JCrzy4Bass

Post spawn and a little short. I would put it between 4-3/4 or 5-1/4. Might have been 5 and a half or 6 before though. Either way good catch man. Again with the picture being so close up it's hard to get an estimate.

Hey Drum, I'm sure there are plenty of wardens doing what they are paid to do and helping out with some of these problems. But I do know of one specific place I go to a lot where I see a lot of stuff that they could be doing that isn't done. So I believe you as far as you making that statement, I just wish we'd see it everywhere across the board like the others are saying. I almost went back to school last year online for a parks and recreation grad school type degree but with the kid coming around I haven't had the time to pursue it. But all of this stuff makes me want to go back and help contribute to this cause. I only hope we can get more and more young people into the conservation and protection type stuff and just teach our youngsters and new fishing buddies what is acceptable behavior when on the water and so forth.

Kevin, in simplest terms and in the nicest way: I HATE YOU! You and your inline spinners! Lol. Dude we HAVE to get out this year lol. I am gonna get your schedule, if we call our free time part of schedules anymore haha, I know we got a lot on our plates. But regardless we will find time to get out and catch some eventually. Maybe we can get the wives to walk around one of the park lake areas and stuff with the kids while we cast, and then we can all go out to lunch or something. We'll figure it out. Keep at it buddy. Enjoyed the post thoroughly. Always enjoy the nature pics that folks take.

Wild write up Andrew. Thanks for the post. I've seen some huge carp out in that cove left of the launch at pohick (all the way at the end of the parking lot where the kayaks launch). My friend and I also saw three gar swimming together last year there when we launched his jon. Wild site. That is crazy that it was trapped in the net though. Looks like you guys got some good fish though, definately one of the more interesting trips I've heard of lately lol. How's the hydrilla and mats doing over there? I know last year at this time it was hard to get the prop through some of that stuff in the shallow bays. Glad to hear ya'll had fun. Keep slayin em' and posting up. Looks like it's actually getting pretty active in here again.

Dan, You hit the nail on the head man. Our fisheries locally are polluted with tons of trash, people are keeping illegal fish (poaching, not in small quantities), and people are taking up entire shorelines by having 5 - 7 rods casted out at one time. No body enforces anything. But god forbid if it's a dead day on the water no one is launching and you are fishing from one of the launch areas, then game wardens are up your behind. I'm not saying that game wardens don't do their job, all I'm saying is LOCALLY in Northern Virginia they could be spending their time much more wisely instead of sitting ina building at the park looking out the window. This is my honest opinion. No disrespect to anyone working in the field in the area. Just people need to step it up and enforce things ALL the time. I think in the three years I've been bass fishing I've had my license checked twice. Once at Burke Lake, the other at Accotink. Some places are better than others but for the most part it's the same old song and dance.

Very cool of you Big - O. Looks like a heck of a fishery and no better way to enjoy it than having a buddy fishing alongside you. Especially someone who has done so much for us. Congrats on a great day Steve and Clay! Those are some pretty fish.

Hey Micro. I saw a ton of bedding fish at the small lake I went to on the resort this weekend. They mostly have green sunfish in there though. They were ENORMOUS. And a lot of them were up in the shallows off of the algae clumps. This is the time to go out there with those bluegill swimbaits and flukes and stuff. I need to try and find some time tommorrow morning if we get some sun today and the rain stops. I work night tommorrow but have to go to the DMV before I can get out. Looks like I'll have to have my Mann's cranks and BPS shallow cranks ready. Good write up man.

Nice fish Va. I'm not the best person at fishing offshore as I'm still learning as far as reading electronics and figuring out good spots. I'd definately like to get better at it though. Gonna need ti for the summer bassin' so I can get my catch rate up for the next few months. What kind of electronics do you run on your rig? We definately need to get out man. I'll keep you informed about the 8th in case things don't work with my guy, if not we will figure something out for later in June like you said. What kind of plastics were you throwing? Seems the only thing I can get bites on that are plastics right now are jig trailers lol. Been killing em' with the jig the last couple months, mostly Boo Yah Boo Jigs with Rage Craw or Lobster combos. Managed a few on tubes this weekend at the resort my wife and I were staying at in Massanutten but no keepers, all dinks. Keep at it man, looks like you at least have some of the puzzle figured out. The size will come. Just wait til' those fat mamas start feeding up good again.

