Upper Potomac

[Nick]

Has anyone been targeting smallmouth on the Upper Potomac this summer? I have been out three times for a couple of hours in the evenings and its been unusually slow. It seems to be better in the morning, but having trouble finding fish high or low... The river as a whole is quiet. 

[Barracuda]

Just got back from about 5-1/2 hours of fishing the UP in my kayak. Nada. Very disappointing. Saw a few small minnows, scared up one catfish, didn't see any smallmouth. Was using fly rod and spinning rod, so it wasn't (only) my mediocre fly casting...

[william garrahan]

I’ve had same experience. Was south of Brunswick and a few weeks ago caught 2 very small smb and 3 catfish on the fly from kayak. I’ve had better luck on Shenandoah and rappahanock . Both are low and clear and I used long casts and long leaders to catch 6-8 fish over 5 hrs.

[Andrew Sarcinello]

I wouldn't call myself even close to being a regular on the upper Potomac, but in the past few years I've done a handful of lengthy float trips in low and clear water.  The consistent theme I noticed was LONG stretches of water where not a single bass would be seen.  I know fish are great at staying hidden when they want to, but it frankly just does not seem like there are many bass in that river in general.  Either that or they just tend to concentrate in very specific areas during low water.  When the biologists do their population surveys though, they find plenty of fish, so it's puzzling to me why it doesn't fish better.

On Wednesday, July 31, 2019 at 6:43:57 PM UTC-4, Nick wrote:

[Jamie Carracher]

This has me second-guessing my weekend plans! 

Last week I waded several miles of Seneca Creek not far from where it enters the Potomac. I saw a few guys come up from the river in motorized boats after they didn't have luck. Seemed desperate considering most of the water I found was 2-3 feet max. I didn't find any bass. I have been there several times in 2019 and Rock Creek fishes better for me. Probably retiring it from my target list.

[Andrew LaVigne]

Have heard chatter at the fly shop (Orvis Arlington) that guides in the region, Potomac especially, are reporting big drops in the population - thought right now is that the high water last year did some damage, but that's not definitive. 

I have not fished the Upper potomac in years; only smallmouth hits for me have been brief wading trips on the Shenandoah and Rapidan.  Shenandoah seemed OK, Rapidan was slow. Virtually no topwater bite there. 

[Rob Snowhite]

I was hoping we'd get some measurable rain last night to raise some of the levels a bit and cool things off. Were having the opposite weather from the past 2-3 summers. I can't complain about the water clarity though. 

Rob Snowhite 

On Friday, August 2, 2019, 8:33:20 AM EDT, william garrahan <williamf...@gmail.com> wrote:

I’ve had same experience. Was south of Brunswick and a few weeks ago caught 2 very small smb and 3 catfish on the fly from kayak. I’ve had better luck on Shenandoah and rappahanock . Both are low and clear and I used long casts and long leaders to catch 6-8 fish over 5 hrs.

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[Jamie Carracher]

Just saw this write up Maryland DNR. Looks like smallmouth are not spawning very well in the upper Potomac. Interesting that when they tried to spawn in a controlled pond the fish didn’t spawn there either.

https://dnr.maryland.gov/fisheries/Pages/smallmouth_bass_stocking.aspx

[darbrewe]

There has also been some scuttlebutt about the the effects of black fly spraying up around the Harper's Ferry area. Got that from a very trustworthy source. I do some guiding for Riverbend Park and can attest to the mediocore fishing. Slowest I've seen in in a decade.

On Wednesday, July 31, 2019 at 6:43:57 PM UTC-4, Nick wrote:

[Owen Williams]

I'm sure I don't know what everyone's been complaining about--fished Riverbend this morning, and those bluegill I caught were (almost) a half-foot if they were an inch. 

River is high and muddy, Did see some fry, and a blue heron was busy. 

On Wednesday, July 31, 2019 at 6:43:57 PM UTC-4, Nick wrote: