While many largemouth have completed their spawning by mid-May, some fish are still spawning, especially in the northern regions of our readership area. The largemouth that have completed spawning are now cranky and hungry. We did some research with fisheries biologists to find waters that produce quality fish with consistency.

Deep Creek Lake yields plenty of 2- to 3-pound fish, but larger fish are in the lake. Here, Fisheries Tech Kenny Wampler is shown holding up a 7- and 8-pound bass from Deep Creek. ▪ Photo by Alan Klotz of the MD DNR.

VIRGINIA
Occoquan Reservoir
In the northern Virginia region many urban anglers are surprised to learn that their very own Occoquan Reservoir is the top bass water in the entire district. The 2,100-acre impoundment is used as a water source for Fairfax and the city of Alexandria. This great bass lake is a short drive from interstate 95 and within a half hour drive of most of Northern Virginia -- depending, of course, on the traffic. The impoundment straddles the Fairfax and Prince William County lines.

The average largemouth at Occoquan is 2 to 3 pounds, according to district fisheries biologist Steve Owens. Owens stated that although each angler's skills may vary, many of the anglers he has talked to report 15 to 20 fish days, which is very good bass fishing just about anywhere.

Most anglers practice catch and release at Occoquan but for those who want to keep fish, there is a five fish limit with no length limits. The size structure of the bass population at Occoquan is very well diversified with fish spread out evenly from small fry up to 21 inches. Owens noted that there are a lot of fish in the 4- to 6-pound range of the population, which is a real draw for dedicated bass anglers.

The CPE-P is very good. CPE-P is the catch per effort of preferred fish that the biologist sample. Biologists define a "preferred fish" as a bass over 15 inches in length. During the last sampling the district was led by Occoquan. Many smaller waters typically dominate the rankings when CPE-P is used because smaller waters are easier to sample and because it is easier for biologists to isolate the bass population. It is uncommon for an impoundment of this size to be the top water.

So what makes Occoquan such a good bass lake, particularly in May? First, as mentioned above, there are lots of 4- to 6-pound fish available. The forage in Occoquan is gizzard shad, which allows the fish to grow fast, and there are plenty of shad to go around, too. Owens also pointed out that the CPUE or catch per unit effort of bass is excellent. This is slightly different from CPE-P. Both numbers are important but the CPUE shows the number of bass of all sizes that are sampled -- and strong numbers across all age classes means that there are plenty of younger bass to grow into those preferred fish!

Aside from the fish themselves, another benefit to fishing the lake is that the upper end of the reservoir has much less development and that means urban anglers can "get away" from the rat race and enjoy some good fishing close to home.

Anglers will find numerous private docks on other parts of Occoquan that make great holding areas for largemouth in May. In fact, after the spawn in mid to late April the bass will still be found in the shallow water. Shallow water would be defined in this case as anything 8 feet or less.

Anglers should fish all shallow structure, including blowdowns, docks, beaver huts and emergent vegetation. In mid to late May plastic worms work very well but early in May crank baits and spinnerbaits or jigs are great choices.