Lucky Number 13

Ever since coming up with the idea of catching a fish in each county in the state of Maryland I have been torn on the rules. Of course since it is my quest I was the one who made up the rules. The "problem" is bodies of water that separate two counties; in particular the stream that leads out of the Wye River Community Lake. One side is in Queen Anne's County while the other is in Talbot County. I have caught many fish from it but I consider it to be Queen Anne's since that's where I park. I've told myself that I would be "cheating" if I simply walked across the small bridge and stood on the other side. I mean it's been said that:

So I couldn't just walk over.





With all that being said May 13th I drove down to Salisbury to visit with my sisters. It was cool, air temps in the low 50s maybe and we had received a good day and a half of rain. On the ride down I stopped at the Wye Mill stream to see if I could get a bite. It was still drizzling and despite trying a couple of things there wasn't any action. I packed back up and started again when I noticed a sign for a boat launch. I had seen it before but I decided to drive down that way to see what it looked like.

Amongst the drizzle and the very high tide I thought: "Tidal river, water is up - maybe there's a few white perch relatively close to shore?" I tied on a 1/8 oz Strike King Bitzy Minnow crankbait. On the ultralight spinning rod, I've been using recently, that bait can be cast a good distance. It's also a sinking bait so it does a nice job attracting fish as it wiggles its way through the water. Standing on one of the piers closest to the shoreline I made long casts and began reeling. I added a pulse or even stopped reeling on the retrieval. On the fifth or sixth cast, the line went heavy and I gave it a good tug. After a minute I had a small white perch in my hand and another county under my belt.

That brings the number to 13 out of 23, and three added in just over a month. Here's to getting another soon! Until next time ... Tight lines!

St. Mary's Lake Slam! But at a Price...

What was going to be a wrap up of my Easter Break adventures in fishing took a bit of a bad spin this morning. I can say that I have enjoyed the break by getting a chance to visit a couple of new locations and I've caught a good number of fish. But for the want of a $8.18 (according to the Walmart website) item, I have mixed thoughts about my true enjoyment of the long weekend.

This morning, Tuesday morning, I got up at normal school day time and headed down to St. Mary's Lake. As I drove down to the launch I spotted a friend preparing her kayak as well. Julie* is an avid kayak angler and does a very nice job. We talked a little and then went to park our vehicles. Upon getting back to the launch I noticed that she had small pieces of foam on each of her three rods. I thought to myself "What a great idea, I should look into those." But then I thought "My homemade PVC rod holder does a nice job" and I paddled off.

Typically when I head out on freshwater I have three rods rigged with different baits. I usually have one for panfish with a small jig, with a soft plastic, under a float. Another rod will usually have a hard plastic bait on it like a crankbait or a Rat-L-Trap. This morning it was the bleeding minnow Rat-L-Trap. The third rod usually has a finesse presentation like a Carolina rigged worm or a dropshot. I can change baits as I go along since I carry a small tackle bag with me as well. I began by paddling to an area I don't hit often and made casts with both the small jig and the Rat-L-Trap.

Nothing bit so I just continued down the shoreline until I found one small area that looked promising. Another cast, with the hair jig, to about 4 feet from the shoreline, into 3 feet of water, and the float went down. I reeled down and brought in a nice 8 inch redear sunfish. He/she was pretty thick so I figured some babies would be coming soon so I released it. I paddled around some more trying the various presentations I brought. The hair jig wasn't producing any bites so I changed it out to a jig and plastic critter from Johnson's. Again no real bites, so that rod went into the rod holder.

The Rat-L-Trap solicited the next good bite. I would make longer casts and let it sink. Then I'd rip it up from the bottom and crank in some line and let it sink again. On one cast it got hit and I was able to boat a 15 inch chain pickerel. It was released as well and I paddled a little further on.

As I approached the point directly across from the launch I tried the jig again and did catch one crappie. Not the biggest fish, but a third species in three fish. After that fish I grabbed the rod with the dropshot tied onto it. It's not my most confident technique but I want to spend more time with it this year. I'm using VMC Spinshot hooks since I found some on sale. It got hit on the third or fourth cast by the typical "bite bite thump" and I figured I had a largemouth. As I reeled it in I found that I had my second pickerel of the day. I released it and paddled further on.