Va, I'll keep you lined up in case things fall through. I just sent Jeep a pm this morning to see if we could get things finalized. Thanks for the response. Don't worry about not getting to me last week man, I was out of town all weekend so I didn't keep up with anyone here either. But I should be checking most days this week on here. I'll shoot you a buzz later in the week seeing what's up.

Hey D, Gonna give you some up front honest info. Lake Accotink has small bass in the 1 - 3 lb range. Anything bigger than that and you are lucky. Unfortunately the best spot is tick infested at the moment as you have to walk through the woods a ways. It's the back side of the lake all the way where the creek washes in. If you cast out at an angle standing at the mouth of it and casting back into the main lake there is a nice drop off. There used to be a buoy marker when they were dredging it, don't know if it's still there but that would mark the spot. Spinnerbaits with big willow leaf blades are perfect for here. My best bait on this lake. The other spot to fish here is the dam, but there is almost ALWAYs someone rigged with multiple catfish poles here blocking it and it's only big enough for one or two people. But any wood over there like laydowns or fallen timber is great. I've caught multiple bass off one log there a couple times. Same spinners get the job done. Inline's even work here. Two entrances to get to accotink. One off Heming ave (back) the other off of Lake Accotink Rd (main) Don't waste your time at Barton. Burke is tough, I'm sure you heard but if your after catfish get you some chicken livers and some circle hooks. Put the chicken liver in panty hose and put it on the hook, holds it on really good and will last a lot more fish saving your fingers the stench of nastiness. Go in the back entrance at dusk and fish the first few hours of darkness with some buddies from the last two handicapped piers in the arm of the lake there. You can catch em' all night. Just be quick to set the hook as these catfish bite and run like you wouldn't believe. Other than that local to your area and your looking at spots like Lake Royal. I don't have a whole lot of info to give you here as I haven't had much luck. The fish I did catch were barely keeper size and they were on smaller Boo Yah Boo jigs with Yum Chunk trailers. Black and blue seemed to work best. I hear downsizing your baits here work well. Maybe grubs, inline spinners, and smaller plastics on jigheads. Stuff like that. Braddock is private, so is Barcroft and unless you have any connections the ponds on Burke Lake road or off of are all private. Woodglenn has some nice fish in it 3+ plus and a good population of 2+ but they are hard to catch from shore. Lipless crankbaits off of some of the points (left of the dam if your standing at the dam) and the dam itself will produce. Haven't caught anything on any other baits there though, though only tried a few times. I'd imagine this place would come alive in a canoe as it would be easier to cover the lake. Hard to walk around the whole thing without getting yourself wet from jumping feeder creeks and stuff. That's all I can think of in your area off the top of my head. I work in Annandale and am constantly trying to find ponds to fish around it because I have hour long lunch breaks. Unfortunately if I do decide to get out by the time I drive, park and walk I get like 20 - 25 minutes to fish royal or accotink. Not the best area unless you have a boat unfortunately. If you don't mind driving a bit further, the bridge on Yates Ford Road (off clifton rd) is part of the occoquan reservoir and my dad and I almost always catch good sized bass there between 1 - 4 lbs. Spinners, jigs, plastics, etc all work well here. Cranks are hard because there is a lot of down cover near the bridge and around it. Be careful and fish slowly, but the fish are worth it. You can park right on the shoulder by the bridge here without catching any grief, or there is a commuter lot with a walkway going down to the bridge. I'll post more later, gotta go. Hope this helps. Good luck!

Sounds good Jeep. If you got the boat, I'm down for whatever you feel is good. I've fished pretty much everywhere here in NOVA, not neccessarily from a boat but my dad and I normally fish the Potomac out of Lees, Anna, The Occoquan River, Germantown. I've been interested in trying both Motts and Abel although they are tough because of limited structure but I know they both have good sized bass. If you have any ideas just let me know. Pm me if you get a confirmation and we can talk options and where to meet up. Thanks for the response man. Look forward to hearing back from you. I can pick up gas since you got the ride too, or launch fee. Whatever works.

