Rocks at the Bridge

[k9judge188]

My brother and nephew came down yesterday to do some fishing on the Rapp. My intention was to do some bottom fishing for spot but while out there I decided to keep some of the small spot and croaker and do some live lining at the Rt. 3 bridge. We pulled up with the other boats off of Locklies yesterday afternoon and sporadically caught our bait. The big spot were scarce there for some reason. I then motored over to the Whitestone side of the bridge, hooked on the bait and let em swim up some rocks. In a matter of minutes my nephew, hooked a nice rock. In his excitement, he tried to horse the fish in, and it broke the line. I did get a glimpse of the fish and would estimate it went about 24 inches. I baited him up again. Within another few minutes he hooked another one. This time he listened and we boated a nice 21 incher. My brother then hooked one that went 19. We were running out of bait due to Mr. Blue chopping them in half, so we went back to Locklies to catch some more bait. We came back and caught one more short rock. It did not seem to matter to Mr. Rock what he wanted to eat. He ate both the small spot and croaker. All in all we had a great day. We trolled back to Robinson Creek as the sun went down.

[rappahanockman]

I'm glad to hear that you caught some! I tried the same methods
on Sunday and didn't have any luck at all. I guess it was too soon
after the storm on Friday/Saturday.

[conrad]

WERE YOU JUST HOOKING LIVE BAITFISH, OR DID YOU USE SOME KIND OF WEIGHT ?
DRIFTING OR ANCHORED ?
THNX

[k9judge188]

I usually put out two lines. One is very similar to a carolina rig that bass fishermen use. Thread an egg sinker through your line, then a glass bead. Tie it to a barrel swivel. The bead is to keep the sinker from slamming against your knot making it weak. Tie your leader (I use about 5 feet) and a 1/0 or 2/0 circle hook to the business end. Hook your live spot through the back just in front of the dorsal fin. Throw er out and let her swim. The other line I don't use any weight, just a barrel swivel and leader. It is a must to let the rock swim with the bait a good 5 to 8 seconds. I have two live lining spinning reels that are ideal for letting the fish swim with very little resistance. I anchor about a short casting distance away from the bridge piling. Patience is the key. Don't keep pulling up the bait.You'll know when he is on don't worry.

[Rebel]

Thanks for the report. That's a great way to catch rockfish...just something fun about live baiting them.

[conrad]

IS THE WEIGHT SUPPOSED TO BE ON THE BOTTOM AND THE LINE COMING OUT LIKE A 'FISH FINDER RIG', OR IS IT JUST TO GST THE LIVE BAIT DOWN TO A CERTAIN DEPTH

[k9judge188]

Use your graph and match the weight to the depth of the fish. I will use anything from one once to six ounces depending on the where the fish are and how hard the tide is running.