Maryland and Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report
Captain Jamie Clough of Eastern Shore Light Tackle Charters said he and Captain Mike Gardner have shifted gears to targeting bluefish in the bay during the August striped bass closure. They will be back to chasing stripers in September. Fortunately, the bluefish action has been stellar, according to Captain Jamie, who said some of these blues are the biggest he’s seen in 30 years. However, the skipper noted that there are three distinct size classes in the bay right now, and they are focused on catching the gators which, at times, have been blitzing on peaunts up top in 30 to 60 feet of water. Their charters are catching on 1-ounce jigs and 5-inch Z-Man paddletails; the Elaztech material is incredibly durable so it holds up nicely against the toothy blues, saving them valuable time and money. Captain Jamie recommends setting up on the outside of the schools—especially when they are actively feeding—and casting along the edges to avoid spooking the fish and putting them down. He noted that there are noticeably fewer peanut bunker around, so using electronics to locate schools that aren’t showing up top is good practice. The blues will be nearby. To get in on the bite, head to the ES Light Tackle Charters Facebook page for trip rates and contact info to inquire about their upcoming availability.
From Ocean City, Taylor Bakke of Always Bent Fishing OC reported that bigeye and bluefin tuna stole the show during last weekend’s Big Fish Classic, but the white marlin bite has been heating up just in time for the White Marlin Open, which begins on Monday. Mahi, he added, are finally showing up on the midshore lobster pots, and the wreck and reef sites have been producing a solid mix of flounder, sea bass, triggerfish, and even a few sheepshead and cobia! Inshore, inside the inlet and coastal bays, the flounder bite also remains steady and sheepshead are chewing well along the jetties and bridges. In the surf, Bakke mentioned, most anglers from Ocean City to Assateague Island have turned to shark fishing at night, but there are a few red drum being caught in the suds as well. Check out the Always Bent YouTube Channel and Instagram page to stay in the loop with the local fishing scene, from inshore bites to tournament coverage.
Captain Monty Hawkins of Morning Star Fishing out of West Ocean City reported steady sea bass fishing and a solid mahi bite across this week’s trips. On Saturday’s sea bass trip, the first drop yielded a bunch of double headers and a handful of keepers, along with some throwback fluke. As the morning carried on, anglers around the rail saw an improvement in the size department and had their share of keepers until the bite slowed in the early afternoon and effort petered out. The Morning Star sailed for mahi on Sunday with family and friends in tow, who found success at nearly every spot they stopped until around 10:30 a.m. when the fish simply stopped chewing. Tuesday’s mahi trip was a different story. While the fishing was difficult at first, the skipper found a pile of mahi at the tenth spot they visited and from then on, it was, in Captain Monty’s words, “mahi mayhem.” He considered it the best day of mahi fishing the Morning Star’s anglers have seen in two years. On Wednesday, it was rinse and repeat. Mahi were willing to chew for most of the outing until the final minutes when the wind switched and seas slicked out, but that didn’t stop one angler on board from catching his 10th mahi of the day to reach a limit—the first mahi limit of 2026 aboard the Morning Star. The Morning Star will continue to sail for mahi every week, Tuesday through Thursday, until early September. Sea bass trips (with flounder in the mix) will be offered Friday through Monday, and they have some spaces available for Friday and Saturday this week. Call 443-235-5577 to reserve your spot on the rail and head to their website for more trip information.
Anglers Sport Center Fishing Report – Annapolis, MD
Written by Anglers Fishing Manager & OTW Columnist, Alex Gallardo-Perez.
Most of the striped bass action has been in the upper bay. The Patapsco River and Pooles Island have been the hot spots. Some shallow water action around Eastern Bay is also keeping anglers looking for striped bass. However, we are coming up on our striped bass closure here in the Chesapeake Bay, which starts August 1 and remains closed until the season reopens on September 1. That means no harvesting or targeting striped bass for catch and release for the whole month of August. The costal areas will remain open, but there is plenty more to fish for.
The croaker bite has been great this year with a good amount of keepers. There are plenty of spot around as well, with most being pan-sized. Bloodworms and Fish Bites are the ticket to catching them. Bluefish are here, and the middle to lower Bay is the area to look for them. Many are small, but there are a few schools of larger blues pushing 30 inches as well. Chesapeake Beach to the Target Ship are good places to scout. Trolling Clark spoons or, once located, casting metal jigs to them, is the ticket.
