TOXIC

Just for future reference.....I always get them mixed up because a White Crappie in Dominant or spawning mode turns almost black....but they both taste great. Ways the White Crappie Differs from the Black: The dorsal fin is set back further on this species The coloration is generally much lighter, especially the back The dorsal fin has only 5-6 spines, compared to the black crappie which has 7-8 visible White crappies tend to have a bit more of an elongated body This species is more tolerant of murky water It is common to have these 2 species of crappie actually breed with each other creating hybrids, so in this case you could end up with mixed signals about what species you are looking at. Using these tips above you should have no trouble determining the difference between the black vs white crappie.

297 is always a favorite as is 305 Baby Bass. Yamamoto now has Perch and Goby colors as well. I stay with the natural colors except for the Yamamoto DShads. I throw those in Bubblegum. Smallmouth in the spring tear those up weightless dragged like a tube on a 4.0 Ewg Gamakatsu hook.

IMHO 2 different tools for 2 different tasks. It's all in the name....Power Pole "Shallow Water Anchors" and Ultrex or Ulterra for "Spot Lock". You can't use spot lock in 2 feet of water bed fishing or on the Potomac to hold you in the thick weeds/current and Poles or Talons do you no good 15ft of water.

When it turns on in the Aquia Creek area, it'll be lights out for at least 2 weeks.

I always go back to what an Elite Series angler who is a friend of mine has told me over and over.......Don't get too hung up on color, I separate my colors into 3 groups that get progressively darker.....1. Clear Water 2. Stained Water 3. Muddy water. After that there are some universal colors that work in more than one category.

There is no replacement for time on the water.......period.

If you want to be successful on the Potomac River you have to fish at least 1 pattern..........Tide. You have 2 options once you find what tide the fish are feeding on, incoming or outgoing. Then you need to find the fish or groups of fish and fish the tide. You either run with the most productive tide fishing different spots all at the same time in the tide cycle or you get on a productive spot and wait for the tide to turn the fish on. The river is one of the only places I have seen where the fish will absolutely stop biting on the tide. And I mean completely stop... So we usually run with the most productive tide because we want to catch fish all day not just in a window of time. Tournament anglers will get on a good pod of fish and wait out the tide for 5 quality bites.

A manual plate is supposed to be a set it and forget it installation. You get more speed by moving your motor back out of the turbulent water created by your hull. You may gain a little reduced plain time but normally a plate does not help in shallow water. Your only adjustment is with your trim/tilt. Now a Hydrolic plate will allow you to raise the entire motor up when in skinny water. I have a 6 inch hydrolic plate on my 21 foot Ranger. I can get on plane in 3 feet if I raise the plate up. If you want to get to plane faster in skinny water you are going to need to go to a hydrolic plate, trim tabs or a whale tail on your motor. If it were me I would go the whale tail route with a good unit from a custom manufacturer. Then you can set your plate where it needs to be and get the benefit of the plate and the whale tail will help you in shallow water. As for setting your plate you need to start at 3.5 as has been said and raise it in small increments to get the best performance.

Let's hope this is the year they get it done. Rock the Red!!

I had friends out on the Potomac Friday out of Hope Springs and at the end of the day the wind was so bad that they had 4 foot rollers inside the creek going under the tressel to the launch. A guy in a brand new Skeeter who was pre fishing the creek took off to go back to his truck/trailer and as my buddies were loading up he came back in white as a ghost. He said there were 6 footers out on the main river and that he was a Lake Erie guy so he was sure on size. He said there was no way he could make it back. He tied his boat up at the dock and one of my buddies drove him to his truck/trailer at SMALLWOOD!! Kudo's to him for making that drive for a stranger!! Fishing for them was t-o-u-g-h. 5 boats no bass. They did get a striper, catfish and a snagged shad. I went out with them on Saturday and although the wind was down we had bluebird post frontal conditions. I managed 1 bass all day (in Quantico Creek) and there were 3 other bass caught all in Accapo Beach area. Big tournament out of Smallwood and they ALL went North and tore them up. Some good bags were weighed. Too bad we are so centered on down South. We may launch on the base this Saturday and run North. Water was pretty stained from the winds Friday. That's the thing about the Potomac, they can be on fire in one area and lockjawed in another.

