Maryland and Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report
Sailing out of West Ocean City, Captain Monty Hawkins of Morning Star Fishing reported calm conditions on Tuesday’s sea bass trip with light wind against tide, which led to a nice slow drift to start off the day. Not soon after, they were picking away at sea bass with a few anglers reaching double digits early on, and by the end of the day, they had limits all around. Rigs baited with clam, as well as jigs fished with teasers, were getting the job done. The fish are still feeding heavily on sand eels. Back on the sea bass grounds on Wednesday, they were greeted by light southwest wind and little to no swell, which made for a very pleasant day of bottom fishing for the folks at Creative Concepts on a company outing. Again, they put together a healthy catch of keepers on both jigs and bait. The skipper will be sailing for offshore sea bass whenever conditions permit, so give them 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 shared the following report: “Locally, we are still seeing some slot and over-slot bass being caught on jigged paddletails or live spot and eels. The bluefish are in thick now as well, in the mix with the bass. The inshore flounder bite is still good and the action is starting to pick up on the ocean wrecks as well! Boats heading out of the inlet are also catching lots of sea bass, and tilefish as well. The tuna bite has been tricky, as the eddy holding the yellowfins is a far ride for most—over 125 miles out, making it a feasible run for boats only with enough fuel capacity and the will to settle in for a long ride. However, the bluefin are still migrating through the canyons, so charter boats have been able to target them, retain their one-fish limit, and then catch and release the rest. Most boats catching yellowfin tuna are trolling ballyhoo or spreader bars; however, a couple were caught on poppers and spinning gear. The bluefin boats are also trolling ballyhoo with good results. Overall, it’s been a great start to the summer season!”
Captain Walt of Light Tackle Charters out of Crisfield reported: “We’re catching “keeper” striped bass in the shallows of the central Chesapeake Bay (between 2′-6′ of water) casting various lures; topwater during low-light conditions (early morning, evening, and cloudy/overcast), and on spoons and 5-inch paddletails all other times. While regulations limit what you can take (one per person, from 19″ to 24″), it’s fun catch-and-release action for any fish over 24 inches or under 19 inches. The water is still pretty cold, but we’ll soon begin adding speckled trout to the action, fishing the same way.” Give the skipper a call at (410)845-3231 or email capnwalt@gmail.com for availability and booking info.
Anglers Sport Center Fishing Report – Annapolis, MD
The Anglers Sport Center fishing report is written by Anglers Fishing Manager & OTW Columnist, Alex Gallardo-Perez.
Fishing has been good around the upper and middle Bay areas when it comes to striped bass. The Patapsco River seems to be the hot spot this week, with some good schools of striped bass holding around the inside of the old Key Bridge and all around the port to inner harbor area. Most anglers are catching them around the channel edges or hard structure like sunken pilings, docks and even shorelines with some kind of cover. Jigging and trolling have been great ways to target striped bass in this area. The Bay Bridge is holding some fish, as well. Live-lining spot around the pilings has been working great and just south of there, Poplar Island has hosted some great topwater action in the mornings.
Maryland DNR Fishing Report
Maryland DNR Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
The first two Saturdays in June – this year, June 7 and June 14 – are free fishing days in Maryland, when anglers do not need to have a fishing license, are a perfect time to introduce someone to the joys of fishing.
Striped bass anglers are urged to report their catches and fish they release on the DNR Volunteer Angler Survey. The information from anglers is very important to the striped bass biologists.
Middle Bay
Anglers are reporting good striped bass action at the Bay Bridge piers and rock piles on most days. Water temperatures in the middle Bay are holding around 67 degrees. Tides and water clarity can be important factors for fishing success at the bridge. Live-lining spot or drifting soft crab baits to the pier bases on the eastbound span near the 30-foot drop-off or the rock piles is a classic tactic at the Bay Bridge. Casting skirted bucktails and soft plastic jigs at the pier bases on both the westbound and eastbound spans is always a fun way to fish for striped bass during the morning and evening with a running tide.
