The bass are feeding more actively on protected feeding stations now as the river becomes a little warmer. The lazy-Susan back eddies which form below the riffles on the slow sides of the rivers are rich feeding stations holding many minnows. These back eddies range from 10 to 50 feet in diameter and from 3 to 6 feet deep.
These can be fished by floating the river or by carefully wading along the bank. I like to fish my streamers slowly along the stream bottom in these eddies but since the current is slow I can usually achieve this with a floating line. Some of my most productive flies are the Magnum HogSucker, Magnum Creek Chub, and Magnum Darter all in size 4.
It is still a little early in the season so you might only catch a few bass the whole day but it might be the biggest of the whole season. Be sure to bring your chest high waders.
Stream Access: On the North Fork of the Shenandoah River below access #3 (Burnshire's) has some good water and deep pools. On the South Fork of the Shenandoah River near access #11 (Seakford's) has some good water and deep pools.
| Stream | Ft. | CFS |
| North Fork at Mount Jackson | 2.83 | 162 |
| North Fork at Strasburg | 2.21 | 293 |
| South Fork at Luray | 2.48 | 701 |