Capitol River's Hot, But Bite's Not

It's August, and that means the water's hot just about everywhere. But in the Potomac River, the problem's exacerbated.

The Bassmaster Elite Series field launched onto the river Monday and found the grass had exploded. It's literally everywhere, and it's reportedly choked out a lot of water. It's cutting back on the flow in and out of the creeks, and it's soaking up the sun's rays.

Basically, it's acting like a heater coil and the general water temperatures right now are 88 to 90 degrees. In the backs of some of the cuts, it's as high as the mid-'90s.

The bass are still there - they can be seen swimming around - but after the first hour or so of the morning, they revert to lockjaw mode.

Some anglers have struggled to catch a limit any better than five dinks. Many have struggled to catch a limit period. That's lowered overall expectations for the tournament considerably, and 8 to 10 pounds is now the goal (vs. the typical 13 to 14 in years past).

Before more about the bite, here's a bit about the fishery itself.

BassFan Lake Profile

> Lake Name: Potomac River
> Type of Water: Tidal river
> Surface Acres: Unavailable
> Primary structure/cover: Grassbeds (milfoil, some hydrilla), wood (docks, barges, laydowns), shellbeds, ledges, rockpiles
> Primary forage: Name it and it's in here - various crawfish species, carp, yellow perch, minnows, shiners, herring, shad, bullhead
> Average depth: Less than 5 feet
> Species: Largemouths and some smallmouths in the upper reaches
> Length limit: 12 inches
> Reputation: Lots of numbers, but heavily fished
> Weather: Exceptionally hot with daytime highs near to over 100 degrees. Scattered thunderstorms expected through Friday, followed by cooling and clearer skies Saturday and Sunday.
> Water temp: High-80s
> Water visibility/color: Slightly stained to gin-clear
> Water level: Normal
> Fish in: All depths
> Fish phase: Summer
> Primary patterns: Flipping and pitching jigs and plastics in the grass, frogs/toads/rats, shallow cranking the shellbeds and wood, jigging the ledges and rocks
> Winning weight: 57 pounds (4 days)
> Cut weight (Top 12): 38 pounds
> Check weight (Top 50): 19 pounds
> Fishing quality (1=poor, 5=great): 2 for the Potomac
> Biggest factors: Weather - will it rain, and if it does, what'll it do? Also, the colder air mass due Saturday could mix up the bite.
> Biggest decision: How long to stay with the morning bite before flipping
> Wildcard: A unique section of cooler water - perhaps a spring?

Morning: Long or Short?

The situation at the Potomac actually sets up a lot like the recent Forrest Wood Cup. There, pros had a short window in the morning where they could swipe a few shallow topwater fish. It disappeared quickly, though, and only one pro in the Top 5 (Bryan Thrift) tried to ride it until noon.

It's a good bet nearly every pro in the Elite Series field will try for an early fish or too. Buzzbaits, frogs and toads are the typical choice.

The biggest question, then, is when to abandon it? Two kickers each morning could be enough to make the Top 12 cut this week.

After the morning bite, the standard option is to flip the mats. There, patience and grass knowledge will play huge.

Ike Unsure

Mike Iaconelli won the 2005 Potomac FLW Tour, and he finished 4th at the Elite Series here last year. But he said it's a lot more difficult this time around.

"To be honest, it's been tough," he said of his practice. "In my opinion, the river's off right now, and I think that's because of two things. One, we had a tremendous heat wave last week, and it was close to 100 yesterday.

"Two is the grass. I've been fishing here since the '90s, and it's thicker than I've ever seen it in my life. It's everywhere, and twice as thick as ever. I mean bad thick. A lot of places are filled in to where you can't fish them effectively. The heat and extreme amount of grass have made for a tough week."

About the tides, he thinks high tide might be more of a factor this time, simply because it'll make some areas fishable that otherwise aren't. But the tide's not his main concern.

"For me, it's still all about trying to find concentrations of fish," he said. "That's hard to do when there's 10,000 acres of grass. It's hard to find a needle in a haystack. Still, I think you'll need 15 to 17 pounds a day to win. Some guys will still catch them."

Monroe "So-So'

Ish Monroe's Potomac pedigree is nowhere near Ike's, but he reported many of the same problems.

"My practice has been so-so," Monroe said. "I can catch a few in the morning, and the rest of the day is terrible. Some of the water I was fishing through was 93 degrees."

He noted that many of the areas he did want to check are completely overgrown, but inexplicably, one area was devoid of grass.

"It's definitely not the tournament it was last year," he added. "People are catching them on everything, they're just not catching a lot. Last year, you could go out and catch 15 to 20 fish and they might weigh 15 pounds. Now, they might weigh 8 pounds."

He had seven total bites Monday, and about a dozen yesterday. And that was fishing 12 hours - not the 9 hours of a typical tournament day.

Notable too is his observation of fish activity. "You can definitely see a lot of fish," he said. "Every 15 to 20 feet you see a bass. But catching them's impossible. It's not like you throw a bait down there and they run away from it. They just swim off real slow because it's so hot."