I came to another area and went through the progression of baits again. I started with the hard bait, with went unsuccessfully. I switched to the jig to no avail. When that didn't work I placed it in the rod holder, which is the reason for this entire post. My rod holders are homemade out of 1 inch PVC pipe. They set in the scupper holes behind me as I paddle. I've become adept taking rods out and replacing them without much trouble. Until today... As I placed the rod with the jig in the holder, and went to pull out the rod with dropshot, the handles became entangled together. And as I pulled one rod out the car went into the drink. I saw it go under but was completely too slow to catch it. I tried to hold my location to feel around with the paddle but alas I figured it was too late. So as I mentioned at the beginning of this post, for the want of $8.18 rod floats, I'd still have one of my rods. Would I say it was my favorite rod? No! Was it a terribly expensive rod? No I actually found it on a dock at the end of a day last summer. I put a new reel on but it wasn't really expensive either. What I liked about the rod was I considered it my "travel rod." It was short enough to fit in the back end of my Prius or the trunk on my wife's car without any bend in it at all. It could be stowed anyway easily and it did a nice job. But all I can say now is "It's gone."

After mentally kicking myself in the hind parts for about 15 minutes, since I couldn't literally kick myself on the kayak, I paddled to another area and did catch one small bass, maybe 11 or 12 inches long, on the Rat-L-Trap, for a total of five fish on the day, with four different species. Hence the "grand slam."

But the experience taught me: an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Or in this case I could have saved some money. Until next time...Tight Lines!

Julie* and her family are the owners of Hard Head Custom Baits, a local tackle company that makes jigs and lures for jigging and trolling. 5% of all of their sales go to Heroes on the Water, a non profit that takes veterans on kayak fishing outings. You can find them at Hard Head Custom Baits as well as on FaceBook as well.

Easter Break is Here!

April 13th and school is out for a few days. With Easter being a little later this year, and state testing pretty much starting right when we get back, I only have Thursday through Tuesday off. So with that being true and my nephew getting married on Saturday, my family and I aren't going out of town as usual. With all of those factors, I decided to try a few spots in Maryland in an attempt to add a few counties to my "Fish Across Maryland" quest.

This morning I woke up at my normal time, 5:10, and went through my regular routine. I left the house around 5:50 or so and began the trek to Smithville Lake, in Caroline County. About a two hour drive across the Bay Bridge down Rt. 404 until I was basically within spitting distance of the Maryland/Delaware line. The Maryland DNR website mentions that the lake is an excellent spot to catch largemouth as well as other sunfish. Being the Eastern Shore of Maryland, I was hoping to get into a nice chain pickerel while there.

I put the kayak on the water just after 8 am. I had a golden colored jerkbait tied on one rod and decided to begin with that. The pond had large areas of lily pads and I thought I'd make long casts on the edges. On the third or fourth cast, I hooked up with something and reeled down to make sure I didn't lose him. After a minute or so I had a 10 inch largemouth as my first fish in Caroline County. Two pictures and he was released to swim again.

Having driven 2 hours to get Smithville, I wasn't just going to paddle back in after catching my first fish, especially since I caught him after being on the water for only 10 minutes. I paddled around for the next couple of hours casting a 1/32 oz jig with an orange soft plastic "critter" from Johnson's. It paid off with nine other fish, split between bluegill and black crappie.

Most of the fish I caught today were towards the northern portion of the pond. I wanted to try the other end so I paddled that way as well as let the wind push me. There were a few others fishing down that way; but I only saw one other person reel in anything. Around 11:30 I decided that I would start to head back to the launch when I spotted an old tire sticking out of the water about 6 ft from shore. After a few big tugs, and lots of muddy water in the kayak, I brought it home. A few of the other anglers chuckled as I went by joking "I didn't know kayak anglers needed a spare tire." Nevertheless each one also said "Thanks." Like the app* I heard about a few weeks ago says "Cleaning the planet one piece at a time."

Until next time...Tight Lines!
*App name: "Litterati."

The Quest Continues...

My fishing quest that began in March of 2015 is still underway. I never entertained the idea that I would be able to catch a fish in each of the 23 counties in the state of Maryland in ONE year. It's been since September of last year since I've added a new county, but hopefully that will change in the near future.

Today my youngest son had a track meet just outside of Washington, D.C. in Bethesda, MD. I dropped him off at the school just before 7 am and began my drive that way. As I went around the beltway I spotted a sign for Wheaton, MD and remembered reading about a spot called Pine Lake in Wheaton Regional Park. Once inside the park I met a gentleman walking a trail and ask for directions. About ten minutes later I was at the side of pond. Another man was already fishing and mentioned he wasn't having much luck. I wished him "Better luck" and walked down a little further.



