Fendercaster

The tidal portion of the Potomac is an excellent largemouth fishery. Although redfish aren't found that far north, you can catch several saltwater species as well as largeouth in the tidal Potomac.

The Walmart here (Milledgeville, Georgia) has a pretty good tackle selection and comes in very handy since it's open 24 hours. Of course, Lake Sinclair is only five miles up the road and we have no Academy or BPS here. There is a BPS in Macon, an hour away, but for my every week needs, Walmart is fine. I wish they carried more high end rods and reels, but I don't see that happening. With as many fishermen as there are around here, it would be crazy for them to discontinue their tackle department.

posted by James_Heddon: I've got to agree with this, a right hand retrieve feels perfectly natural to me, for both spinning and baitcasters. I do play guitar right handed, though.

posted by George Welcome: I wouldn't rent a defibrillator from Roland if I was having a heart attack ! If it's Alabama or Florida, I might be able to make it. Might have an empty seat, too. I've only got a Tracker, but it floats and moves!

Posted by: fireandice I'll second that! I have one and it still works fine after 15 years, but it's relegated to the catfish locker.

justfishin- You must be in Allegany or Garrett County? I know black bears are making a comeback and becoming a nuisance, but I'm still surprised that there's a hunting season for them. Even though they only allow a few to be harvested, are there really that many in western Maryland now?

I'm sorry to hear that, I've had stuff stolen and it's no fun. I hope you're able to replace it soon and get back to fishing!

justfishin - I don't know what you saw, but the most logical explanation would be an otter or beaver. If you were fishing out on the Bay, I'd say you had an encounter with Chessie! What quarry were you fishing? I've heard some stories about the quarry near Dickerson.

I was fishing a dock on Lake Sinclair recently when another boat came in and started fishing the other side of the dock, maybe 100 feet away. Now, on a lake with 400+ miles of shoreline, don't you think he could have found another dock to fish?! You can't fix stupid!

Hey, Mike, Welcome to the party! I haven't been a member very long, but I have found tons of information and useful tips here. When I was stationed at Lackland in the early '70's, I used to fish Calaveras Lake, a bit southeast of San Antonio. It was there that I first got really hooked on fishing for largemouth, most of my bass fishing at home (Maryland) had been for smallmouths. Have you fished Calaveras? There was great bass and crappie fishing when I was there, just wondering if it's still a good spot. You never know when it's time to make a road trip! Again, welcome to the forum. Scott

I, too, am very patient (maybe stubborn!) when I'm fishing. I'm not a gun 'n run type, I'll fish an area extensively. I am most confident throwing soft plastics, usually to the exclusion of throwing anything else. I see this as one of my weak points, if I'm not getting bit, I should try something else! My casting accuracy is getting better and I'm learning to set the hook after the first tap. (My fishing buddy says that the second tap is him tapping my shoulder saying "You just missed that fish!) My next challenge is learning to fish big water, I finally have my boat here (I recently moved to Georgia) and I'm looking forward to fishing Lake Sinclair.

Is the owner going to show you the hotspots? I've fished with a guide a few times, he charged $300 for a six hour outing. So, $25 an hour sounds a lot better than $50, but I would hope you would have a good expectation of catching some fish!

I'm a route driver, delivering chips and other snacks. A good job for me, I can pretty much work my own schedule as long as all my stops are done by the end of the week. I stayed out 'til 3:30 this morning catfishing, so I took the day off and will work Saturday if I need to. On the weekends, I'm a lead guitarist/bassist/vocalist in a couple local country/classic rock bands.

I have a Stalker, too. Just throw it in the back of the truck, load and unload by myself. Best investment I've made in a long time!

If the larger fish had totally swallowed the two pounder (and its tail wasn't sticking out the larger ones mouth), would it have counted as one fish? I expect many tournament bass have been weighed in after having recently eaten.

I second moloch16's suggestion of taking along some live bait, worms or minnows, for the kids to fish with. If you want to get the boys interested in fishing, nothing will turn them off faster than sitting in a boat and catching nothing. Even catching small bluegills will be a thrill for them and will help to promote their interest in persuing fishing as a lifelong hobby. As for your fishing, all the other suggestions are good. I would also suggest fishing for smallmouths (I presume they are in your lake) with light tackle and Roostertails or similar small lures. They worked for me in Maryland and even small fish will give you a fight on light/ultralight tackle.

Back in Maryland, I loved to float the upper Potomac and fish for smallies on ultralight tackle. A 10 or 12" fish can give you a great fight. Occasionally, I'd go catfishing on an ultralight, you might lose a few on 4 lb. test line, but it was loads of fun. I'm looking forward to flyfishing for lagemouths here in Georgia, that should be a challenge!

I have a 9 1/2 foot Bass Hunter, similar to an uncle Buck. It is very stable, I've been rocked by large wakes, no problem. As xjbmx said, they are great for ponds and small lakes and are easily loaded/unloaded by one person. I think I'll take jdw174's recommendation and try to make a rudder for my boat, it is easily influenced by current and wind.

I would expect that since it is for the Cast For Kids Foundation that it is a legitimate request.

An aluminum jon boat with a small gas motor and a tiller trolling motor/battery and trailer shouldn't weigh more than 7-800 pounds. You should be able to tow this with no problem, your only problem might be pulling out of a slick, steep ramp.

Welcome to the forum, I'm new here myself. If you take Route 28 to Dickerson, there are several good places to fish from the bank. If you're coming from Germantown, take Route 118 to 28 and go north toward Frederick. You can take a left on Martinsbug Rd. before you get to Dickerson (go left at the flashing light at the 90 degree turn on 28) and there is a public fishing area a mile or so down there. Also, you can go through Dickerson and take a left on Mouth of Monocacy Road, about a half mile past Dickerson. Follow it to the end and you'll see the Monocacy Aqueduct. The Monocacy feeds into the Potomac here. Both places have paths that lead to the bank, you should be able to find some quiet space for yourself and your daughter. Catfishing can be good, best at night, and there are plenty of bluegills to be caught. Smallmouths are the predominate bass here, for largemouths you can fish the tidal Potomac from DC southward. For the Dickerson area smallies, Roostertails fished on ultralight tackle works well. The fish aren't generally very large, but are a lot of fun to catch on ultralight. The catfish will take nightcrawlers or chicken liver. The water gets extremely low during the summer if you don't get much rain, but there are some deeper spots that will hold fish. Farther upriver near Harpers Ferry, WV, you can find some larger smallies in the pools, wading is a good way to fish here. Hope this helps, good luck!

The usual, hook in the leg requiring a trip to the ER. Also, Sunday of last week I was in the boat for eleven hours. My feet were so badly sunburned I couldn't put shoes on until Thursday. Now, with the peeling, my feet look like they have leprosy!

Do they?

I don't kow about fish, but I've eaten crab balls back in Maryland!

Right now, it's about 75% with a buddy, 25% alone. I just got a little pond boat that is easy to load/unload by myself, so I'll be able to fish more by myself. My Tracker is still in Maryland, I hope to go up and get it next week. When I do, I'll fish it in larger lakes, 100% of the time with a partner.