basser89

And I believe I know where those fish were placed and I've fished there once. I lost a GOOD one on that outing too. LOL!

Thanks for the clarification Dramer. For some reason, I was thinking the lock gates on the lower section had little to no water around them (the one on the toe path side had a little from what I remember). When did you catch bass out of the upper section last? I know when the hurricane came through last fall, something happened that caused the upper section to be all but completely drained. I believe I had post after one of my friends sent me a few that he had taken. The pic I had taken looks at least 3' low, which didn't leave much water for any of the larger bass to survive. When I was there, I saw a couple small bass (maybe 8") but that was it.

Why was I thinking the lake the state record was caught is now completely dry?

Congrats to your wife! I've been by kemps mill a few times but never wet a line there. I had to make a run to my storage in Williamsport the other day and swung by the C&O. Sad to see they drained the lower section of the canal as well now. Looks like they're doing something to the lock, not sure if they're going to get it back to working condition again and actually re-connect the 2 sections? No matter the reason, looks like that fishery won't be good for a number of years.

I've done it on a musky rod. I typically fish for them from shore and for a quick reference, I've marked (with a piece of blue duck tape) 3 lengths on the rod.

Nice rig you have Allen! That explains why you stick to Big Slackwater and 4 Locks! My jon would defintely draft shallower than yours. That is the reason I can put in at Taylors, Snyders and even Williamsport (when I do get it out). Even when I run my little 15HP, I'm constantly watching the fish finder and reading the water for shallow spots. Anything less than 3' and I slow WAY down or drop the trolling motor until it gets deeper. Had to let the registration run out (since I'm still on the job hunt), so it's in storage until then. Hopefully things pick up and I can actually get it out!

Yeah, I am too. The river level was pretty much spot on where I like it too. Glad to hear school is winding down. Hopefully it won't be much longer til you can wet some line!

Thanks for sharing the videos BMBass! I managed to pry myself away from the pc/job hunt yesterday morning for a short outing. Headed down to PEPCO to "cheat" a little by fishing the warm waters. LOL! They were running the water but no takers. Not sure if the fronts messed them up or if it had to do with me getting there later in the morning. Fished the channel until the kayakers started making their runs and was cut off by someone fishing out of their boat. To try to salvage the outing, popped up to the canal. Managed one keeper size largemouth on a Kinami stick bait. Surprisingly, it was tucked up next to the opposite shore. Had to skip the bait back under some over hanging branches to get back to him. Would have liked to have fished the area a little more thorough but just ran out of time.

I have a stretch in the upper Potomac (actually north of Harpers Ferry yet) where I have had some success catching walleye. This time of year, don't overlook the shallow waters as well. I've made that mistake before. I was out with one of my friends one time (for a morning outing: 8am-12pm) and we came up on a stretch that I thought was "unproductive water". I put the trolling motor on high to get past that 2-3' zone for some deeper water. Next thing I know, we're scattering a huge school of walleye that were holding on that flat. Needless to say, we didn't catch any of those fish. Water temps that day were 34. You mentioned you hadn't seen any walleye shallow, had you checked water that is as shallow as I mentioned above? I'll add, that spot was a rocky shallow flat just below an inside turn.

Good to see you post Allen! I have had some success at Black Hills over the years. The past year or so, I have practically lived there since I was living and working in Germantown. Unfortunately, I was laid off from the job that I had for almost 20 years. Since the beginning of October, I've been on the job hunt and moved to Frederick. Obviously, the job hunt has been my main focus since then. I have really enjoyed meeting several on the guys that post on this thread (which was the whole purpose of me starting it) and I would love to be able to commit to setting up a get-together but my priorities are on finding a job right now. I do have a good lead that I'm currently pursuing, and if I do land the job, I would be happy to set things up! As far as boating goes, I do still have my boat, but to save costs (mainly storage), I have it "stored" at my Dad's in PA. Once I have a job again, I do plan on getting it back down here and I would have an open spot as well.

Pagliaroj, can you give us an idea of what you'd like to learn? As you may have figured out, everyone has their own unique style of fishing and to help serve you better, it would be helpful to know what you're interested in learning (whether be it fishing the Potomac for smallies or other bodies of water for largemouths). There are a lot of options for you around Hagerstown (I used to live in Sharpsburg and Williamsport) so while your options open up with a farther drive, just know you don't have to travel that far for different waters to learn to fish! It's really sad to hear they cancelled the outdoor show in Harrisburg. Having grown up about 45 minutes from Harrisburg, I can't remember them ever cancelling it before. I did have the chance to get out the other morning for a few hours. As I mentioned, I did hit PEPCO. The levels were all but perfect for how I like to fish there. While I didn't find any decent smallies, I did catch 5 small ones on cranks. They were pumping the warm water too (they better have with the temps that morning. LOL). So I am finally on the board for 2013 now.

That does surprise me vendors are pulling out. I did make it over to BPS today. Finally picked up my license (good to know you can use gift cards for them, lol), a couple lure wraps, a new pair of fingerless gloves, 2 cranks that I've been wanting and a pack of spinnerbait skirts that MIGHT aid in replacing the one spinnerbait that's discontinued. I thought I had a spare frame that wasn't in use but I can't seem to find one. I do have a chatterbait that I put one of the skirts on, I like! I checked the weather and the river levels, I MAY try a morning outing at PEPCO. Looks like the temps will be in the teens in the morning, so I'm really glad I picked up those gloves!

