Maryland & Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report
Sailing out of West Ocean City, Captain Monty Hawkins of Morning Star Fishing reported that the sea bass fishing on Wednesday brought the most limits of the year to anglers on board. It was the first trip in 12 days due to inclement weather and rough seas, and they certainly made the most of it—the pool winner landed a near 22-inch sea bass, and other anglers enjoyed double-digit catches of keeper-size fish. The skipper plans to fish tomorrow (9/27) before calling it quits until the sea bass season reopens on October 11.
From Ocean City, Taylor Bakke of Always Bent Fishing OC reported: “Not much has changed this week, but we are seeing more and more stripers showing up in the back bays and creeks, along with some speckled trout and the occasional red drum. The tautog bite is picking up, and sheepshead and flounder are still being caught with some regularity, too. Offshore, it has been super windy—but there are still marlin in the canyons, while wahoo and the occasional yellowfin tuna are being caught on the lumps along the 30-fathom line.”
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Maryland DNR Fishing Report
Maryland DNR Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
Little by little, summer is losing its grip on the Maryland landscape, with cooler nights and milder daytime temperatures. Fish feel it too, and they are feeding aggressively and putting on body stores for what lies ahead. A perfect example are the bluefish in the Chesapeake Bay that are large and fat.
As we roll into “Rocktober,” expect cool, wet, breezy weather to highlight our fishing conditions this week in Maryland’s waters. Shorter daylight periods and cooler day-time air temperatures have cooled main Bay surface water temperatures to the lower 70s, with rivers running slightly cooler. Maryland’s part of the Bay continues to run fresher than average.
Lower Bay
There are two spectacular fishing opportunities for bluefish this week in the lower Bay. The first is the abundance of large bluefish that are in the 8-10 pound range along the eastern side of the Bay from the HS Buoy south past the Target Ship along the main channel edges. Trolling Drone spoons and surgical tube lures behind planers is a very effective way to target them. If you are lucky you can encounter them as breaking fish; casting metal into the group will certainly put a bend in your fishing rod. These bluefish are real porkers, big and fat. There is a smaller group of snapper-size bluefish—ranging around a half pound to ¾ pound—found in shallower waters around Point Lookout and the mouth of the Potomac River.
The shallow water fishery for a mix of striped bass, slot-size puppy drum and speckled trout are keeping light tackle anglers busy and happy. The lower Potomac, St. Marys River, Patuxent, Hoopers Island, and the Tangier and Pocomoke sounds are all great places to fish the shallower waters during the morning and evening hours. Casting a mix of topwater lures, spin jigs, and paddle tails all work well. In areas with channels and cuts with a good current, drifting soft crab baits is a good way to hook up with red drum and speckled trout.
There are reports this week of large red drum chasing bait in the form of juvenile menhaden near the Target Ship and the Middle Grounds. The action can pop up at any time, and if the fish are not driven down by boat traffic the action can be exciting. Casting soft plastic jigs is the most popular tactic and if the drum is deep, jigging is employed. Unfortunately, if large toothy bluefish are mixed in, soft plastics are going to take a beating.
We have not heard much about flounder fishing in the lower Bay this week but normally this time of the year it is worth the effort fishing for them in Pocomoke and Tangier sounds. Any hard bottom shelf near deeper channels can be a good place to drift with pink or white Gulp baits.
Fishing for spot in the lower Patuxent is as good as it can be; the spot are about as large as they can get before colder water urges them to head south. Kingfish, croaker, and white perch will often be in the mix. The mouth of the Nanticoke and Honga Rivers along with the Point Lookout area and Tangier Sound are great places to fish for them. White perch can also be targeted in the many tidal creeks and rivers by casting small spinnerbaits, jig spins or soft plastic jigs near promising shoreline structure. Fishing grass shrimp or peeler crab on a simple bottom rig is another good tactic.
Atlantic Ocean and Coastal Bays
Pestering easterly winds did not make for very good fishing conditions for anglers in the surf, the bays, or offshore this past week. The surf is calming down and kingfish and spot are still in the mix. A run of red drum is anticipated, and anglers are fishing large cut baits hoping for some catch-and-release action. Migrating bluefish may very well begin to show up along the beaches.
At the inlet and Route 50 bridge area, bluefish tend to be the most common target for anglers casting a mix of bucktails, soft plastic jigs, and Got-Cha lures. Drifting cut bait during the night tide has also been a very effective way to catch bluefish. Striped bass are in the mix and casting soft plastic jigs during the early morning or late evening hours gets the best results. Flounder are always in play at the inlet and as bay waters cool next month, anglers will see more flounder moving through the inlet as they head offshore for the winter months.
The back bay waters have been cloudy due to strong winds but are clearing up quickly. The back bay channels and especially those leading towards the inlet offer the best fishing opportunities. Traditional baits of squid and minnows work well, but the largest flounder are being caught on live spot, finger mullet, or Gulp baits in white or pink.
There is a significant ground swell still present offshore, but a few boats have ventured offshore to fish the wreck and reef sites for black sea bass and large flounder with good results. Boats trolling the inshore waters should start to see bluefish and false albacore when trolling. At the canyons, a few boats came back to the docks recently with catches of dolphin and flags flying indicating white marlin releases.
Maryland DNR Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.