Hey guys, Don't got a boat and as most of the regulars on here know I don't have a whole lot of time on the water this year because I got a eight month old at home and I'm trying to manage work, family, friends, and time on the water. So I don't get to get out as often now. But I did get the day off on June 8. Last week a buddy of mine came with me and we split rental at fountainhead. Had a rough day. Fishing this transition of spawn to post spawn is always kinda hard for me. Especially without any depth finder and no gas motor on a HUGE reservoir like that. Not to mention the occoquan isn't my favorite of fisheries, but I am trying to get better at fishing it. Anyway, my plan is to rent again. Either out of Brittle, Orange, Anna or Lake Ridge. I've been trying to get out to Brittle for a while now since they started rentals back up. If anyone is interested in riding up with me and or meeting me up there for a full day and splitting costs let me know. Would be cool to chill with some of you guys. Heck even if a few are free and we wanna do a couple boats and stuff and just meet up and hang out. Just let me know fellas. If anyone has an open seat in a boat and are looking for a partner for that day, that always works too. Later.

Sweet Quanjig. At least if we want "different water" we have an option now. Good stuff. Do you know if there is a launch anywhere in there or is Gravelly the only one up that way? Like is there one by the Harbor Patrol that is public?

Thanks Quanjig, The Washington Channel was actually one of our prime spots we were thinking about if the bite is slow getting around to there. There is a nice LONNNNG ledge where it drops from 4 - 5' to 20+ feet pretty quickly. I hear there is some spadderdock up along here and the spinnerbait is crucial along the ledge and vegetation. Also deep diving cranks were a big thing in the articles and reports I've been reading. I figure if any of the fish spawned up here they won't be far off and if so we may just focus on Hayns point (if the channel, wall and ledge fail to produce). I figure with the three branches meeting up and the current being jammed up (Anacostia, Potomac, and Washington Channel) there may be a good quantity of bass hanging off this point waiting to ambush shad or herring being pushed through. Anyway good info man, we definately will put it to use and we'll let you know how the prefish goes.

Vabasser, Thanks for reading up on that stuff, look forward to hearing your info. Sorry I haven't got around to calling you man, my son has been sick as a dog for two days. Was in the emergency roomw ith him most of the night last night and at urgent care at Kaiser for most of the day today. Some respiratory deal. Anyway, I'll get around to you hopefully tommorrow during lunch pending nothing crazy happens with my son this evening. Hawg, thanks for the info boss. I know the spoils is a heavily fished tourney area and weekend warrior spot so I don't know how far into that we will go, especially since my dad's boat it will take a while to run down to. We are probably gonna hit further north up by the 395 bridge, washington channel, hayns point and such. Anyway, we are saving all these spots as last minute ditches in case we have trouble finding fish or putting together a limit so thanks for the heads up. That point does look pretty money and I figure with all th pressure on the spoils and the spawn being over for the most part in two weeks they may be outside on some of those main river points and such. Good call boss.

Man, what a stringer. Those are some beautiful smallies and a nice looking lake to boot. The Rage craw on a Boo Yah Jig and the Lobster on a Stanley swimming jig have been my best producers for larger fish this year. You're right about the action on those appendages, no other plastic craw flaps like they do. I haven't been out for smallies yet this year, but you gave me the itch now! Great job man, keep slayin' em.

That's whats up dude. You fishing spiderwire, suffix, or what??? Love the braid, it's almost all I fish now except for when I finesse fish.

Va, We don't have Ken's book but I heard it is pretty much the bible for part's of the Potomac River. That would be amazing if you could give it a look through man. Pm me your cell and I'll hit you up sometime this week so we can chat a bit. Later buddy.

Lol. Trust me Dan, I'll have all sorts of wipes and cleaning solutions in my tackle box that day. That part of the Potomac is pretty much a cess pool. And I will be bringing baits that will NOT be used again anywhere else (including tackle like hooks and weights). Anyway, I'll be reviewing that City Limits episode as I know that some of the spots they were fishing will be fair game during our tourney (though I imagine everyone else will be on those too).

