Yep. You read the subject right. Skipjack fishing.
I went below Chickamagua today to catch some skipjack for catfishing down at Racoon. What a blast. I hooked probably 60 fish in about 1.5 hrs and brought about 20 home. If anyone has not been fishing for these they need to give it a shot. They act like little tarpon and just anniliate the bait. I was throwing a 2 in plastic shad with about a 1/8 oz jig head. I usually fish two baits tied directly to the line about 6-8 inches apart (Hint: Always place a swivel just above the bait as the current will twist your line into knots). I did hook two at a time more than once but they have very tender mouths and are very difficult to get to the bank in the current without them tearing off (hence the 20 out of 60). I found that by just pulling the fish on a strike (like with a circle hook) I got more to the bank. I would recommend 10lb minimum line as I hooked two good size fish at the same time and they broke 10lb line due to the current. I switch to 17 lb and did not have any issues.
The largest fish I caught was about 17-18 inches long and probably weighed about 2 lbs with most of the fish being 12-15 inchs and around 1lb each. Anyone with kids or someone new to fishing would have an absolute ball catching these things. All you need to do is fish just behind the turbine below the dam. Just throw out the bait and reel it back in fast. The faster the better. Or you can usually catch them at the end of the wall that runs beside the outside turbine if you are fishing from a boat.
I also watched a couple of guys catch 2 blues and 1 channel just behind the turbine. The largest blue looked to be about 8-9 lbs.
I went below Chickamagua today to catch some skipjack for catfishing down at Racoon. What a blast. I hooked probably 60 fish in about 1.5 hrs and brought about 20 home. If anyone has not been fishing for these they need to give it a shot. They act like little tarpon and just anniliate the bait. I was throwing a 2 in plastic shad with about a 1/8 oz jig head. I usually fish two baits tied directly to the line about 6-8 inches apart (Hint: Always place a swivel just above the bait as the current will twist your line into knots). I did hook two at a time more than once but they have very tender mouths and are very difficult to get to the bank in the current without them tearing off (hence the 20 out of 60). I found that by just pulling the fish on a strike (like with a circle hook) I got more to the bank. I would recommend 10lb minimum line as I hooked two good size fish at the same time and they broke 10lb line due to the current. I switch to 17 lb and did not have any issues.
The largest fish I caught was about 17-18 inches long and probably weighed about 2 lbs with most of the fish being 12-15 inchs and around 1lb each. Anyone with kids or someone new to fishing would have an absolute ball catching these things. All you need to do is fish just behind the turbine below the dam. Just throw out the bait and reel it back in fast. The faster the better. Or you can usually catch them at the end of the wall that runs beside the outside turbine if you are fishing from a boat.
I also watched a couple of guys catch 2 blues and 1 channel just behind the turbine. The largest blue looked to be about 8-9 lbs.
