Watkins Mill Fishing Report- A Mixed Bag

I had the pleasure to fish Watkins Mill State Park with a new friend and an old buddy.  Fishing with Joe Rubeo was a new experience but it won't be the last.  I got to know Joe through Instagram and since we both live in the Kansas City area and have a passion for fly fishing, it was only a matter of time before we hit the water together.  We were joined by my buddy Corey.  I actually met Corey pretty much the same way as Joe about a year ago.  Corey loves to fish and will throw a baitcaster and fly rod in the same day.  He's pretty diverse with his methods and is a true student of fishing.  We were a pretty eclectic group in our two-man boat, stand up paddle board, and kayak.  That theme continued through the morning.  

While Joe threw a variety of flies, Corey stuck with a John Deere under an indicator most of the time.  I threw a Standard under an indicator and then switched to a pearl olive wooly bugger.  We started picking up bluegill and redear in the shallows and in the shade.  Corey also landed a nice bass on a shad rap that he threw on a baitcaster.  Joe was chasing a bass with a popper and switched to a big streamer on sinking line.  I landed quite a few redear with my indicator set-up but I'll be honest, I got bored with it.  I wanted a little more challenge and excitement so I threw a size six, olive wooly.  To my surprise, the redear, a few bluegill, and a 12 inch bass were happy to eat the bugger.  I also lost a bass in the 2 pound range and in a strange twist, it had a 3 pound channel can in tow.

However, the highlight of the morning was when Corey hooked into the biggest fish of the day.  He hooked it in about a foot of water on a marabou jig under an indicator.  We all knew it was big from the slap-slap-slap that it's tail made on the water immediately after being hooked.  It didn't take long for Joe and I to rally around Corey to help.  I ran the camera, Joe provided the net, and Corey played the fish perfectly.  This was Corey's first catfish on a fly rod and the excitement on his face is genuine.  We picked up a few more smaller fish after that but the bite slowed as the morning went on.  Overall, it was a fun morning with fellow, passionate anglers.  It won't be the last time this crew gets together!