Scroggins More Optimistic

BassFans probably won't be surprised to hear Terry Scroggins' take on the grass situation. He doesn't mind it. But then again, he's a grass and hot-water cannon.

"It's a typical mid-August deal," he said. "It's kind of a tough bite, but I've been getting 12 to 14 bites a day. It's about like it was last year I guess."

He said of the "too much grass" complaint: "I actually like it like that. The tougher the better for me. A lot of people don't think they can get back there, but I can. I've been back there."

Chapman Might Play Small-Ball

Brent Chapman finished 9th at the Potomac FLW that Ike won. Last year, he finished 59th here and didn't cash a check.

This time around he's got the big picture in mind. He's 23rd in the Elite Series Angler of the Year (AOY) race, which is well within the Bassmaster Classic qualification window. But his finish here last year cost him a Classic berth.

He's done the math and wants to, overall, avoid a bomb.

About his practice so far, he said: "It's been fair - not as good as I'd like, but it's been super hot. And I liked the river a lot better back when it didn't have all this grass in August. The fishing was better.

"But I found a little area on Tuesday that seems to have a few fish in it. Hopefully I can weed through some keepers to get a couple quality fish."

About his points position, he said: "I'm a little worried, just because I know this is going to be tough, and I know Toho's going to be tough. I did the math and figured it out. I need two Top 70s to make the Classic.

"I definitely want to take any opportunity to win the tournament, but I don't want to get out of here with a bomb," he added. "If I could get out of here with a Top 40, I'd probably lock myself into the Classic. So I'll definitely go out and make sure I get a decent limit each day."

Top 10 To Watch

Here's BassFan's recommendation on the Top 10 to watch at this event. In no particular order, they are:

1. Kevin VanDam - He's the world's most dangerous angler, but this might be a troublesome event for him. Fishing slow's not his strength. Then again, he quite possibly could fish the KVD fast/slow regimen, where he seines miles of water with only key casts in key locales. He leads the BassFan World Rankings presented by Tru-Tungsten by a massive margin, and narrowly trails Skeet Reese in the AOY race.

2. Skeet Reese - If Skeet wants to win AOY, he's got to keep up the heat. So far he has - he's finished 2nd twice so far in the regular season, and 2nd, 13th, and 7th in his last three events. As gravy, he finished 2nd at the Potomac last year.

3. Terry Scroggins - Scroggins will certainly go farming in the grass this week, and if he finds one or two good concentrations of fish, he should reach the Top 12. Notable was his comment that he's getting back into places where other guys won't go. If there's shade back there, the water might actually be cooler than in the main creek.

4. Dean Rojas - If there's anyone with the patience to stretch a morning bite, it's Rojas. He might fish the frog all day, in fact. It's a gamble, as always, but a pair of 5-pounders could take him a long way this week.

5. Edwin Evers - Evers is red-hot. In his last four finishes, he's won one and finished 3rd in another. He's ranked 4th in the world.

6. Rick Morris - This is his river, and he's always one of the ones to beat. Will local knowledge help traverse the difficult conditions?

7. Shaw Grigsby - A veteran who's still strong in summer grass. Knows tidal rivers, and has been fishing well. He's 42nd in the points, so the pressure's on here to get back into the Classic.

8. Mike Iaconelli - You just can't argue with Ike's record at the Potomac. His recent 10th at the Memorial Major is a bright spot in an otherwise forgettable season, and he'll look to parlay that here.

9. Steve Kennedy - Kennedy found a super-stocked mat last year and finished 3rd. The year before, he finished 25th in the 200-boat FLW Tour event. Good things happen to this guy, and they probably will this week too. He's also coming off a 2nd at the Memorial, so there may be some momentum.

10. Derek Remitz - Remitz has had an incredible rookie season, but here's where things turn tough. He faces some significant obstacles, but is capable of overcoming them.

Launch/Weigh-In Info

Anglers launch daily at 6 a.m. ET from Sweden Point Marina (2750 Sweden Point Rd., Marbury, Md.) Weigh-ins begin daily at the same location starting at 3 p.m. Admission is free and open to the public.

Weather Forecast

Here's the weather forecast for the tournament days. For more weather information, including satellite and radar imagery, visit OutdoorsFanWeather.com.

> Thur., August 9 - Scattered T-Storms - 95°/75°
- Wind: From the E at 6 mph

> Fri., August 10 - Isolated T-Storms - 96°/74°
- Wind: From the W/SW at 12 mph

> Sat., August 11 - Partly Cloudy - 88°/67°
- Wind: From the N at 11 mph

> Sun., August 12 - Partly Cloudy - 91°/68°
- Wind: From the NE at 6 mph

Notable

> John Murray had a "horrible" practice and just wants to leave Maryland with a check. To read his practice report, click here to go On Tour With the BassFan Big Sticks.

> Mike McClelland said of his practice: "As a whole, this river's in different shape this year than last year. There's a lot more grass and the area hasn't had near the amount of rain it did last year. The fishing's a lot tougher and I think the fish are really spread out because there's so much more grass."

> Casey Ashley noted: "I'm getting three or four bites a day and they're all about 7 miles apart. There's grass everywhere and that's all you can see, so there's no secret to what you need to fish."