Always Something Cool On Chickahominy Lake 2024

Micro reply :

I though this was pretty cool. Ponies standing on the bridge at the back of Lacey Creek.

Reel_Kaotic reply :

Nice picture. I know that bridge, fish the other often.

Sam reply :

Micro, are they the Budwiser Clydedales?

If so, where is the beer wagon and the dalmation????

We have to get back to the Chick this summer.

Blast off from Rock-A-Hock and fish the upper part.

Will get back to you after Memorial Day.

Micro reply :

I had the week off and hit Chick Lake Wednesday, Thursday and today. I got 3 bass and 3 pickerel on Wednesday (only boated 2 of each, the others fell off at the boat) in 8 hours. They had sure lockjaw with all the rain/sun/thunderstorms that rolled through.

On wednesday I got 32 bass, one bowfin (not boated) that was easily over 10 lbs, and several pickerel. Spent 9 hours on the lake.

I got 17 today, including one 6-7 lb'er. Also got a fietsy green sunfish on a space monkey. Spent 8 hours on the water.

typed by ben reply :

awesome shots. hope to get out there this summer.

Micro reply :

Get out there soon. It's already starting to weed up. I've been fishing it all spring and the weeds are noticably thicker in just the last week. Pretty soon the coves will be all but impenetrable. Right now, the lake is at its prime.

Reel_Kaotic reply :

Micro: Where do you put in at on Chick Lake?

Micro reply :

Ed Allens

WdyCrankbait reply :

Micro, Nice pictures!

Have you fished Newport News Res. lately? I heard it is basically overun with Hydrilla now.

Thanks,

Micro reply :

I don't fish Lee Hall Res (aka Newport News Res) too much. But I drive past if most days. The weeds are starting to touch the surface. Since Lee Hall gets its water from the Chickahominy, what happens on the Chick occurs on Lee Hall. It's going to get very, very weedy shortly.

Reel_Kaotic reply :

Is there launch fee at Rock-a-hock camp grounds? If so, how much? And how early can you launch there?

Sam reply :

Rock-A-Hock launches into the river, not the lake.

The dam is still broken and does not allow boats to travel back and forth from the lake to the river.

Put in at Ed Allen's for the lake and Rock-A-Hock for the river.

Yes, there is a launch fee. I can't remember how much bur I think it is around $7.

Post pics if you catch anything!!!!!

Aluma-Bass reply :

i was at rock a hock couple years ago, they have some kinda washed out gravel ramp they allowed smaller boats to put in like jon boats...it was not best ramp but you can put in on lake side. Its just on other side of dam.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=37.407862,-76.937262&daddr=1428+Outpost+Road,+VA+23089-5920+(Rockahock+Campground)&hl=en&geocode=%3BCdn2-HAKfsb4FU7ZOgIddP9p-yEEGjL7ec-gag&gl=us&mra=mift&mrsp=0&sz=18&sll=37.407545,-76.936703&sspn=0.002369,0.004061&ie=UTF8&t=h&z=18

Micro reply :

The lake level is extremely high right now. It's been spilling over the dam for some time now. It actually pretty easy to get back into the coves off the creeks. Fishing is fantastic right now. If you can get there soon, before it starts really weeding up, you'll have a great time.

Reel_Kaotic reply :

Thanks. Still undecided on which side of the dam I want to fish, may end up fishing both, I have the entire day from the ol' lady to fish...lol. I'll be posting the biggest thing that bites my lure. Hopfully there will be some topwater action. Any suggestions how to attack the lake or the river this time off year?

Micro reply :

You will find bass throughout the lake. But when you fish it, think two things: food and oxygen. You will pick up the occassional fish around the cypress trees and duck blinds, and occassionally in the lily pads. By far, though, you will find the most and biggest fish next to green vegetation. If you are in a creek with lily pads on one side and mats of pondweed/pickerelweed/arrowhead/etc on the other, fish the side with all the weeds. That's where the small fish are seeking cover, and thats the side that will be the most oxygenated. Lily pads just don't provide enough cover for small fish compared to the other types of vegetation. Keep that in mind, and will pick up fish. When I fish the lake this time of year, I find the strike zone is usually from the edge of the weeds out to about 20 feet. I position my boat outside this zone and cast diagonal into the zone so I can maximize the time my lure is in the zone. Once I'm out of my zone, I reel up and re-cast.