The pond looked to be about five acres. A few woods surround it on one side, with a small dam on the northern end. The water today was mocha-colored and I don't think the small "fly" I had tied on one rod was very easily spotted. I had tied a dropshot on another rod, but I decided to switch to a small Rat-L-Trap "Bleeding Shiner" for the noise it would make.

I made a few casts along the shoreline near the dam. After the bait hit the water I'd let it fall, yank it up a couple of times, reel in some slack line and let it fall again. It was on the fall from one cast that it got hit. The fight wasn't terribly long. But nonetheless I had my fish for Montgomery County! After a couple of photos I released it. I made a few more casts to no avail and then realized I needed to head out to the track meet.




I am pleased with the outcome and am looking forward to getting another county during Easter break which begins in three days. Until later ... Tight lines!

No fish were caught in the writing of this post

Well I guess I should add to the title of this post - "not yet hopefully."

I'd like to take a little bit and tell you about something I've been doing recently regarding "fishing tactics or techniques." As I mentioned in my "2016 Year in Review" post, I've been spending some time at the bench trying to learn how to "tie flies." My setup is very crude in the fact that I am using a utility clamp and ring stand from my classroom. I don't have a bobbin or a "whip finishing" tool. But I think my creations, as I like to call them "Mr. Ugly Flies," are at least functional. I know that they work as I have caught fish on them. So let's talk about my latest project.

A couple of weeks, maybe even a month by now, ago I was paddling back to the launch on Lake Lariat. As I came across the main portion I spotted something sparkling in a tree limb, just above the waterline. I headed that way to find a "Booyah" spinnerbait minus the plastic skirt or any other trailer. I brought it home and placed it on my fishing bench. Monday night, when I couldn't get to sleep, I headed down to the bench and took a little sandpaper to the hook itself to remove most of the rust. After that I grabbed some thread, I'll remind you I'm a beginner and haven't gone out and bought expensive supplies yet, and I laid down a base trying to raise up the area just behind the head. I continued the thread base back until the point of the hook began to be a problem.

Now as mentioned in the "year in review" post, I still had a little bit of buck tail given to me by a student. (And I've got a story about that for later.*) I figure most bait fish have a light colored underbelly; so I used the last bit of the white tail for the underside of the spinnerbait. Now I'll admit that I may have used too much thread on making sure the buck tail stayed in place. But as I've mentioned I'm a beginner.




After I had the buck tail in place I cut a couple of pieces of "Flashabou" from the package and added them. I tried to fold them over so that I'd have two strands on each side. Once again it was difficult to work with them as I was also trying to keep the wraps tight and other material from getting in the way.

The "Flashabou" is a silver tinsel type of material so I hope attracts some attention. It's hard to see in the photo but again I hope it helps.



At that point I turned over the bait, remind you a spinnerbait, so that I could add some chartreuse "unique hair." I cut some off of the stock and did my best to tie it in so it covered most of my thread on the later half of the hook.

I cut it so that the ends of the chartreuse and the white match. But I may go back later to try and add a little shape by curving the white to the chartreuse.

Not having true "head cement" I used a touch pick to apply a couple of small drops of Super Glue. And I left it there to dry. I'm not sure when I might use it for the first time. In fact I'd love to see it in action under the water. But I'll keep everyone posted on how well it works. Until then... Tight Lines!

* As a footnote, or the story I mentioned: As a teacher I have spoken to multiple students who I know are "outdoorsmen" shall I say. I have mentioned that I would be willing to pay them a nominal fee if they brought me the tail of a deer that they harvested this season. Unfortunately they have either forgotten or haven't taken any deer. One day a former student who I know well walked by and asked if another student had brought one by recently. My answer was "Not yet, and I need some tail." Now I'm a 48 year old man working in a public high school. That wasn't the best expression to come out at that time, especially in the middle of the hallway. Fortunately, or at least I think fortunately, no one else heard it. Or at least I can say I don't think they heard because I still have my job. Enjoy your time on the water everyone...

This weekend's fishing adventures

Until my opportunities to fish become more frequent, I am going to put the "This Week in Fishing (T.W.i.F)" posts on the back burner. But that doesn't mean that I'm not going to try and update the blog here and there.

This past Friday, January 20th, would have been my father's 87th birthday if he was still with me. He and my grandfather used to take me fishing on Virginia's eastern shore for flounder during the summer. Friday was also a two-hour early dismissal for our school system since we just finished the second marking period. Swim practice had been cancelled for the day, giving the team a nice day off before the championship season starts. Despite the temperatures in the upper 40's and the slight drizzle, I decided to take the 10 minute hike out to the pond in the Hughes Tree Farm. Armed with the same small Arkie jig and bright green soft plastic "Hot Worms" I was able to catch a half dozen bluegill.

