Jim Brewer, June 2007
The instant the Senko worm hit the water, an explosion sent spray across the river. It was as if the angry smallmouth had been waiting for that exact moment to attack. The fish practically hooked himself and the battle was on - three spectacular leaps then a tug of war at and all around the boat. After stretching my 8-pound test line to the limit, 15-inches of black fury found himself in the bottom of our net, one of many great battles we would enjoy on the New River.
I was fishing with my brother-in-law, Doug Mathera from Houston, and our guide, Perch Maynard of New River Guide Service. This was my third trip with Perch, and fishing with him, I have never left the New River disappointed. It’s simply the best smallmouth fishing in the state.
There was a time when you could catch more smallmouth on the Shenandoah than any other river, then came three consecutive years of fish kills and that river is no longer a player. There was also a time when the James River held more quality smallmouth bass than any other, then came three straight years of poor recruitment, plus a fish kill this spring on that hallowed river. Sources tell me that they have tracked huge deposits of poultry waste up and along the Cowpasture River, a main tributary to the upper James. And everyone knows about the poultry situation along the Shenandoah. Unless we get a handle on raw animal waste, we will loose both the James and Shenandoah as smallmouth fisheries. But that’s another article.
I can happily report that each and every smallmouth we landed on the New River was lesion-free. Not only that, you have never seen such fat, healthy fish.
“We have had two spectacular spawns in a row,” Maynard acknowledged. “That means we should continue to have excellent fishing well into the foreseeable future.”
Unlike the other major smallmouth rivers, the New River has the luxury of a dam at Claytor Lake to control water levels. That means that during the spring spawn, fish beds are not as likely to be disrupted by high water when compared with the James, for example. There is also an abundance of aquatic vegetation in the New River, like elodea, which provides a haven for young-of-the-year fish and a constant source of food for all species. Grass also filters the water and helps keep it clean.
We caught and released 56 smallmouth on our float trip in Maynard’s Maravian inflatable raft. Of those fish, 10 were in the slot limit between 14- and 20-inches. I would “guesstimate” that half our fish exceeded 12-inches, and nothing fights like a 12-inch smallmouth. We used a variety of soft plastic baits, but Maynard said the top water bite should pick up soon.
“Fishing with popping bugs and top water lures is outstanding in July and August,” he stated. “That’s when the summer bite really picks up.”
Muskies are always a possibility on the New River. A potential state record of 45 pounds, 8-ounces was caught on the New a few weeks back and now awaits certification. And the walleye fishery upriver has been outstanding, particularly in early spring.
“The musky fishing is the best it’s ever been on the New River,” Maynard said. “It’s a combination of good water quality, a 42-inch minimum creel length and an abundance of food.”
I’ve fished with numerous guides on the New, none better than Perch Maynard. He is the consummate professional, uses top quality equipment, has a keen knowledge of the river, a perfect disposition, and most importantly, he serves up the best shore lunch on the river. Roast beef, home fried chicken, and homemade chicken salad are a few of the dishes I can recall, along with fresh fruit desserts, homemade brownies and a host of other goodies. After 4 hours of battling smallmouth bass, it’s hard to beat a gourmet shore lunch.
Perch also has a delightful fisherman’s cottage within 20 feet of a private, native rainbow trout stream. Anglers can come over the day before a float, fish for trout that afternoon, grill a few steaks on the front porch, then roll out of bed the next morning in anticipation of the finest smallmouth fishing in Virginia. Not a bad scenario, I’d say.
Catching fish, though, is just one of the pleasures of floating the New River. The serenity of the setting, the rushing clear water and an abundance of wildlife adds to the experience. During our float we saw numerous deer standing knee deep in the river, eating aquatic vegetation like a herd of moose. We saw an albino fox squirrel, raccoons, minks, lots of ducks, numerous raptors and many other outdoor critters.
Tom "Perch" Maynard