Maryland and Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report
Sailing out of West Ocean City, Captain Monty Hawkins of Morning Star Fishing reported warm weather, calm seas and light winds on Wednesday’s sea bass trip. 8-ounce sinkers were holding bottom once they set up to drift. According to the skipper, sea bass were abundant and they hooked quite a few that were just short of keeper status, but were able to box enough for everyone to take home some dinner. They also managed to pin quite a few fluke—more than the captain has seen in some time. Earlier in the week, mostly mild sailing conditions and some light wind and fog were met with a mostly steady sea bass bite. A few anglers got into the double digits on Sunday as the bite improved with an increase in current, and one angler even managed to reel in a blueline tilefish that was quite ways from their usual stomping grounds further out. On Monday, the fishing was good early on at each spot, but as has been the case for much of the season, the bite would eventually trail off and the skipper would have to move spots despite marking plenty of fish. Still, anglers are catching enough meat to make the long run well worth it. The Morning Star will be sailing for offshore sea bass whenever conditions permit. Give them a call at (443) 235-5577 between 8 AM and 8 PM to reserve your spot on the rail.
From Ocean City, Taylor Bakke of Always Bent Fishing OC said inshore, the striper bite is finally showing signs of slowing down, but there are still some decent fish around. However, there are a lot more bluefish in the mix these days—they just keep coming. The flounder bite, he said, has been hot in the bays and sheepshead action has been picking up along bridge pilings and areas of hard structure. In the surf, there have been some large red drum caught on cut mullet and a few on soft plastics. During his report, Bakke said he was out on the tuna grounds and they had already managed to land 3 yellowfin tuna. This weekend is the Tunas and Tiaras Tournament out of Ocean City, so head down to Ocean City Fishing Center on the 13th and 14th to see what the ladies bring in!
Anglers Sport Center Fishing Report – Annapolis, MD
The Anglers Sport Center fishing report is written by Anglers Fishing Manager & OTW Columnist, Alex Gallardo-Perez.
The summer heat is finally here and summer patterns are in full swing when targeting striped bass. The early morning topwater bite has been good in most of the rivers like the Patapsco, Severn, and around Poplar Island or any shallow-water structure; spooks and poppers in the bone color are the ticket. Almost like clock work, as soon as the sun gets up high, it’s time to switch to some jigging or live-lining in deeper water. Some good areas that have been holding striped bass are the 7- and 6-Foot Knolls, Love Point, and The Hill at the mouth of Eastern Bay. Some summer visitors are here and we hope to see them in good numbers! Specks and puppy drum are showing in the lower Bay around the Point Lookout and Solomon’s area, and casting small paddletails to the shorelines is one good way to find them.
There are also still plenty of white perch holding in deeper water around hard structure, along with spot and even some croaker. If you’re in the upper part of the bay, you’ll see some channel catfish mixed in as well.
Maryland DNR Fishing Report
Maryland DNR Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
Continued warming fishing weather is ahead for this upcoming week with moderate conditions for Maryland Bay waters. There is a chance of rain from Saturday through Tuesday. Main Bay surface water temperatures have increased to about the mid 70s with river temperatures slightly cooler in the low 70s.
Middle Bay
The striped bass fishing at the Bay Bridge has been unpredictable recently, and only a few anglers seem to be testing the waters. In the mornings and evenings anglers can be seen casting a mix of paddletails and soft plastic jigs to the pier bases. A few boats can be seen positioning up-current of the bridge piers in the evenings, and at night drifting live spot or soft crab baits towards the pier bases.
Anglers continue to work the shorelines of the Bay and tidal rivers where contours and structure offer promise of holding striped bass. This is mostly a morning and evening endeavor for anglers casting a mix of paddletails, topwater lures, and jerkbaits. The Kent Island shoreline, the Poplar Island rocks, the mouth of the Choptank, Little Choptank, and the Severn and Rhode rivers are locations worth exploring. Looking for grass beds, hard structure, and clear water can help narrow searches for areas where striped bass are holding.
