Shad fishing in the delaware river in Pennsylvania?

[Scott Daw]

Hey ya'll

Ive always wanted to go shad fishing but dont know where to go or when their running thru the easton area (since thats closest to me). Can anyone lend any advise (such as where & when) or possibly want to go fishing with my fiance (shes new to fishing) and myself?


Scott

[delawareriver]

i do some shad fishing and tell you what i know but i never had much luck with it.

first question is do you have a boat? that changes alot. if you have a boat you most likely wanna anchor at the edge of a current brake or the river channel. most fish follow the channels mostly because thats where the current meets the slack water but if the water rises you may need to fish closer to the bank as if the water is down you may need to fish in the middle of the channel. you can do three methods, down rig flutter spoons, dead stick shad darts an jig shad darts.

down rigging flutter spoons is relatively easy. set up down rigs with the flutter spoon about a foot of the bottom and 5 foot away from the weight.

dead sticking shad darts is by far the easiest. tie on one or two shad darts with just enough weight to keep them near the bottom and place it in the rod holder.

jigging shad darts keeps the Long waits Little bit more entertaining. cast out the same rig used for dead sticking. cast across the current and let it loop down current, most bites will be at that point, but then bounce them slowly back to the boat.

all of these ways you may need to improvise with different colored darts or flicker spoons, also the speed could make a difference.

if you find a copy of field and stream theres a decent article about it and tell the basics. also if you look at the first picture that is where i fish.

it really depends on weather for when the shad arrive but last year there were 2 shad found in the MC D's in easton after the large flood a week into April, then it was real scattered till at least the end of may and the shad were around till early June. this year we could expect them around the same time with mid may your best bet in this area. i have heard that one or two have been caught near treton.

[Scott Daw]

I'd be shore fishing.

[kaleigh]

no luck for me.Went in the Delaware,near the spot where the Lehigh dumps into it.Spent a lot of hours in a boat and from shore.Never caught a darn thing.So I gave up!! :rolleyes:

[copycat]

You need to get in touch with local bait shops in the area you want to fish the river. Shad darts work good but theres alot of wait time until you find a school during the run. I fish the Maurice river and use special gold spoon hooks made by a local in the area and the spoons work really well.

[delawareriver]

i fish from boat so i know even less about shore fishing for shad but ill tell you what i know. shad darts work the best since of the easy casting but spinners that work for trout will also work for the shad. cast out a let the darts flow down river in the current, most shad will bite when it hits the edge of the current but if not slowly jig the darts back to you. if your not hanging up everyonce in awhile your not fishing deep enough i was always told. good spots to try are is where every one is fishing or you can try up or down river where there is deeper water meeting with fast current. the main parety of the run should be here in a few weeks so start getting ready

[Blacky]

Art Museun, Fairmount Dam Philadelphia

[pacathunter]

hey scott daw i have a boat and would also like to do some shad fishing and i live in allentown maybe we can hook up and not catch anything all day together...lol

[pacathunter]

also anybody in the lv area that would like to hook up for maybe just a cookout and some fishing down at like lake nockamixon let me know my boat is ready to go ... good food and good people how could we go wrong???

[Scott Daw]

sounds like a plan.

[kaleigh]

eating fish is as much fun as catching them.I would like to get together and fish and eat.Cannot wait for the Nock get together

[kaleigh]

pacathunter

lets catch and cook some fish.From your boat or shore,fresh fish is the way to go!