Josenhans FF ~ Pocomoke Bass Surprise!

19 02 2011

Jack McHale with his three pound bass

Having just completed four straight days of fishing the Pocomoke River we had another first for my Jones Brothers;  the very first largemouth bass to come aboard my JB. I haven’t fished for bass in quite a few years, as the saltwater scene has kept me busy, and I have to tell you it was a pleasant surprise. While casting small jigs for perch, crappie and the occasional pickerel, we had five bass on Tuesday and three more on Wednesday. The largest was caught by Jack McHale on Wednesday morning and was probably pushing three pounds. The water was so cold (43 degrees) that, try as they might, the bass just couldn’t give us that classic, explosive head-shake. Fun never-the-less!

Pocomoke bass on ultra-light

Pickerel were also present with fish to four pounds, though not in the numbers I had hoped for. I think we boated four on Wednesday and three more Thursday; the largest being a twenty-four inch brute. Yellow perch catches have declined of late. The fish we are catching are good-sized, and beautiful in coloration, but the larger schools of previous weeks have not materialized; at least not for me. I believe the perch to be fast making their way upstream for the spring spawn.

Donna Corddry with a nice yellow perch

Thursday’s trip with Dave and Donna Corddry gave us beautiful late winter weather, but relatively slow fishing. Donna did manage two bright spots on the day with a feisty twenty-three inch pickerel and a gorgeous twelve-inch yellow perch.  While Dave and Donna prospected for fish, they were kept company by bald eagles, blue heron, various ducks and geese. On Friday I fished with George Lenard of Specialized Baits. We quickly discovered that pickerel and perch fishing had dropped off even more. On the bright side, we found a nice school of crappie that were eager to please. We had fairly steady action during the last hour of the ebb tide. Crappie are becoming more active as the water temperature climbs – it reached 50 in spots on Friday – and small 1/8 ounce crappie jigs rigged with a two-inch twister tail did the trick.

Donna's very first pickerel

When the bite is on, this is ultra-light fishing at it’s finest. Catching a four-pound pickerel or three-pound bass on a five or six-foot light-action rod is just plain fun. My favorite outfit is a light spinning rod G. Loomis makes (SJR700) that measures 5’10”   balanced with a Shimano Stradic 1000 reel. Loaded with four pound mono (sorry, I’m old school and don’t care for braid on my ultra-lights), this rod casts small crappie jigs like a dream. Another week or two on the Pocomoke then I’ll be switching gears and moving on to the Nanticoke River for the annual white perch run. I can taste the crispy fillets now! Until then, good fishing!


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Josenhans FF ~ TieFest and Lower Rates!

12 02 2011

I really enjoyed meeting and talking with everyone at TieFest today. What a great event!  Thanks to Tony and all the volunteers who helped make it possible. 

Since I lowered my rates a while back for the Susquehanna Flats, I’ve decided to do the same for the rest of the bay. I’m going to take the same $25 off each trip, so the new rates for Tangier Sound and the mid-bay will be as follows:

Full Day    (8 hours)    $450

3/4 Day     (6 hours)    $400

1/2 Day     (4 hours)     $325

Also, there will be an additional $25 deduction if fishing solo. Gas prices seem to have stabilized so I wanted to pass the savings on to you. I’m looking forward to sharing a great day of fishing with you all this season!


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Josenhans FF ~ Pocomoke River Variety

7 02 2011

I fished the Pocomoke River yesterday, this was my second trip this past week as I’ve been scouting for some upcoming trips. Launched at Byrd Park ramp in Snow Hill. This is a nice concrete ramp with ample parking. The water was clear, although the Pocomoke always has that tannin-stained appearance characteristic of cypress swamps. Sort of like weak, black coffee.

The water temperature was 43 degrees, up from 41 of a few days ago, and I did find one spot on some flats that hit 46. The tide was just starting to flood, so I decided to cast to the channel edges where I had observed some fish marks in ten to fifteen foot depths. Using a drop-shot rig (basically a bottom-rig with soft plastic lures as bait) with two inch white Bass Assassin curly tails I drifted the edges, casting with a slow retrieve. I made certain to stay near the bottom where I saw the marks. The fish were slow to hit the artificial lure, but I did tease-up several plump yellow perch, crappie and even a nice 20 inch chain pickerel. Not bad for just two hours of fishing and looking, with the emphasis on looking.

