Articles

Wades Bay to Blue Banks

-by Andy Andrzejewski

We left off in our last issue at Aquia Creek. This time we're going across the river to Wades Bay. As you leave Aquia Creek, look across the river to the northeast and you will see a radio tower on the Maryland shore. This radio tower is located on the upstream side of Wades Bay near Douglas Point.

The southern portion of the bay starts at Smith Point. The area of Smith Point is as good a place as any to begin your fishing. The gravel, rocky, sand and clay bank is a prime area. In the summer months it is blessed with submersed aquatic vegetation in the form of eulodea, milfoil, and wild celery beds. Wild celery, for those of you not familiar with this plant, looks just like eel grass. The difference is that wild celery is a freshwater and brackish water plant while eel grass is purely a saltwater plant. The bottom is strewn with many rocks and shell beds and the shoreline on the point has blow down trees which provide even more cover for the bass.

A point of interest, for those who take in their surroundings while fishing, is the clay banks along this area. You will note that the bank is dotted with white specks. Upon close examination, you will find that every one of those specks is a marine fossil. It is not uncommon to see people fossil hunting along these banks.

Proceeding upstream, the bay seems to be void of any major irregular features, but the bottom make up is ideal for spawning. The Douglas Point area of Wades Bay begins to be productive for bass around the middle of March, when the water temperatures are in the 50's. The lower part of Wades Bay is one or two feet deeper than the upper part. The lower part will collect bass early in the season and as the water warms to a temperature more conducive to the spawn, the upper end will become more productive.

After the spawn, this bay continues to hold major numbers of bass and, dependent on weather conditions, success may only require changing from fishing the inside edge to fishing directly in the grasses or moving to the outer edge. A point of interest is the fact that Wades Bay had submersed aquatic vegetation in it in the late 70's, long before hydrilla was discovered in the upstream part of the river.

When fishing this area in the summer, pay no attention to the indigenous members of the population who frequent the sandy shoreline in order to acquire a full body tan.

Our next bay is Blue Banks. Blue Banks begins at Douglas Point and extends to Liverpool Point. It is called Blue Banks because of the color of the sediment that makes up its banks. This bay is also a prime spawning area as well as home to many bass throughout the summer and late fall. It too has been blessed with abundant vegetation in the past years.

Liverpool Point on the north end of the bay has pilings from an old pier which become awash at low tide. They hold bass and should not be overlooked. GPS coordinates are N38-27-62, W77-16-24.

For many years an old wreck, the Mermentau, an old menhaden fishing boat, decorated the point, but it was removed a few years ago as part of a scenic enhancement program. Personally, I thought the wreck gave Liverpool Point character, but others thought differently. Although the "Mermentau" has been removed, her keel board and three cylinder engine blocks still remain. They are located immediately to the right of the pilings as you look shoreward from the river.

A navigational hazard, read great fishing spot, exists in the bay. It sits in six feet of water, about 50 feet out from the weed line, in front of the last house on the bank going downstream. The wreck is a mere inches below the surface and can do considerable damage to your boat. The GPS coordinates are N38-27-33, W77-15-95. Much like Wades Bay, Blue Banks produces from early spring to late fall.

In our next segment, we'll go back across the river to the Virginia shore and discuss the area from Brent Point to Chopawamsic Creek, which includes the area called Arkandale Flats. Don't miss it.