriver from the rock created a slow, swirling pool. Really fast water all around, but there was that enticing pool of water.
Again, casting a plastic worm toward the far side and working it parallel through the pool of water, I had a ton of action. I only landed one fish but had several misses and hooked one briefly that looked to be in the 14- to 15-inch range.
So that's the tip for today: Sometimes when an area looks "fishy" but you can't entice anything, try a different presentation.
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