Live-lining spot is a productive way to fish for striped bass this week. The 30-foot edges out in front of Hacketts Bar, the Gum Thickets, the Clay Banks, and Thomas Point are just a few edges worth exploring, and depth finders are very helpful in this task. Spot can be found in front of Chesapeake Beach and behind Black Walnut Point on Tilghman Island, and they can be caught on pieces of bloodworm or artificial bloodworm baits.
One last note, cownose rays seem to be everywhere, and they’re bothersome when fishing the shallows. It is no fun to snag one while trolling and a mess when they take a bait meant for some other fish.
Lower Bay
The lower Patuxent and Potomac rivers are excellent places to fish for striped bass this week. Anglers are enjoying good fishing along the 30-foot depth of the channel edges below the Route 4 bridge, the steep channel edges in the Potomac River from St. Georges Island to Piney Point, and on the Virginia side as well. Most anglers are trolling tandem rigged bucktails and swimshads behind inline weights; chartreuse is a favorite color.
Live-lining spot is very popular this week wherever striped bass can be found suspended along channel edges at about the 30-foot depth. The channel edges in the lower Potomac and Patuxent are good places to try, as is the 30-foot edge off Cove Point or anywhere in the lower Bay where striped bass can be spotted on depth finders suspended near the bottom.
Large red drum are moving into the eastern side of the lower Bay from Pocomoke Sound up past Hoopers Island. Most are found in shallower waters where the red drum seem to be seeking out warmer waters. Casting paddletails, spoons, jerkbaits and topwater lures is an exciting way to enjoy shallow water catch-and release action for these large fish. Fishing soft crab or peeler crab baits will work wonders for red drum and speckled trout if they can get to those baits before the cownose rays that tend to be everywhere.
Casting topwater lures and paddletails is a very popular way to fish this week in the shallower waters of Pocomoke and Tangier sounds, the shores of the lower Potomac and Patuxent and bay shore waters. Grass flats and stump fields on the eastern side of the bay are favored areas for speckled trout and striped bass. On the western side of the bay, the St. Marys River, the Point Lookout area, and the Cedar Point Rocks are excellent places to cast topwater lures and paddletails in the morning and evening hours.
Chesapeake Channa are being caught in many of the tidal creeks this week of the major tidal rivers. The fish are holding near grass beds in preparation for spawning. Casting weedless rigged paddletails, chatterbaits, soft plastic frogs, and buzzbaits are a good way to work those thick grass bed areas.
Fishing for a mix of spot, small croaker and white perch is good at the mouth of the Patuxent River, near Point Lookout, the Honga River, Tangier Sound and Pocomoke Sound. Most anglers are fishing with a mix of bloodworm, peeler crab and artificial bloodworm baits.
Atlantic Ocean and Coastal Bays
Anglers report a good run of large red drum this week in the Assateague surf, and they are enjoying some exciting catch and release action. Cut mullet tends to be a popular bait. There is also a mix of inshore sharks being encountered.
Inside the Ocean City inlet, striped bass and bluefish are being caught along the jetties, bulkheads, and Route 50 bridge piers. Most anglers are having good luck with skirted soft plastic jigs and bucktails dressed with twistertails. Most of the striped bass are a little short of the 28” minimum but a fair percentage meet the 28-31 inch slot.
Flounder fishing has had its ups and downs in the past week due to cloudy water conditions. When cloudy waters conditions are present in the back bay channels, the last of an incoming tide often provides clearer water and better fishing. As of June 1, the minimum size for flounder bumped up to 17.5 inches.
Fishing for black sea bass remains very good this week at the offshore wreck and reef sites, and limit catches are not uncommon. Some anglers are targeting flounder at some of the sites and are catching some impressive flounder.
Anglers headed out to the canyons are finding a wonderful mix of yellowfin, bluefin, and bigeye tuna. Several boats are also deep dropping and bring impressive catches of blueline and golden tilefish.
Maryland DNR Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.