Like I said, you will find fish throughout the lake. But I fish this lake a lot and I know it very well. Green vegetation in the water is where the most and biggest fish are.

This is the type of vegetation I look for...

Reel_Kaotic reply :

@Micro: Thanks for the advice. The few times I've fished the Chick lake I got stumped, and stumped hard. So bad that I stopped fishing there all together last year because of it. I will be out there come early morning. Hopefully Ed's is open at sunrise.

Bigs reply :

never fished the chic before but since i am no longer boatless I'll have to head out there one day and try my luck. Whats wrong with fishing the thick grass in the summer ? On the potomac thats what everyone looks for, thick mats. I would think the fishing will improve as the grass thickens up. Or is it just that u do not enjoy tryin to work ur way thru the thick stuff ? please explain

Micro reply :

There are different types vegetation cover on Chick Lake. I'm not really sure how to describe it.

At the beginning of the year, there isn't much of anything except the brown floating mats that drift around the lake and the ones that stay attached to the bottom that keep the boundaries of the creeks about the same from year to year.

Around the end of March, April and into May, things start to green up. By May, the lily pads have popped up and are at their prime. The brown mats described above are turning green. The cattails are coming up, the pickerel weed, arrow head, and pond grass are at their prime. There are open, highly defined avenues through this stuff. Fishing is at its best on Chick Lake at this time.

By June, the spirogyra is getting thick and the coontail grass and milfoil is getting thick. By July, the open avenues described above are nearly closed up. By August, they are closed. The milfoil and coontail grass is so thick that it makes areas that were extremely productive in May inaccessible. It stays this way through October. In November as days get shorted and water cools, the vegetation starts to recede.

Fishing Chick Lake when at the height its weediness is a challenge. I have no fear of going into thick stuff. But understand that when I say think, I mean thick. I never seen this extent of "thick" on any other body of water in this state. Getting back into inaccessible area often means standing on your bow, holding your trolling motor up so the prop is buzzing the surface, and trying to crawl through it. Poling is another option.

I have a 15' jon boat with a 15hp outboard and a 55lb bow-mount trolling motor. Even I have trouble getting around in this lake in mid-summer. Guys with bigger boats often give it up until later in the year. Or they resign themselves to the middle of the creeks that are still sort of open and try casting across the grass. You can pick up fish that way. But 4-wheeling it back into the coves and punching next to the above-water green weeds will yield bigger and more fish. It's not easy. But it's the difference between a 10 fish day and a 30 fish day.

Reel_Kaotic reply :

I had a so-so day on the water. Caught 3 bass (2 around 3lb) and a 6-8lb bowfin (first ever). In that case, any day fishing is a great day. We were out there for about 4-5 hours. One of my better outtings on the chick. The the 2 larger bass were caught early directly to the right the pier. The other was down lacey creek. We passed up johnson creek. Heading back out Monday morning.

St James reply :

I'll be heading to chick lake on Saturday any more pointers or tips, and wheres the best access ramp for the lake? I've only fished below walkers dam.

justin apfel reply :

Can you have bigger than a 9.9 on Chick?

Reel_Kaotic reply :

@justin apfel: Yes you can, I've seen big motor bass boat out there. Word of caution...be careful...there are areas of low water, especailly in the creeks. In the main lake you would be fine.

St James reply :

On 6/3/2011 at 11:02 AM, justin apfel said:

Can you have bigger than a 9.9 on Chick?

Yes you can, there is no horsepower restriction for the lake and river but 10hp on a small boat will work fine to get you anywhere you need to be on the lake and might be able to take you places that the larger bass boats can't go.

St James reply :

I went up the chick river from eagles landing today with my dad. missed a fish with top water and caught a three pounder on 7"red shad power worm. My dad got several hits on red shad worms as well but he missed them and caught a quarter pounder on a bandit 100 Tennessee shad. I didn't see anyone else catch anything and the people we talked to were only claiming they caught one or so.

fun being out on the water even if the fishing was slow.

Punkinseedfyretailz reply :

that's a thing of beauty.

Micro reply :

Red, especially red shad, does well on that lake. It's my second favorite color next to green (green pumpkin or watermelon).

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Always Something Cool On Chickahominy Lake 2024

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