I bought a Powell Diesel (7'2" MH/XF) last year for my froggin rod. Absolutely LOVE it! Great rod for the money IMO!

I believe I've been up there once since I bought my boat there back in '97. LOL! At that time, there wasn't much on the freshwater side (other than the guides as Brian mentioned). I'd love to see them put a freshwater section in equal to what Timonium USED to do.

My success using the Rage Tail Toad has come using a 5/0 Gamakatsu Deep Throat Wide Gap Hook. http://www.***.com/Gamakatsu_Deep_Throat_Wide_Gap_Hook/descpage-GDTH.html Unless they are short striking, nipping at the legs only, I have a good hook up rate. If the bait starts swimming "belly up", I'll pause the bait for a 3 count and it rights itself.

Hey Kevin, doesn't look like I'll be able to make it this year. You'll have to let us know how it was! How's the leg feeling? I'm guessing it's all healed by now.

Well aren't you nosey. LOL! Here's some info I found...... CABIN CREEK BASSMASTERS Type of Event: Fishing Flea Market Event Date(s): 01/19-20/2013 Event Time(s): SAT 9am-4pm,SUN 9am-2pm Admission: adults $4.00 kids under 12 free Location: WASHINGHTON COUNTY AG EDU CENTER Address: 7313 Sharpsburg Pike Boonsboro, MD 21713

Brian and I have talked about this before as well on some of our outings and I may have mentioned it before on this thread as well but I feel it's worth repeating for some of the newer members. I can definitely agree with Brian's assessment that fishing at Dickerson has been tough the past few seasons. From talking with another one of my friends, this is where the levels that I mentioned above come into play. Due to the warmer water the power plant generates the D.O. (dissolved oxygen) in the water is too low for bass and other species to survive in the discharge area without some amount of cooler water mixing in (it didn't make sense to me at first either since the water coming into the channel seems to churned up enough to distribute enough oxygen to the fish). My friend did ask this question to a DNR biologist and he did confirm this case. The river levels the past few seasons, when I have had the opportunity to fish Dickerson, have typically been below the "minimal level" I mentioned above. One note that may be helpful if the levels are low is taking a walk down past the discharge channel. I will add there aren't a lot of spots to fish from shore effectively but there are a few. Brian, I can tell you the last time I fished PEPCO (at the end of November) they were pumping the warm water.

Unless I'm fishing extremely heavy cover, I use a trailer hook. If I'm fishing muddy water, I'll add a large grub to add a little bulk to the profile. Even with the grub added, I still use a trailer hook.

SPEED, the address is right. Brian's note is correct too.

There used to be 2 warm water discharges around. From what I've been told, the power plant in Williamsport has been shut down but I have not been able to confirm that for sure. The second is at PEPCO in Dickerson. PEPCO is off of route 28 just south of Dickerson. At the light (used to be a signal but now its a blinking light) turn on to Martinsburg road. You'll come up to the entrance to the power plant, not where you want to go, head down the lane and a half wide road. At the end of the lane and a half wide section, stay to the right on Martinsburg road. You'll go down a hill and into a wooded area, Just as you start into a left hand turn, you'll see a road that heads up into the woods, take that road (there is a sign that says something like Dickerson conservation area). Follow that road all the way back to the parking lot and you're almost there. From the parking lot, you're about a 10 minute walk up to the path that leads you down to the warm water discharge. Be careful on the path, it gets VERY swampy! To avoid the majority of the "swampy stuff", keep heading up the C&O trail until you get up behind the PEPCO itself. You'll see another path that will lead you along the fence line to the discharge. It's as easy as following the fence line to the actual discharge area. I've mentioned it before but will note it again to keep you from searching back through this thread. I'll start by saying I follow the Hancock Potomac river gauge. For me, the ideal time (or should I say river level) is when the gauge is at 4.5 feet or higher (not the best when it gets above the 8-9 feet zone because it limits the areas you can actually fish). By the way, the gauge is currently setting at 8.5 feet and rising. When the warm waters are pumping, I've had success with cranks and jerkbaits (I've had friends even have success with top water too). If PEPCO isn't pumping, then I'll switch to soft plastics (tubes produce best for me). Hair jigs have produced for me as well but I will warn you there are tons of jig magnets (ledges, rocks and even wood to get hung up on in there). Hope this helps! PM me if you need any additional info.

I knew this was coming up but wasn't sure when. I believe Allen (Munkin) is a member of the club. I MIGHT be able to go on sunday. I'll have to check to see. Does everyone know where this is? If not, its basically between Sharpsburg and Hagerstown on route 65.

Hey JP, the are several members in and around Montgomery county! I frequently fish black hills and sections of the upper Potomac (mainly in Washington county) as well as smaller bodies around the area.

Rippin-lips, Brian's directions are spot on for Big Pool. Also, if you're up for some shoreline fishing there too. There is pond just past the road that takes you to Big Pool that has bass in it as well. Dramer77, Black Hills is definitely worth a few visits in the spring for sure! The bass in my avatar is my PB and I caught her at Black Hills in mid-March a few years back. While spinnerbaits are my go-to bait in the pre-spawn, that one came on a lizard.

Let me add, that I take my time tying the knot to ensure I tie it properly and make sure that I wet the knot thoroughly. I believe that's the key to the success I have with the palomar.