Matt Abell, a friend who owns Seahawk Sports Center in Pocomoke City, told me last week that while the water is this cold minnows seem to really increase your catch. That said, I was happy with the action and I didn’t have to mess with bait. Weather permitting, I’ll be spending a good bit of time on the Pocomoke during the next few weeks. The fishing will only get better as the water warms and the fish become more active. As you can see from the photos, there is a nice variety to be had here on the Pocomoke and the scenery can only be described as peaceful. Bald eagles, ducks and geese keep your attention while waiting for a bite.


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Josenhans FF Newsletter ~ 1/26/11

26 01 2011

Ralph Bones with a nice Nanticoke river white perch

I guess you’ve figured out that I haven’t been doing much fishing, what with the lack of reports and all. I expect to be on the Pocomoke and Nanticoke rivers starting the first week of February casting for yellow perch, crappie and hopefully some hard-fighting pickerel. Contact me for some mid-winter fun casting for perch and pickerel on these beautiful eastern shore rivers. I am offering a six hour trip for the ridiculously low price of $250. I’ll even supply the coffee and donuts! Don’t forget the March white perch run on the Nanticoke river out of Sharptown. I’ve had a lot of interest in these trips since I started them last season so space is limited. Contact me soon to secure your trip. I’ll post a report on my blog the evening of my first trip on the Pocomoke. 
 
I have decided to lower my rates for fishing the Susquehanna Flats to match my fees for the mid-bay/Tangier Sound areas. As gas prices seem to have stabilized, and the fact that I will be rooming locally, I have decided to pass this cost-savings on to you, the client. I would hate to see anyone miss out on their best chance at catching a trophy rockfish on light tackle. See my revised rate schedule at  http://josenhansflyfishing.com/page05.html
 
In my last newsletter, I mentioned a new “cost sharing” plan that I will be offering this season. If anyone would like to share the cost of a trip with one or two other fishermen, please let me know and I will place you on a “call list,” so that should the occasion arise, I will put you in touch with each other so you can work-out the details. If you send me an email, write down the time of year, and specific area that you would like to fish. I think this will work out well for all involved. 
 
Don’t forget about TieFest, the CCA Kent Narrows Chapter Fly Show to be held at the Kent Island Yacht Club on Saturday, February 12th. I’ll be there, as will Lefty Kreh, Bob Clouser, Bob Popovics and other big names in the world of fly fishing. Hope to see you there!
Good fishing!!
 

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Josenhans FF ~ New blog address

23 01 2011

Change in my blog address

Old: https://josenhansflyfishing.wordpress.com

New: http://josenhansflyfishingblog.com  

Either address will get you to the site. Thanks, and hope to have some cold weather reports soon!


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Josenhans FF News ~ Woods & Waters

17 01 2011

A new opportunity has presented itself in the world of outdoor writing, as I have recently accepted the position of Maryland Eastern Shore Regional Editor with Woods & Waters Magazine. For the past 24 years, Woods & Waters has published hunting and fishing reports, along with informative “how to” articles for sportsman of Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia.  The magazine is published monthly, with distribution from the Mason Dixon line south to the VA/NC border, west to West VA and east to the Virginia Coast. This will be the first glimpse that folks on the Eastern Shore will have of this popular magazine.

My job will be to keep you updated on local events, fishing news and current catch reports from the mid-Chesapeake Bay, Tangier Sound and adjacent tidal rivers.  The coverage area may eventually expand to include  freshwater and ocean fishing. If you have special events, club meetings or “hot” fishing information that you think might be of interest to our readers, please drop me an email at kjosenhans@aol.com and I’ll do my best to get it published. As for access to the magazine, you may subscribe or pick up a complimentary copy at participating vendors. Distribution should begin soon, and I’ll post an updated list of vendors where a copy may be obtained. For more information, visit the Woods & Waters Web site at www.woodsandwatersmagazine.com

The Regional Editor position with Woods & Waters will not take time away from my full-time guide business. I look forward to fishing with all of you during the coming season…Kevin


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Josenhans Newsletter ~ 2011 News

12 01 2011

Happy New Year Everyone!
 
I hope everyone enjoyed a healthy and safe New Year with family and friends. There is a lot happening at Josenhans Fly Fishing and I will attempt to bring you up to speed in short order.
 
First off, I will be working two shows in February. The annual TieFest held by CCA’s Kent Narrows Chapter will be held on Saturday, February 12 at the Kent Island Yacht Club in Chester, MD http://ccamd.org/chapters/MD06/TieFest2011(F).pdf
Hours are 9:30 am to 6:00 pm. This is a great event for any fishermen, but is a must see for those that ply the waters of the salt with a fly rod. I plan to be working the G. Loomis booth so make sure you stop by and say hi.
 