There is a lot of striped bass action spread throughout the middle Bay from the shallow waters to the deeper channel edges. The shallow water action is a real treat for light tackle anglers casting poppers, paddletails, and jerkbaits during the morning and evening. The action tends to last longer during the morning and start earlier in the evenings due to cooler water temperatures. Calmer winds makes it fun casting skipping bugs with a 7-weight flyrod and a floating line offers pure entertainment to watch a bug being repeatedly hit before a hookup.
Live-lining spot is a very good way to target striped bass along various main channel edges. The outside 30-foot edge at Hacketts, the steep edge from the Gum Thickets to Bloody Point, the steep edge at the Hill, Stone Rock, The False Channel, and Breezy Point are just a few of the channel edges worth exploring.
Lower Bay
Striped bass anglers are finding a lot of action in the lower Patuxent and Potomac rivers through a variety of fishing methods. Jigging is very good along channel edges with soft plastics in the Patuxent near Solomons Island and Drum Point and Town Point near the Route 4 Bridge. These areas are also good for live-lining spot and the 35-foot edge of Cove Point is producing some striped bass.
Both sides of the lower Potomac River offer up good opportunities for striped bass. Trolling along the steep edge between Piney Point and St. Georges Island is a good bet, as is the channel edge off Sandy Point Neck on the Virginia side. When fish can be spotted on depth finders suspended off the bottom, live-lining spot or jigging with soft plastics can work well. Shallower waters in the St. Marys River or around Point Lookout, Cedar Point, and other promising areas fished with paddletails, spooks and poppers during the morning and evening hours can yield a mix of striped bass, speckled trout, bluefish, and puppy drum.
The shallower waters of Tangier and Pocomoke sounds provide good fishing for a mix of striped bass, bluefish, puppy drum, and speckled trout. Spooks are a favorite topwater lure for fishing over grass beds, and paddletails also are working well. Successful speckled trout anglers mention drifting peeler crab baits on an evening tide has been working out well near creek mouths. The cuts through Hoopers Island are also a productive location for working soft plastic jigs in the current or drifting peeler crab baits, but watch out for cownose rays if you’re fishing with bait.
Large red drum are being caught on the eastern side of the Bay in Tangier Sound and Pocomoke Sound. They can be caught by jigging with soft plastic jigs when disturbed water, slicks or telltale heavy marks on a depth finder can be seen. Some anglers have also had good luck by trolling with chrome spoons behind inline weights.
Atlantic Ocean and Coastal Bays
Surf anglers are enjoying some pleasant weather this week and a variety of fish in the surf. Most of the large migrant striped bass have passed us by but there are always a few bringing up the rear of the migration. A few large red drum are being caught and released, the striped bass and red drum are being caught on cut mullet or menhaden.
At the inlet and Route 50 Bridge area, anglers are enjoying good fishing for a mix of striped bass and bluefish. Most of the striped bass fail to meet the 28-inch minimum and there are reports of a few striped bass released because they exceeded the 31-inch maximum. The bluefish range in sizes but most weigh 2-4 pounds.
Water clarity conditions in the back bay areas have improved and flounder fishing is at the top of the list again. The channels leading from the inlet are popular for fishing. Some of the largest flounder are being caught on Gulp baits dressed with a minnow or squid strip. There continues to be fun catch and release action for striped bass at the Route 90 and Verrazzano bridge piers. Paddletails have been a popular lure.
Flounder fishing has been good near the mouth of the inlet and some of the inshore wreck sites. Farther offshore at the wreck and reef sites anglers are catching black sea bass and often limiting out.
If one ventures even farther offshore to extremely deep-water good catches of blueline and golden tilefish await anglers ready to do the deep drop. NOAA has adjusted the retention limits on bluefin tuna in response to public comment. The changes were shared in a recent DNR bulletin.
Maryland DNR Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.