West Virginia Crew Does Well on Chesapeake Bay

There are few things better to recharge one’s batteries than a weekend getaway.  When that trip involves good friends and good fishing, it doesn’t get much better.

The first weekend in May has become an annual tradition for a group of guys in Elkins.   Known among themselves as the"Annual All American Auto Center Fishing Trip" a dozen guys, including myself and my 13-year old son Hank traveled to the Chesapeake Bay to ply the waters for the annual striper run.

"I always call the West Virginia group the ‘good luck group’," said fishing guide Ryan Rogers. "It’s the third year they’ve been with us and the third year we’ve caught our limit.  I always look forward to the fellowship and a good group of guys."

Rogers captains "The Midnight Sun" out of Smith Point Marina in Reedville, Virginia.    During the early part of the year he’s targeting stripers, but his is a year-round operation.

"I like to tell people when they ask me what my favorite fish is, the next thing running is my favorite fish," said Rogers after we finished a productive day on the water.

Each lure is hand-tied by the crew of the Midnight Sun

Rogers operates his charter service for stripers, but as the summer progresses the blue fish move into the bay.   Eventually he moves the operation to Virginia Beach and offers trips in search of tuna, shark, amber jack, spadefish, and other pelagic species in the blue water.  Autumn will find the Midnight Sun back in the Bay in search of flounder, rockfish, and other species that make late season runs.

The key to any fishing operation is finding the bait.   Rogers keys his patterns on finding large concentrations of bait fish and attacks accordingly.

"A lot of times you’ll see a pelican hit the water or a large sea gull that we call a gannet.  That gives it away where the bait is hanging out," said Rogers.

However, in the case of our trip conditions were foggy and visibility poor meaning he’d have to rely on his electronics.  Either way, once you find the bait you find the fish.

"When the fish finder would light up with a ball of bait, it was great.  I could almost call the fish," explained Rogers. "You’d see the bait ball, see the fish, and bang you’d get a bite.  I could almost call the fish."

Using two planer boards stretching about 50 feet off both sides, the Midnight Sun dragged 22 lines rigged with parachute setups of 9-inch Sassy Shad in white and chartreuse colors.   Fish roamed the upper water column and bit nearly on the surface. 

By the end of our trip, everybody on board had scored one big striper and half of our lineup caught two.   The fish ranged from 33 to 41 inches in length and weighted around 30-pounds.     We would up catching 18 and losing two on the day.

Fishing out of the Smith Point Marina offers an advantage to anglers.    The marina is situated on the mouth of the Potomac River where it dumps into the Bay.   As boats exit the harbor, they can take a left and be in Maryland waters or a right and fish Virginia waters.

Rogers called our day on the water, the best thus far of 2009.