Game on! New PB bass caught this weekend on Rage Tail Lobster with Stanley swim jig, 5lbs even. Yea, these work quite nicely The shad is the ONLY topwater bait of it's kind and man will it call bass out of vegetation, brush, stickups, you name it. Find me another topwater plastic that displaces water like these... I fish the Potomac River and it's tributaries and creeks pretty often and this bait is awesome in these areas. Find you some hydrilla and or other aquatic vegetation and you will never want to fish another bait once you see those blowups! The craw and lobster make PERFECT jig trailers and the size and bulk calls out the big mamas. I have been using them exclusively with my Boo Yah boo jis and stanley swim jigs this year and have multiplied my catch rate of largemouths on jigs by at least 3 or 4 X as oppossed to when I was using Yum Chunks and Uncle Josh's pork trailers. They make a difference. And if you think the action is similar to other plastics on the market, I would recommend you check out the video on the Rage Tail site for both the first line of plastics and the new gen. You won't find better action on any other plastic. JMHO.

Hey Va, nice ride buddy. Have to wait til' I trade in my car until I can get one. Lookin' at another year and a half to two year but at least until then I can get out with my dad in his ride or our canoe. We have to hit Quantico still sometime together man, whether by canoe or bass boat. I don't really have any free weekends until June but I know my dad and I were talking about launching the canoe out there one weekend next month and hitting our favorite spot. Maybe you can tag along in yours since you'll be up for the summer? Anyway enjoy that boat dude, next thing I know your gonna be signed up for the bassmaster opens and stuff next spring haha. I'll talk to you later man. Don't be a stranger.

Hey Kev, good to hear from you man. Haven't been on much myself lately but I decided to check it out and see if I saw anybody poking around. Good job out at your little gold mine. Still a shame we haven't hooked up yet but I know how it goes with our schedules, kids, etc. Speaking of, how is the Mrs' and the newborn doin? Mine is almost 8 months now. CRAZY!!! Time flies man. I have some videos up of him on youtube if you go there and type in Sdefreitas23 in the search bar. We have to look ahead a month or so into June and find a day where you my dad and I can all jump in the bass boat and head to the Potomac or Anna or something. Anyway, haven't been out a whole lot but when i have lately I have been catching them on jigs (Boo Yah, Stanley) w/ craw type trailers (Lobster and Craw by Ragetail). Had a little bit of luck throwing T-Rigged lizards too. Getting out this weekend on the Potomac, haven't been all year so I'm pretty excited about that. Then my dad and I are back out there the following week fishing the "Take a Wounded Soldier" fishing event out of Gravelly Point. Should be good times. Anyway take care man, I'll try to be around more and kit. Pm me your number at some point. Lost your contact when my cell fell in the drink late last fall (Buffalo Pond, Quantico).

Does anyone know if Four Mile Run is navigable by bass boat or is it too shallow? Also how are the bridges and pilings up there as far as fishing? I was thinking maybe the 295 bridge (Anacostia FWY) and the cove after passing under may be an option depending on depth/structure and deep water access. I was told by some others that docks with deep water access were good structure around here and that there was a power plant with a ater discharge area where fish can pile up. Just trying to get different ideas. By this point I know most if not all fish should be on a post spawn bite and up around these parts I wouldn't really know what to be looking for in that particular situation. I'd assume we want to find some spots that have quick access to the channel/deep water or drops. I know further up river you have some islands and such too so I know those may be options. We will be launching out of Gravelly Point. If you can help at all it would be appreciated. You can respond here or in the Potomac River DC thread Rondef has started up.

Haven't been out much as of late but I'd say that the spinnerbait bite is on key as I had quite a few short strikes on it last time out (Thursday last week at Woodglenn). I'd use trailer hooks if ya got em' with this kind of water temp and most bites not being that aggressive. Also I normally do really well this time of year on shallow cranks (Mann's style) and lipless crank baits. That being said the only baits I've caught fish on the last two months at local ponds and lakes have been Boo Yah jigs w/ Rage Craw trailers and Lipless Cranks (Sexy Shad, Chart/white). Good luck if you head out this way. I'll be out tommorrow with my dad doing some pond hopping. Will post with basic info on the bite when we get back. Later.

VaBasser, thanks for all the info. Definately comes in handy. I'll write you back here in a few minutes, just got to work and getting stuff up. Andrew, looks like I'm probably gonna can the Buffalo idea just because it gets really muddy around the shore with lots of rain and this weekend kinda soaked us pretty good, plus it's suppossed to rain most of the day today. It's looking more and more like I'll probably try to find a place that has a path of some kind and or harder ground than most lakes/ponds so I don't end up having to trek through mud all day. I'm gonna do some brain storming today and try and come up with something.