Casting Clousers for striped bass produced another species that showed up during a gorgeous morning!
A quick report from a morning of fishing that began at 5:30 a.m. wake-up and lasted about four hours on the upper Severn River, in the Round Bay vicinity. With a relatively weak tide, I didn’t expect much current, but the winds and fish activity picked up once the sun rose above the horizon. Though I was fly fishing for striped bass, it would be another fish that presented itself and accepted my offering. Thank you, Mr. Perch!
With the “fall season” opening on September 1 for striped bass throughout Maryland waters, I was finally able to find time for a first outing this week. The night before, I worked on my leaders, meticulously tying them and prepping some extras to have on hand. I loaded my 8w fly rod with an intermediate line, a fresh leader, and tied on a black Deceiver fly. The plan was to fish this a foot or so under the water’s surface at low-light dawn, around points and grass beds. And when the sun rose, tie on a Clouser and fish around docks in deeper, 5 to 10+ foot zones.
Motoring to my first spot was a pleasant ride with ducks, geese, herons, gulls, and cormorants all sighted. A great start to today’s Severn experience. With barely a puff of wind at my back (from the north), I decided to make a quick pit stop for a few practice casts around an open sandbar point. A good chance to get my casting arms and legs back. Then it was onward to higher hopes of actually catching fish at another point in the river that harbors significant grass beds. Of note, the grass beds are beginning to thin out.
Water temperature still hovered between 80F and 81.5F in the areas I fished. I worked the Deceiver with short, fast strips, but not a striped bass in sight to take it. I tied on a small Clouser and drifted the boat along the outside edge of the point in 5 to 7 feet of water, where a small school of white perch showed itself by taking the fly. This provided some early action and light fun for short spell.
Having played a few perch that were about 10” in size, I scratched an itch, but it was time to move into the main play of the day. I switched Clousers, upsizing slightly while still matching the hatch—in this case, schools of peanut bunker and bay anchovies swimming about, mostly at the ends of docks. And work the docks, I did. For the next couple hours, I cast between and around several stretches of docks. I worked one line of docks north to south with a favorable, gentle wind providing an accurate drift. For another run, I moved to the leeward side of the river, so I didn’t have to contend with the wind. This area harbored a massive amount of bait, which I stalked and casted around and around. Sadly, I never marked any larger fish lurking, chasing, or striking these bait balls. I waited around for a bit, but never saw the marks on side-scan sonar that I was hoping to. Sigh.
Having made a hundred-plus casts, and feeling fairly confident with those casts, I chalked up this morning to yet another of applied practice. The fish will come. And though reports from up and down the river suggest the striped bass are present and active (especially under the docks), we’re still quite early in the autumn game. The fishing will surely improve. Until then, thank you Mr. Perch for providing some extra fun on an otherwise gorgeous morning.
See y’all on the water again, real soon!
