Garden State Trout

It's just about that time of the year! As usual the weather has been whacky with warm weather in Jan/Feb and colder weather now. Either way, the fish have to do their thing and you really can't go wrong as we go into April if water temps are above 50 degrees and the rivers are not flooded. I live 10 minutes from a 1 mile section of the Potomac River on the NW side of DC where tens of millions of hickory shad, American shad, white perch, herring, and stripers ALL come to spawn in the spring. There is a series of rapids and a dam that impedes their upstream migration, so they really do get botted up in a fairly small area. The Delaware has a great run as well but the fish do have more room to spread out. Anyone making plans to go out? I just checked my inventory and ordered some more shad darts and shad spoons-its always better to have too many as you don't want to be caught without enough when the run is hot!

I always fish for Shad at least a few times a year. Very fun and a Jersey rite of spring. Last year I didn't get out but once or twice and the fishing wasn't that great. Hopefully, this years run will be better.

They are picking up one here and there in the Big D down in Lambertville, but water temps remain low for now. I will be out in another week or so. I fish above the Gap. A great fish on a 7 weight!

The Potomac is still in the mid 40s but it might spike over 50 this weekend with some warmer weather coming. Shad season is always like this. You are desperate for the first few fish which come few and far between with variable conditions. By mid-late April you have caught so many you are tired of it and ready to move on to other species!

I plan to slip into the SBR today with the 4 weight and try for Shad in the Delaware later this week or over the weekend.

Hey Rusty, Question, How far up can the shad go on the Musky? I know when I was helping to stock back a few years ago there were a lot of dams. Bloomsbury dam was pretty tall if I remember. Bill the mailman

Vance wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 22, 2023 6:34 pm

Hey Rusty, Question, How far up can the shad go on the Musky? I know when I was helping to stock back a few years ago there were a lot of dams. Bloomsbury dam was pretty tall if I remember. Bill the mailman

They get to the base of the 35' tall Warren Glen Mill dam in the Musky Gorge about 2/3 mile upstream of where route 519 in Warren Glen goes over the river. The next one above that is the Bloomsbury dam which the Army Corps has been working on for some 16 years to remove. Typical of Army Corps projects, unfortunately. That said, the Warren Glen Mill dam is currently out for bids for engineering and permitting. The state of NJ is running that show with federal Infrastructure Bill funding. It will be fascinating to see what the chosen engineers come up with for a designed removal. Those working on these projects assume something like an 8" gold mine dredge run over a 3 year period to be the majority of sediment removed above the dam.

As for Bloomsbury, this is the 5th or so year that we have been told it is going out to bid this year. Don't hold your breath!

Rusty Spinner wrote: ↑

Thu Mar 23, 2023 12:45 pm

Vance wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 22, 2023 6:34 pm

Hey Rusty, Question, How far up can the shad go on the Musky? I know when I was helping to stock back a few years ago there were a lot of dams. Bloomsbury dam was pretty tall if I remember. Bill the mailman

They get to the base of the 35' tall Warren Glen Mill dam in the Musky Gorge about 2/3 mile upstream of where route 519 in Warren Glen goes over the river. That said, the Warren Glen Mill dam is currently out for bids for engineering and permitting. The state of NJ is running that show with federal Infrastructure Bill funding. It will be fascinating to see what the chosen engineers come up with for a designed removal. Those working on these projects assume something like an 8" gold mine dredge run over a 3 year period to be the majority of sediment removed above the dam

This will be interesting to see that go. Will open up the river big time

Troutman wrote: ↑

Thu Mar 23, 2023 7:23 pm

Rusty Spinner wrote: ↑

Thu Mar 23, 2023 12:45 pm

Vance wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 22, 2023 6:34 pm

Hey Rusty, Question, How far up can the shad go on the Musky? I know when I was helping to stock back a few years ago there were a lot of dams. Bloomsbury dam was pretty tall if I remember. Bill the mailman

They get to the base of the 35' tall Warren Glen Mill dam in the Musky Gorge about 2/3 mile upstream of where route 519 in Warren Glen goes over the river. That said, the Warren Glen Mill dam is currently out for bids for engineering and permitting. The state of NJ is running that show with federal Infrastructure Bill funding. It will be fascinating to see what the chosen engineers come up with for a designed removal. Those working on these projects assume something like an 8" gold mine dredge run over a 3 year period to be the majority of sediment removed above the dam

This will be interesting to see that go. Will open up the river big time

Warren Glen Mill dam removal gets us another maybe 1 1/2 miles of open river up to the Bloomsbury dam. If both are finally removed, the Asbury Mill dam under the county road is the next blockage, and that will likely be more of a notch in the concrete to better allow fish passage. At least that was what we talked about back when I was involved more directly.

I checked out one of my favorite spots by the Chain Bridge on the Potomac at the extreme northern western corner of Washington DC on Saturday and Sunday. Some smaller hickory shad were around but the action was a little slow as water temperatures are still around 50 degrees here. I had my 7 year old daughter with me and she even caught one and missed several more on a small spoon. She then enjoyed scampering around the treacherous rocks we were fishing from and watching the birds (ospreys, cormorants, etc,) working as well as watching other local kids catching and filleting large catfish. There is a lot for a kid to learn by fishing and just generally being around fishing! You also get an interesting cross section of American society fishing and hanging out together which is good to see. There were even several whitewater rafters hitting the class III-IV rapids-one lady got thrown from her kayak and was luckily rescued from some other paddlers.

Shad anglers are starting to pick some fish up in the Lambertville area on the big D. Temps continue to warm with the warmer and longer days. It should be on like donkey kong in a week or so.

Crazy few hours down here on the Potomac in DC. Bald eagles, cormorants, osprey, herons, and some kind of buzzard working the water while big hickory and American shad were hitting hard. Great two hours on the water! It seems like the bigger fish are coming early.

Is anyone getting out there for shad?? Share stories/pictures!

martalus wrote: ↑

Mon Apr 10, 2023 10:29 am

Is anyone getting out there for shad?? Share stories/pictures!

It's still just a tad too cold water temp wise for steady action. Several friends have been fishing the Lambertville area and north of I-80 area and both have picked up the odd fish, but it has yet to break open. My guess is today on will be prime now that we have low water and warm, sunny skies all week.

Down in DC water temps are in the mid 60s which is fine-problem is that flows are near record lows! Usually I worry about the river blown out/unfishable this time of year, but we are having the opposite problem which makes shore fishing more difficult as fish are hugging the deepest channel in the middle, putting better fish just out of casting range. We are still getting some, but not the 100 fish in two hours that we are used to in mid April!