Maryland and Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report
From Ocean City, Taylor Bakke of Always Bent Fishing OC reported that more bass are showing up locally and the quality continues to improve with more slot-size fish in the mix. With the fresh-arriving bass, he said, more bunker have been pushing into the area, which is nice to see and a positive sign for the striper bite going forward. Bakke’s cousin, Austin Purnell, said the slot striper he caught in the back bays several miles south of Ocean City Inlet earlier this week (before the wind picked up) was full of bunker. In addition to better striper fishing, tautog interest has heightened with some nice fish being caught inside the inlet. With stripers and bunker pushing in and tautog accessible from shore, Ocean City is a great place to be wetting a line this week. For detailed local reports, videos and more, check out Always Bent’s website and social pages.
Captain Jamie Clough of Eastern Shore Light Tackle Charters said that stripers are headed out of the rivers and they are hot on the tails of schooling baitfish. The skipper has not been out in 3 days due to high winds, but the striped bass bite leading up to this temporary break was nothing short of outstanding. He called it some of the best fishing of the season. Big soft plastics with skirts, fished with a more rapid retrieve, have been the ticket to success for his recent charters. Head to Capt. Jamie’s Facebook page for trip rates and contact info. to book a trip while the fishing is hot!
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 few days that the wind has laid down have produced some good local fishing. Most of the striped bass are on the move to deeper water in the main part of the bay and it seems like the mouth of the Choptank was the hot area, with lots of striped bass blowing up on bunker. Overall, there were a lot of bass in that area with reports of fish up to 30 inches. The quality of the fish is getting better and we hope to see some of the migratory fish from up north show up in the next few weeks.
Pickerel fishing remains excellent in the tidal creeks; the only thing keeping us from going is the wind. There are good numbers of quality fish around the Severn, Magothy and Patapsco rivers.
Maryland DNR Fishing Report
Maryland DNR Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Read the full DNR report here.
Middle Bay
The Bay Bridge has been attracting striped bass this month and when the wind allows, it attracts an equal number of anglers and boats. Live-lining is still popular, and anglers are using eels, small white perch, and hard-to-find spot with excellent results. Casting and jigging with soft plastic and metal jigs is a good way to fish for striped bass near the pier bases, rock piles, and bridge abutments.
The channel edges that run from Bloody Point past Buoy 83 and down to the False Channel have been good for trolling. Tandem-rigged bucktails dressed with soft plastics and umbrella rigs using the same as trailers are a popular set up. All are pulled behind inline weights to get them down to where the striped bass are holding.
Water temperatures in the region’s tidal rivers have dipped to 51 degrees. Bay anchovies and juvenile menhaden continue exiting the rivers and are being swept along in the swift currents of the channels. The mouth of the Choptank River has been a premier location for anglers jigging with soft plastic and metal jigs. At times diving gulls will mark the way to fish when bait is pushed to the surface by striped bass. Anglers report this usually happens towards the evening.
Anglers are still finding striped bass action in the shallower waters along promising-looking shorelines in the Bay and in the lower sections of the region’s tidal rivers. Casting paddletails has been popular. Windy conditions and blow-out tides have not made fishing any easier.
Lower Bay
Fishing for striped bass has been good this week in the lower Bay. The lower Potomac and Patuxent rivers have been standouts, but the channel edges out in the Bay are providing good fishing also. The lower Potomac River from just below the Route 302 Bridge south along the steep channel edge from St. Georges Island past Piney Point has been a very good place to jig, troll, or live-line. Both large soft plastic jigs have been the most popular, but metal jigs will also work.
The lower Patuxent River from the Route 4 Bridge out to Cedar Point is a good place to jig with soft plastics along the channel edges. Trolling with tandem-rigged bucktails dressed with soft plastics or umbrella rigs using bucktails or Storm shads as trailers behind heavy inline weights.
The cuts through Hoopers Island have been a very good place to cast paddletails or soft plastic jigs and work them across the current. The shallower waters of Tangier Sound continue to produce striped bass and a few speckled trout that have lingered in the region. Casting paddletails has been the most popular tactic.
Trolling the channel edges near Cedar Point and the eastern side of the main channel from Buoy 72 south to Buoy 68 and the main channel in Tangier Sound is a good tactic when searching for striped bass. Umbrella rigs and tandem-rigged bucktails pulled behind heavy inline weights are popular.
Fishing for white perch has been good at the mouth of the Nanticoke River and the northern area of Tangier Sound. The lower sections of the Potomac and Patuxent rivers are also good places to look for white perch schooling up over hard bottom or oyster bottom. Most anglers are finding good success when using bottom rigs baited with grass shrimp and pieces of bloodworm for bait.
Atlantic Ocean and Coastal Bays
The cold front that pushed through our region earlier this week looks like it will be with us until at least the weekend, with strong winds and rough offshore seas. The good news is that the strong winds are coming from a westerly direction so the surf should lay down. Anglers are catching some kingfish in the surf and a few striped bass.
At the Ocean City Inlet, striped bass are being caught along the jetties, bulkheads, and docks by anglers casting soft plastic jigs. At the Route 90 Bridge there is some striped bass action near the bridge piers and nearby marsh sedge banks. Most anglers are using soft plastic jigs and paddletails. Tautog are being caught inside the inlet; a fair percentage measure under the required 16 inches, but most anglers can go home with one or two legal fish. Pieces of green crab or sand fleas are the most popular baits.
It has been rough offshore in recent days, and this windy weather will definitely be a factor for venturing offshore. The last anglers to fish the wreck and reef sites did very well on black sea bass and large flounder. The canyon fishery is mostly centered around deep drop fishing for blueline tilefish and swordfish.
Maryland DNR Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Read the full DNR report here.