Saturday, I woke up and saw that the weather conditions had not improved very much. It didn't matter though. My plan for today was to get some things done around the house; cleaning the pellet stoves, some of the boy's laundry as well as straightening up the basement some. After that, just after lunch, I was going to head down to Lake Lariat with the kayak. The morning went fine and there wasn't any rain so I set out on the lake.
As I left the finger of the lake coming out from the launch I spotted a bald eagle flying away from me. There is a pair of eagles that have a nest along the lake and I see one, if not both, each time I paddle out. Today I came around one small bend and got a good look as one flew off. Its wingspan looked like it was at least 6 ft across. They really are beautiful birds. Unfortunately as you can see from the photo, I didn't get terribly close for good pictures.

As I paddled along I was using a 1/32 oz Arkie jig with a 2 inch copper tube.
I really like the tube and jig combination since it seems to catch both panfish as well as bigger ones like largemouth or pickerel. Today it paid off with a a couple of small, 9 inches or less, bass as well as a couple of bluegill. But the best fish of the day, and the year so far, came on the paddle back towards the launch. I made a long cast along one shoreline and allowed the bait to fall. After a couple of seconds I reeled in the slack line, as I was drifting towards it, and felt that it was heavy. A nice yank and I was fighting my biggest largemouth of the year. Measuring 14 inches, it wasn't a monster by any means, but it was nice to get a bigger fish this time of year. After releasing it I began my paddle back to the launch.

To end the weekend I had an errand to run to the industrial park in the mid county. There are two small retention ponds right at the entrance. I've spent a little time there in the past, predominantly in the summer. It holds bluegill as well as some largemouth. Today I had a small jig with the Berkeley 1 inch minnow. I didn't get many bites but I did managed two small bluegill in about an hour.

Considering the overcast skies and drizzle for much of the weekend I was pleased with how I did. Next weekend should be a lot less since I have a wrestling tournament to work. So until next time...Tight Lines!

A quick Fishnerd moment in closing: 19 fish since January 1st - most of them being bluegill.

Bennett O. Hughes Memorial Tree Farm

Well, we are midway through January and I haven't done much writing recently. Much of that comes down to the fact that until today I had only caught one small bass at the private pond that I like to frequent. Also for a couple of days there was a good inch to inch and a half of ice on most of the water in our area due to a cold spell. Not knowing enough about ice fishing, I didn't dare to even try. But today all of the water is open and I headed out for a little bit. I started at the same private pond and managed to catch on nice size crappie. I caught it on a 1/32 oz jig with a Bobby Garland "monkey milk" baby shad. I thought that I wouldn't have much more time until my wife let me know that the serviceman for the washer wasn't coming until after lunch. So I decided to give another location a try.

The Tree Farm

Last year in May, I tried a location that a former student, now an officer in the Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources, told me about: the Bennett O. Hughes Memorial Tree Farm. Located off of Clay Hammond Road, a little east of Prince Frederick, MD, the area was donated to Calvert County in 1986. Today it serves as an example of a tree farm to demonstrate sustainable forestry. Mr. Bennett Hughes, himself, once served at the State Department as a Forest Advisor. He moved to Calvert County in the early 1950s and purchased the wooded area which is now home to the tree farm. The area has multiple hiking trails that allow visitors to see the area. Just recently some tree are being harvested.

About 10 minutes along one of the trails you come to a small, maybe one to one and half acre, pond. There is an earthen dam as well as a drain leading out of it. I figure that the pond is home to the typical species of bluegill, crappie and largemouth; but in all honesty I have only caught bluegill there. The pond itself is prone to "duckweed" which grows to be quite thick, so I will probably only visit in the winter and early spring months.

Today I was using a "Gulp Minnow by Berkley" in the black shad pattern on a 1/32 oz Arkie jighead on a small 5'6" spinning rod. I had the baits suspended about 3 feet under a float. I would make my casts out and slowly bring it back in towards me, pausing even few cranks of the handle. I ended up catching three bluegill, with the largest being just about 6 inches in length. I returned all of them to the water, and plan on making the walk out here multiple times after school, once the swim season is over.

On the way back to the car I stopped off to pick up a few pieces of trash that had been left behind. A couple of them were along the shoreline and as you might be able to see, had been there a while.

Until next time - Tight Lines!!