Weekend fishing report

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There's good and bad news for our region's anglers this weekend. It begins with a success story. Montgomery County fisherman Ron Huffman, fishing with a live minnow under a bobber at Rocky Gorge Reservoir last Saturday, hooked a 2-3/4-pound crappie. Friends, a 2-3/4-pound crappie is a trophy anywhere in the country. The Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission ranger, who patrols Rocky Gorge and its sister lake, Triadelphia, said it's the biggest crappie he'd ever seen at either reservoir.

And the story gets better. After the fish was witnessed, weighed and registered at WSSC's Brighton Dam office and snapshots were taken, Huffman let it go. What a guy!

On the bad news side for anglers -- not the fish -- the Maryland Department of Natural Resources' Keith Lockwood says the rockfish in the Chesapeake Bay right now are spread out over wide areas, gorging themselves on something called May worms, also known as clam worms. Lockwood says the worms are polychaete worms that live in mud and oyster bars on the bottom of the bay. They can grow to 5 inches but generally are 2 to 3 inches and appear similar to bloodworms. If there are plenty of them, why would a fish want to snatch up an artificial lure? That means your fishing for the smaller size stripers might be a little tougher for a while.

All is not lost, however. From his popular Tackle Box store in Lexington Park, owner Ken Lamb says the Southern Maryland chum boats are gathering on the Middle Grounds and catching rockfish, many up to 27 inches. Also, schools of breaking stripers are seen in some areas between Point Lookout and Point No Point. Now remember that the croakers fishing can be fine. In the Potomac River's Wicomico, around Bushwood, boat renters routinely catch limits of 25 "hardheads," and other locales report similar success.

As far as the bass fishing is concerned, one trip a few days ago was one of the best in years for me as Strike King's Zero worm, fished Texas-style without a slip-sinker in weed pockets south of the Mattawoman Creek, resulted in a bunch of bass.

(Ratings key: = excellent fishing; = Good; =Fair; = Poor.)

AREA 1: D.C. AND VICINITY

0-35 miles (...) -- Ray Fletcher of Fletcher's Boat House (off Canal Road, 202/244-0461) reports there are still some medium stripers hanging around his river portion and some of the boat renters use cut bait to catch them. Ray says the catfish and bass have been cooperating even in mildly discolored water. The fishing guides, Andy Andrzejewski (301/932-1509) and Dale Knupp (301/934-9062), have done very well. Some days they're fishing north of their usual launching places, such as Marshall Hall, or heading south when they come out of Mattawoman Creek. In every instance, they find bass in main stem and feeder creek weed beds and marsh edges. Scented worms, especially "fat" worms that are fished without slip sinkers, have been outstanding producers. Topwater buzzbaits and poppers will definitely be struck in overcast weather or at the dawn hour -- anytime the sun isn't baking the water. Pontoon boat captain Steve Riha (804/224-7062) finds croakers north and south of the Route 301 bridge in waters that are 20 to 30 feet deep. Store-bought shrimp and strips of squid on weighted bottom rigs do the job. Croakers are biting very well in the Wicomico River as boat renters out of Quade's Store in Bushwood (301/769-3903) connect on limit catches. Good catches of croakers are the rule south of the Wicomico in the Potomac on either side of the shore. White perch are beginning to show up as the perch have finished spawning up in the District and now are entering creeks as far down as the Port Tobacco River.