Fly fishing this area from boat

[Craig Aubrey]

Hi, all. First time poster here. I recently took up fly fishing (I used to fly fish a bit, but that was 15 to 20 years ago). Anyway, I recently took a couple casting classes and have been Fly fishing from shore And a kayak in the lakes around Burke. 

I also have an 18 foot center console and was interested what kind of opportunity there was around here to fly fish with it. It doesn’t have a trolling motor and would be a huge hassle to outfit it with one.

I assume there’s opportunities over in Chesapeake Bay, but I was wondering if there were Opportunities in the Potomac, At least during certain periods of the year.

Would love to get people’s thoughts.

For someone that’s just starting again, I do have access to several rods. 4, 5, 7, and 12.

Thanks,

Craig

[Sean Fine]

Hi Craig,

It all depends on what type of boat you have. If it’s fiberglass, I wouldn’t take it to the Upper Potomac—I’d use it farther south. There’s a ramp at National Airport where you can run upriver to the Fletcher’s Cove area during shad season and also have some luck with schoolie stripers then. There are also opportunities for stripers (rockfish) farther south on the Potomac.

As for the Chesapeake Bay, with an 18-foot boat I’d stick to areas close to shore. There are good options out of the South River and Magothy River, both of which are easy to trailer to.

I have a 22-foot Panga that I fish for rockfish from on the Eastern Shore. I’ve had some great trips, but unless it’s calm, I usually stick to Eastern Bay. Unfortunately, fishing has been declining in the bay over the years, and I try not to target rockfish anymore. The bluefish are starting to move up the bay, and by late summer you can get into those, which is a lot of fun.

Hope this helps,
Sean

[Craig Aubrey]

Thanks, Sean. This is super helpful! It’s a fiberglass hull so wouldn’t be going above Georgetown. 

I bet blues are a blast.

Craig