I fish the shad run on the rappahanock river every year this year instead of fly fishing for them I know there are things called shad darts that people use to catch them. Does anyone use them if so how do you fish them? Or are there better lures for it if anyone could give me some feedback it would be appreciated thanks

Just work them back at a fairly quick pace jiggling the rod tip a bit. For working hair jigs and shad dart type baits, I like to tie them with a loop knot for more action. We would occasionally rig a double rig with one ahead of the other. Don't be surprised when you hook into one if a big striper comes up and grabs it!

Just work them back at a fairly quick pace jiggling the rod tip a bit. For working hair jigs and shad dart type baits, I like to tie them with a loop knot for more action. We would occasionally rig a double rig with one ahead of the other. Don't be surprised when you hook into one if a big striper comes up and grabs it!

Ok I will thanks

Along with hundreds of others, I shore fish for American shad that run up the Connecticut River starting in late April.

 

95% of the time I throw an 1/8 oz. shad dart on 8 lb. mono with a varying amount of weight 18" up the line. I don't believe color is important - as long as it's bright. Weight varies because depth is important: You've got to find where the shad are traveling in the water column.

 

Re retrieve: Cast, engage the reel immediately, get the slack out and let the dart swing on a "dead drift," i.e., at the same speed as the current. If you're not hooking up, try reeling slowly throughout the swing. At the end, you may want to "hang and twitch" before retrieving for your next cast.

 

All darts in the photo below ( except those at 12:00, 1:00 and 2:00) I made from a Do-It mold. As you can see, the type of finish and the tail dressing varies.

 

 

When I'm not throwing a dart, I swing a spoon in the current. The style of the bottom four in the photo is called a "willow leaf." The upper four are "1" tiny spoons" available from www.lurepartsonline.com. I like these a bit better because they have a somewhat sturdier hook.

 

 

Hope it's a good run for you this year!