Upper James River Fishing Report - Blog Post #4

Welcome to the fourth of our seasonal blogs for fishing updates on our guided rivers in the Twin Rivers Fishing area.  Summer is on the “run” and early fall is already waiting in the wings.  Water levels are good, water temperatures have already started to move downward from the “bathtub” syndrome, and the weather has started to level off from many of the extreme downpours that we have seen this fishing season.  The sun position has already moved to a lower angle in the later part of the day – this is the first sign to a bass, especially a small mouth, that the season is about to change.  We should have already noticed that it is also getting dark at a much earlier time of the day, another  indicator for the wily small mouth.  The only real problem that we have is the slime that is showing up in many of our favorite fishing holes and areas.  This is, in my opinion, a problem that is principally brought on by mankind’s unwillingness to really address the nutrient overloading in the Upper James watershed.  Gathright Dam has started scheduled “pulses” of dam release or water purging, if you will, this season to help alleviate some of this algae that collects on the stream bed in the Jackson River and Upper James.   The leaves have also started to fall and are creating a few problems with getting crank baits and surface baits to stay in the strike zone for most of a retrieve. 

 

              

Caught by client on a jig & pig           

 

We had the good fortune to have a couple of guided fishing trips on the James during the past week and found the fishing to be quite good – our clients caught and released several good fish in the 2 to 3 pound size class and lost a couple of near citations (the big ones do always seem to get away).  Hard and soft minnow baits usually become fairly successful at this time of year with top-water, a small jig/pig, tubes, and creature baits rounding out the tackle box.  These small mouths will be getting ready to stock up on food for the upcoming winter months and the fall can not only provide for some real beauty on the river but can also provide for some good days of angling.  Keep this in mind:  the gradual lowering of air and water temperatures, the changes in daylight, and the lowering of the sun angle at dusk will cause you to find that your most productive fall fishing will generally, but not always, be in the last three hours of the day.  Take extra care of your fish, respect the river, and keep a tight line.  Contact John or Dan at Twin Rivers if you are interested in a personal guided fishing trip via canoe, kayaks, or raft @ canoevirginia.net/ or 540-261-7334.

Sincerely,

Richard Furman

Twin Rivers Fishing Guide