Maryland and Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report
Sailing out of West Ocean City, Captain Monty Hawkins of Morning Star Fishing reported mostly positive results at the offshore sea bass grounds on 6/13 and 6/17. Last Friday, the 13th, they caught plenty of keepers and some nice ones at that. On Tuesday, the 17th, after staying tied to the dock on Monday, the bite had slowed a bit. The captain described mixed results but, when they were chewing, his anglers pulled some nice fish over the rail. Wednesday’s trip was particularly challenging, as they were met with stacks of sea bass on the sounder that weren’t willing to bite until their last and deepest drop of the day. The skipper had the mates employ 12- and 16-ounce sinkers to accommodate for the deep structure and ripping current, and on that piece, they secured enough sea bass for anglers to go home with dinner. They even saw one of their biggest of the season. Give Morning Star Fishing a shout 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 they had a great day on the water with Captain Jeff Rosenkilde of Bad Habit Sportfishing during the Tunas and Tiaras tournament last weekend. The skipper put their group of lady anglers on plenty of yellowfins. Some large bigeye tunas took the prize money, but Bakke said the young tuna season is off to a better start than last year, which bodes well for the offshore fishing season ahead. The first white marlin of the year was caught and released during the tournament. On Tuesday, Bakke added, the Bad Habit ran out to the tuna grounds again and got their 4-man limit of yellowfins, so the bite is holding up well. Slightly closer to home, he said, the flounder bite at the wrecks has really picked up. Stripers are a bit tougher to find these days, but they are still in the mix around the Ocean City inlet. Bluefish on the other hand, remain abundant, and cownose rays, he added, are in so thick they’re becoming a major nuisance to everyone except the bow fishermen who target them. Be prepared to battle some large rays both in the surf and in the bays if you’re fishing cut bait or flounder rigs.
Anglers Sport Center Fishing Report – Annapolis, MD
The Anglers Sport Center fishing report is written by Anglers Fishing Manager & OTW Columnist, Alex Gallardo-Perez.
High temperatures are keeping the striped bass bite to the early mornings and evenings, and most anglers are using topwater plugs around shallow shorelines. 5-inch walking baits, especially in the bone color, have been doing most of the work. Eastern Bay and the Choptank River seem to be two of the best areas due to their plentiful shoreline structure. The upper bay bite for striped bass is still concentrated around the mouth of the Patapsco River and Love Point, with most anglers finding pockets of suspended fish around channel edges where live spot are getting them to bite. Jigs paired with 5- to 6-inch plastics are also working great.
Maryland DNR Fishing Report
Maryland DNR Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
Middle Bay
Anglers fishing for striped bass at the Bay Bridge report mixed results on any given day. Drifting live spot or soft crab baits to the pier bases on a good running tide is the standard tactic. Others are jigging deep at the rock piles with heavy jigs due to stiff currents. Lighter jigs and paddletails can be used when casting to the shallower bridge pier bases.
Striped bass anglers are urged to report their catches and fish they release on the Fisheries Volunteer Angler Survey. The information from anglers is very important to the striped bass program biologists.
During the morning and evening hours anglers are having a fun and successful time casting topwater lures such as poppers and spooks along the shorelines of the Bay and the lower sections of the tidal rivers. Rock jetties, reinforced shorelines, large piers, and prominent points are all good things to keep in mind when selecting areas to fish.
Live-lining spot is perhaps one of the most popular ways to fish for striped bass. There is a ready supply of spot to be found in the shallower and hard-bottom areas of the Bay. Once a supply of spot is gathered, channel edges are usually the target, and a good depth finder can help lead the way. The channel edges at Hacketts Bar, the Gum Thickets, Thomas Point, Buoy 83, the Clay Banks, Sharps Island Light, the Diamonds, and False Channel are all good locations to check out.
Lower Bay
The lower Potomac River seems to be the place to be this week if you’re targeting striped bass, both sides of the channel are good places to look for striped bass whether one is jigging, trolling, or live-lining. The steep channel edge from St. Georges Island to Piney Point is always a good place to start looking. Jigging with soft plastics and live-lining spot along this channel edge and the opposing one on the Virginia side are excellent ways to fish.
The lower Patuxent River below the Route 4 Bridge is another good place to look for striped bass holding along the channel edges. Jigging and live-lining are very productive ways to fish; a good depth finder helps put one on the fish.
Large red drum continue to build up their numbers on the eastern side of the lower bay region. Pocomoke Sound, Tangier Sound, the Middle Grounds, and areas near the Target Ship up to Hoopers Island are excellent places to look for them. The shallower water has been a good place to look for them recently. Anglers have been fishing with soft plastic jigs, topwater lures, and drifting peeler crab baits. Trolling with large chrome spoons behind inline weights is another good way to fish for them.
Speckled trout are being found along the eastern side of the Bay, often in the shallower waters. Casting spook type lures or fishing with paddletails or soft plastic shrimp under a popping cork is a great way to fish over grass beds. Other anglers are having good luck drifting peeler crab baits in swift current areas. Watch out for cownose rays, there are a lot of them out there.
Atlantic Ocean and Coastal Bays
The weatherman dished out some nasty weather over the weekend for inshore anglers. Surf anglers put up with the rain and there were good catch and release reports of large red drum at Assateague. Cut mullet and menhaden have been the most popular baits.
At the Ocean City Inlet and Route 50 Bridge area, anglers are catching striped bass and bluefish in the early morning and late evening hours by casting soft plastic jigs and paddletails. Once boat traffic picks up, the fishing success tends to drop off. Most of the striped bass fail to meet the 28” minimum and there are reports of a few exceeding the 31” maximum.
Flounder fishing was poor over the weekend due to churned up waters in the back bays. The best option is to fish at the end of the incoming tide. The weather forecast holds some promise this week and hopefully the bay waters will clear up. Clear water is very important for good flounder fishing.
The boats taking anglers out to the offshore wreck and reef sites have been finding good fishing for black sea bass. A few boats have been targeting some of these areas for flounder and anglers are making some impressive catches of large flounder.
The big news this past weekend was that the first white marlin of the season was caught and released during a ladies’ tuna tournament. A lot of large yellowfin tuna were brought into the docks during this tournament and offers much promise for the beginning of the Ocean City canyon fishery. Deep drop anglers are enjoying good fishing for blueline and golden tilefish.
Maryland DNR Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.