Sweaty smallmouth: Beating the heat on the Potomac

This rocky area was teeming with life. Crayfish, clams and toe-nibbling baitfish.

On a rare two-night camping trip along the Potomac River over the weekend, I caught five smallmouth bass on a Zoom Swimmin Super Fluke Jr., and one on a Z-Man Finesse TRD worm. I did not land a single fish on a topwater lure despite it seeming like ideal topwater conditions.

So what am I absolutely tying on a rod on my next river fishing adventure?

A topwater lure!

Despite the miserably hot weather, Karen and I camped over the weekend along the Potomac River at one of the Chesapeake and Ohio National Historical Park sites. I fished for eight to nine hours over that time, and Karen even tossed a line in the river for a few hours.

The first fish of the weekend caught on a Z-Man worm.

There was about an hour on Saturday morning where the smallmouth bass were in a frenzy over the ol' Heddon Zara Puppy. Two fish hooked and at least eight blowups.

But I didn't land a single fish. Billy Westmoreland titled his book on smallmouth bass "Them Ol' Brown Fish." I've called them the Roy Jones Jr. of fish. I've also called them the Houdini fish because they can magically escape tough situations.

It's frustrating to a point but still topwater action is still heart stopping and adrenaline pumping all at the same time!

The best stretch of actually catching fish was Saturday afternoon. I figured the fish might feel like I felt and wanted to hang out in the shade. So I waded near the bank and cast toward the edge of the shadows of the trees. The Super Fluke Jr. was the ticket -- landing four fish, albeit only one was in the 12-inch range.

First fish from Saturday after the morning topwater frenzy.

Sunday morning, hoping to duplicate the feeling from the morning before, only one fish sniffed the Zara Puppy, and I managed to land one leaping 10-incher on the Zoom swimbait.

It's weird how that works. The topwater lure brings the most excitement, and the other fish I actually caught are almost forgettable.

It was mostly sunny all weekend with a few patches of puffy clouds. Temps were 95-plus, and water was a tick over 80 degrees.

Next up is likely fishing again with Rainydaze Guide Service. I might sneak in something locally between now and then. But the sister site will have more updates with autocrosses over the next three weekends, punctuated by the UMI Autocross Challenge July 25 to 27.

Sunset on the Potomac River.

The campfire looked like the eyes of a monster trying to rise from the ground.

Karen's first fish from the weekend, caught on a Whopper Plopper.

This was clinging to my hat on Saturday morning -- a grapevine beetle. I named it Paul. It clung to the hat after I put it on and then fled somewhere along the line.

This however wasn't allowed to flee. It's an invasive spotted lantern fly, and we killed a dozen or so this weekend.

No shutout on Super Bowl Sunday!

Smallmouth No. 2 for 2024 caught on a Z-Man Finesse TRD worm.

Karen and I went camping for her birthday this weekend, and I managed to catch one smallmouth bass -- about 12 inches. Got it this morning just behind our campsite on a Z-Man Finesse TRD worm bouncing it on the bottom.

Skies were overcast, and it in fact started to rain lightly before I caught the fish. The water temp was around 50, and the Shepardstown gauge was just under four feet.

I tried a swimbait, too, with no luck. I think I might have had a sunfish nibble, so other than that, the smallmouth bass was the only action of the day.

I fished a little last night but we got to the campground just after the sun had gone down. I can barely see anything in daylight, so I only fished for 10 to 15 minutes.

Looking back on my blog posts (other than for the tens of viewers, I write stuff so I can remember shit), the earliest smallmouth bass I've caught looks like Feb. 25 back in 2017. And this year, I've already caught two. The smallmouth action usually doesn't start until late March.

Here's a short video I captured using my Olympus Tough TG-6 while releasing the fish:

First fish of 2024 on the first cast!

A chunky smallmouth bass on the first cast of 2024!

I got on the 2024 scoreboard early with a Potomac River smallmouth bass on my first cast on Jan. 1. The fish slurped up a Z-Man Finesse TRD Worm that I was working s-l-o-w-l-y on the river bottom. 

On the cast, the worm got snagged initially on a rock or something, but I managed to free it. About 30 seconds later, it felt like I had another snag, but the fish started moving.

The fish was caught with a Mitchell reel made in 1964.

Snags were the story of the rest of my time on the river, though. I had numerous snags and ended up losing five or so lures. I tried a Reaction Innovations Little Dipper to avoid bouncing the bottom but got nothing on that.

The water was a little high -- about four feet going by the Shepherdstown gauge -- and water and air temperatures were both around 45 degrees.

I used a couple rods with classic Mitchell 300 reels, and the one that caught the smallmouth was made in 1964 (serial number 567XX64). So 60 years later, the reel is still catching fish!