Maryland and Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report
From Ocean City, Taylor Bakke of Always Bent Fishing OC reported: “Big migratory stripers are showing up more and more by the day, with guys soaking bait in the surf catching plenty of fish, as well as the guys casting and jigging from the jetties, bridges, and pier. We’ve seen some ranging from 38 to 42 inches, and it should get even better over the next couple weeks. The flounder bite has also been pretty good! The biggest news is the speckled trout that finally showed up in the back bays. My buddy got the first of the year on Sunday and my uncle got out yesterday morning and caught a couple nice ones!
Anglers Sport Center Fishing Report – Annapolis, MD
The Anglers Sport Center fishing report is written by Anglers Fishing Manager & OTW Columnist, Alex Gallardo-Perez.
Everyone is waiting for the opening of our summer striped bass season on May 16th and hoping to find plenty of fish in that keeper slot of 19 to 24 inches long. The good news is that some of the summer visitors are arriving already; most importantly, spot have begun to show up, which makes for the best live bait for striped bass during the summer months. Most anglers are catching them around Hackett Point, Thomas Point and really any hard, sandy bottom should have spot. Bloodworms and bloodworm-flavored FishBites will get them to bite. Mixed with the spot there are some small croaker, white perch, and even some blue catfish. The blue catfish bite around the middle bay was strangely non-existent this season; not many reports have come in from Sandy Point to the mouth of the Magothy River. It seems to be that most of the consistent bites have been north of the Patapsco River.
In freshwater news, largemouth have begun to move in shallow to make beds and some will say that they have seen fish spawning already. Water temperatures are right around the low 70s, so it sounds like it’s that time of the year. Shad are still holding strong this week in most of the tidal rivers, but it’s probably going to be the last week or two of this fishery.
Maryland DNR Fishing Report
Maryland DNR Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
Upper Bay
Hickory shad are completing their spawning activities and beginning to leave the lower Susquehanna River system. This will most likely be the last week for this catch-and-release fishery.
There are plenty of other fish to catch in the lower Susquehanna and the Conowingo Dam pool this week. Chesapeake Channa seem to find themselves at a dead end at the dam pool, there are flathead and blue catfish and large smallmouth bass.
The upper sections of the tidal rivers on the western shore are providing plenty of good fishing for Chesapeake Channa this week. Grass beds are beginning to fill out and that is where the fish will be holding. They are in a pre-spawn mode of feeding behavior and are aggressive.
Blue catfish are roaming the waters of the upper Bay, and they can be found in the lower sections of the region’s tidal rivers and to a lesser extent out in the Bay. The lower Susquehanna River, the mouth of the Elk River, and the middle to upper sections of the Chester River are good places to fish for blue catfish. Gizzard shad, menhaden, and white perch are all good cut bait options, but many anglers have good luck with chicken parts, and it doesn’t hurt to add some form of a scent product.
Middle Bay
There is a mix of channel and blue catfish in every one of the region’s tidal rivers and they can provide fun fishing and good table fare. The Choptank River holds the greatest number of blue catfish at this time and other rivers will no doubt catch up in time. The Choptank blue catfish can be found from below the Dover Bridge area up to just above Denton. If you are fishing from a boat, setting up along channel edges is a good spot to try. The outside bends of the river where there are high banks in the Choptank, and the lower Tuckahoe is often a great place to anchor up and fish. A small chum pot hung close to the bottom will go a long way to leave a scent trail for them to follow up to your boat. Using a 5/0 circle hook on a sliding sinker rig with a float just large enough to lift the bait a bit off the bottom is a tried-and-true rig for blue catfish.
Lower Bay
Anglers continue to target large black drum in the Tangier and Pocomoke sound waters and near the Target Ship. The black drum are being spotted on depth finders and soft crab baits are lowered in hopes of a hook up. Reports from our southern neighbors tell of large red drum and speckled trout headed our way, and warmer Bay waters should have them showing up in Maryland waters soon.
The hickory shad spawning runs in the Potomac River below Little Falls are beginning to diminish as water temperatures in the Potomac come close to the 70-degree mark. American shad are still an option this week and anglers report a falling tide is the best time to fish for them. The hickory shad spawning run at Mattawoman Creek and the upper Patuxent is also on the wane.
Atlantic Ocean and Coastal Bays
Anglers fishing along the beaches of Assateague are catching a mix of black drum and large striped bass in the surf this week. The northern migration of post-spawn striped bass are making their way up the coast from the Chesapeake and providing additional action for anglers. Sand fleas have been the most popular bait for the black drum and the striped bass seem to like them also, anglers are reminded there is a 28-inch to 31-inch slot for striped bass.
At the inlet and Route 50 Bridge area, anglers are catching a mix of striped bass and small bluefish by casting soft plastic jigs, paddletails, and Got-Cha type lures. Most of the striped bass being caught inside the inlet come up a little shy of the 28-inch minimum. Tautog are also being caught along the jetty rocks and bulkheads on sand fleas; the change of the tide tends to offer some of the best success. Flounder are moving through the inlet, headed for the back bay waters on a falling tide.
Flounder fishing in the back bay channels leading from the inlet is good this week, there are a lot of undersized flounder that don’t meet the 16-inch minimum, but by the end of most fishing trips anglers can catch a limit of four legal flounder or close to that. A falling or ebb tide is the most productive time to fish for flounder.
Fishing for striped bass near the bridge piers of the Verrazano and Route 90 bridges remains a fun catch and release fishery this week. Most of the striped bass being caught fail to meet the 28-inch minimum. The early morning and late evening hours offer the best fishing when casting paddletails and jerkbaits near the bridge piers and sedge bank edges.
Outside the Ocean City Inlet, the boats taking anglers out to the wreck and reef sites are finding good fishing for tautog for their anglers. Most anglers can catch a four fish limit and still be able to release the larger tautog.
Maryland DNR Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.