A second show in the works is The Greater Philadelphia Outdoor Sportshow http://www.sportshows.com/philly/index.html The show will run Thursday to Sunday, February 17-20 at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, PA. Again, I will be manning the G. Loomis booth but I don’t know which days just yet. I will keep you posted.
 
Starting in March, I will be offering white perch trips on the Nanticoke River out of Sharptown, MD. The guys who tried this last year had a great time! Granted, we tipped our small darts and jigs with a bit of bait, and the best rig of all was a plain hook baited with fresh bloodworm, but this is a great way to shake off the cobwebs of winter and maybe take home some fresh fish for the pan. Nothing better than fresh perch and there is usually plenty of action! The best part is the price – still only $250 for six hours, with bait and ice included.
 
While we’re on the subject of fees, after five years with zero fee increases I have had to raise some of my trip rates for 2011. Gas and other expenses have made this a necessity if I want to stay profitable. That said, I now offer more trip options, so for some, your actual out-of-pocket expense may stay the same. Here are my 2011 rates for Tangier Sound and the mid-bay area:
 
Half Day 4 hours – $350
3/4  Day 6 hours – $425 
Full  Day 8 hours – $475
 
Rates are for 1-3 anglers. See my website for Susquehanna Flats and CBBT rates at http://www.josenhansflyfishing.com/page05.html
 
The full day trip gives me more flexibility to try different places that might produce fish, but to some of my clients that was too long of a day. The flip side is that four and six hours might not give us tide or conditions that produce the best fishing. Either way I’m sure you’ll have a great time! Let me know which trip option works best for you.
 
Also new this year is my “cost sharing” plan. I have had a lot of requests from single(in the numerical sense) anglers looking for someone to share the cost of a trip. If you are interested in the details of this trip, please contact me via email or phone. I will try to hook you up with someone in the same boat, so to speak.

 

Back to the fishing, as we enjoyed such a great Susquehanna Flats C&R fishery during April last season, I have decided to get a slip and keep my boat close to the action during 2011. It will probably be located at the Havre De Grace City Yacht Basin, but I will let you know for sure once I drop the boat off. I hope to have enough charters booked so that I’ll simply stay up there for two or three weeks. Let me know if you are interested in this super fun fishing experience!
 
Finally, as you are probably aware, I have started a fishing Blog. My goal is to post every fishing trip in the Fishing Reports category so you have access to the most current fishing information – good or bad. I will also be posting all of my e-newsletters in the Newsletter category. Not every fishing trip will be posted in the newsletters. If you subscribe to the Blog, you will automatically receive an email every time that I make a new entry. It’s free, and you may unsubscribe at any time. If all works out, my intention is to have e-newsletter recipients switch to the Blog subscription and cancel their e-newsletter. If you subscribe to both the e-newsletter and the Blog, you will receive the same information twice. I appreciate any feed-back as to how this process works for you. You can reach the Blog at https://josenhansflyfishing.wordpress.com/ and there is also a link on my website.
 
Well I think that’s all for now. Stay warm this winter and I hope to see some of you at the shows.
 
My best,
 
Kevin

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Josenhans Fishing Blog Updates

1 01 2011

I am in the process of updating my blog with newsletter archives from 2010. If you have already subscribed to the blog, you are probably getting bombarded with updates through your email account. I apologize for this. Please bear with me while I attempt to work out some of the kinks of learning this new program. I think once I become familiar with the programming,  you will enjoy the up-to-date fishing reports and newsletters.

Incidently, for now at least I am going to keep the fishing reports and newsletters separate. The newsletter is currently a weekly to bi-monthly publication that I also send out via email. I will try to update the fishing reports as the trips occur. This will give blog readers more current fishing info. I may be changing the newsletter to a monthly publication if I can get the daily reports into enough readers hands.

Thanks for your patience and please feel free to send comments on the site.


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Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

24 12 2010

Wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas and a healthy and Happy New Year! I hope to be doing some backwater fishing on the Pocomoke River for pickerel, crappie, yellow and white perch, and maybe a stray bass or two. If you are interested in a mid-winter fishing trip please drop me a line.


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Welcome to my fishing blog

24 12 2010

Welcome to the new fishing report blog of Josenhans Fly Fishing. We are a full-time fly and light tackle guide service fishing the Chesapeake Bay, and the coastal back bays of Maryland and Virginia.  I will try to keep these reports current and interesting to the best of my ability.  Please feel free to post your replies, questions and comments. Thanks and good fishing!

Capt. Kevin Josenhans


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