Keep us posted on Ice Out and water temp. I'm a little concerned about our end of May trip to St Clair and the late spring. Y'all need some warm weather up there!!

There is usually an art to filling. Every boat is different. Some can take the nozzle straight in and full blast. Others need the fill nozzle upside down and a lot won't take full blast withought belching fuel. When I fill, it's upside down and about 1/2 speed. I keep my ear close to the nozzle because as it gets close to full, it will gurgle to tell me it's getting ready to spew like a baby eating peas. I always try to fill at high traffic stations (manuvering can be a problem) because marina gas is usually a lot more expensive. When we go to Michigan and are on the island with no stations, I use this:

Also as part of your tire maintenance you need to occasionally coat them with 303 Aerospace Protectant. Helps with premature dry rotting. I also cover my tires and fenders since my boat will not fit in my garage. I go 4 years on a set of tires no matter how much tread is left on them. I trailer a lot and also keep them at max pressure.

It's really great to see so many Senko fishermen and the different rigs. To the OP, I can relate to the current via a super tide swing in Florida. When the tide is moving it rivals a swift river. Other than fishing the breaks and eddys, when I was in Florida, I learned to use a Bullet screw in weight in the nose of the Senko. You have to rig it a little different to get enough plastic forward of the hook eye to grab with the weight but it is very effective. I also use that method here on the Potomac. I use a 1/4 oz football head jig, hook exposed, to drift fish in Michigan on St Clair. Deadly technique. I use a 3.0 EWG in a 4 inch Senko and a 4.0 in a 5 inch. That helps in keeping them from gut hooking. Gamakatsu makes a weighted wacky hook as well.

Awesome!!

Just to be clear, I wasn't trying to be a jokester but it's no different than saying "I bought a new car how fast will it go". The devil's in the details.

And just as an FYI....Senko's have no scent and we know how tough it is to catch a fish on those. Dip em, Dunk em, inject em or slather them, if it gives you more confidence....go for it.

I have some of exactly what you are looking for but can't for the life of me remember where I got them. I pulled them out in desperation while in Wisconsin last year when I couldn't get bit on a dropshot or Ned rig. I put a 5" Yamamoto Pro Senko on it and drug it down dropoffs. Got all my fish on it. Here is SpotSticker Jig Head Magnum 4/0 1/8oz 5 pack but it is 1/8. I'm pretty sure that will work as well.

Make it stop. I'm ready for spring/summer.

I don't care where the connection is, on any exposed wiring I solder and heat shrink every connection. Bad connections or bad grounds are 99.9% of all electrical problems. Those connectors have no place on my rig. They make me cringe. Through the years, I have pulled hundreds of those off due to failure. You may be ok for a while but they will fail. Just know to look at them first when troubleshooting. I also am a big advocate of Dielectric Grease. Especially in open connections like the trailer to truck pigtail and all of my graph connectors. I also use it on my soldered connections before I heat shrink.

Because the bass do not all spawn at the same time, it is possible that those that have set up metabolically to be an early wave will not spawn. Depending on species, some will reabsorb their eggs because they will not drop if the water temperature is too cold. They know instinctively that the brood would not survive so they hold them waiting for the right temps.

I'll be on the Potomac Saturday and all of my intel says they are ready to go and that the cold weather hasn't pushed them off their shallow water staging. The rain Friday should be a warm rain and will only help. Just hope we don't get too much. Hitting the pre-spawn big mammas on the Potomac is a BLAST "if" you can time it right. Red Rattletraps to the rescue!! And no, the Dogwoods haven't bloomed yet!!

You are right. It is a simple question.....so simple that an accurate answer is really not possible. I think you have a good idea from the responses that you have been given.

Another option (from a croc wearer myself) is the Shimano Evair.

I go to Michigan every year for Smallmouth and wear them out on SPRO Little Johns (original size) with the squarebill computer board lip. Olive Shad, Nasty Shad, Cell Mate are a few of the colors I never leave home without.