Potomac River - Leesylvania

Saturday, June 16, Potomac River (south of D.C. out of Leesylvania State Park)

Bob and I are here fishing in today’s Fishers of Men bass tournament – dawn until 3:00. The Potomac is loaded with bass, and it’s expected that many of the tournament’s 52 boats will bring in 5-bass limits. (Our boat is the smallest and slowest of the bunch: 15 ½ feet, 80 hp.)

We know a couple of good spots where we’ve caught a lot of bass in past years, but neither yields a bite, so we decide to just “go fishing.” The grass beds across the river in Mattawoman Creek are being pounded by everyone else, so we select a random UNgrassy Potomac shoreline knowing that nobody else will be there and hoping that that shoreline’s bass will be less cautions than those inhabiting the grass beds.

The strategy works, and we have our limit by 9:30 a.m. We cull the rest of the day and wind up with 11.71 pounds and 15th place in the tournament. The winner brings in 17 pounds and change.

But this day’s story is a pair of mental mistakes by me. (Bob fished great, made no mistakes, and put the two largest fish in the livewell.)

My first mental mistake was when I set the hook on what I thought was a bite in the middle of a fallen shoreline tree. My rod bent double but didn’t move. I saw where the line went – to a limb – and assumed I was hung. I immediately lowered the rod and slackened the line, and as I did a large bass surfaced and spit out my Senko. Lesson: keep the pressure on until you’re CERTAIN that you’re hung in wood and not in a bass’ jaw.

The second one was worse. I was reeling in a quality bass – 3+ pounds – and it was coming in so easily that I didn’t kneel down on the deck of the boat to be at water level ready to thrust the tip of my rod under water to keep the bass from jumping if it were to try to. Which it did, easily, and easily dislodged the finesse worm.

The Potomac River is just loaded these days with bass. The best advice is to just keep moving and changing lures until you catch bass. And you will.

Leesylvania State Park is a great place to launch a boat or fish from shore – tons of room for both. And be prepared to see lots of deer along the sides of the entry road – in the middle of the day.