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.
Beginning Saturday August 1, the Maryland Chesapeake Bay striped bass season will close through August 31 for conservation reasons. It will reopen on September 1. The tidal Potomac is also closed as of July 7 and will not reopen until August 21. The striped bass season along the coastal waters of Maryland will remain open. During this time we encourage anglers to explore the multitude of other species in our state.
Middle Bay
Maryland Chesapeake Bay waters will be closed to striped bass fishing this Saturday, August 1 through August 31 as a conservation measure due to increased catch-and-release mortality during warm water temperatures.
Prior to the closure, anglers have been finding striped bass along channel edges in the middle Bay by live-lining spot or jigging with soft plastic jigs. The channel edges from Bloody Point south past Sharps Island Light to the CP Buoy have been good places to explore for striped bass. A watchful eye on a depth finder often leads the way to success. Thomas Point has also been reported to hold striped bass along the 20-foot edge. The Kent Narrows is also a good place to live-line spot or cast soft plastic jigs during the early morning and late evening hours.
The Bay Bridge piers and rock piles continue to be worth checking on a running tide during the early morning and evening hours for anglers drifting live spot, small white perch and cut bait to the pier bases. Casting soft plastic jigs to the pier bases is also a good option. Skirts in chartreuse and yellow and gel scent added to the jigs help entice striped bass.
Bluefish continue to be a good fishing option in the middle Bay. They can be caught by drifting cut bait in a chum slick, trolling surge tube lures or Drone spoons, or casting into breaking fish. Anglers are urged to release any striped bass caught by accident in the water so they are not exposed to air.
A few Spanish mackerel have shown up in the lower Maryland waters and may move into the middle Bay soon. Trolling with gold Clark spoons and various colored Drone spoons behind inline weights at about 7 knots will be the best way to target them, unless breaking fish can be encountered. Casting metal jigs with a rapid retrieve is the best option when casting to breaking Spanish mackerel. A slower retrieve will allow bluefish to chase down a lure.
Blue catfish can help provide plenty of fishing action during the striped bass closure. Anglers will most likely find the best fishing for blue catfish in the middle to upper regions of the middle Bay tidal rivers. The blue catfish can be found in the Choptank River close to Denton and holding in the channels. Towards the evening hours the blue catfish have been moving to shallower shelves and flats of about 15 feet.
Lower Bay
Anglers pursuing striped bass in Maryland’s portion of the Chesapeake will have until Friday July 31 to fish for striped bass. Maryland’s striped bass season will be closed August 1 through August 31. The Potomac River has been closed since July 7 and will not open until August 21.
Live-lining spot has been the most popular way to fish for striped bass this month along channel edges between 25 feet and 35 feet deep. Action is found in the channel edges off Cedar Point and Cove Point and the channel edge between Buoy 76 and Buoy 74 offshore of the Stone Pile near what is left of Barren Island. Bluefish are a big part of the mix when live-lining and most anglers are catching limits of bluefish by live-lining or chunking. Cruising along the steep channel edges and watching depth finders for suspended fish is the best way to get in on the bluefish action.
Bluefish of varying sizes can be found throughout the lower bay region this week and most likely through the rest of August. They can be caught while chumming and drifting cut bait, trolling with surge tube lures or Drone spoons behind inline weights, jigging, or casting into breaking fish. Sizes are running from 1.5 pounds to 10 pounds.
Anglers are chumming for cobia while fishing live eels in the distant back of their chum slicks close to the bottom. While waiting for cobia, many anglers are drifting cut bait in their chum slicks to catch bluefish.
The first Spanish mackerel were reported last weekend off Smith Point while trolling gold Clark spoons. Hopefully more will fill in this week. Trolling small gold Clark spoons behind inline weights and planers at a fast clip at around 7 knots is the best way to catch them.
Large red drum continue to provide exciting catch-and-release action for anglers this week. Spotting them on depth finders, slicks, and disturbed water is a popular way to find them. Once found, baiting them with soft crab or large soft plastic jigs is a popular way to target them. Trolling with large chrome spoons behind inline weights is another way to catch them. The areas around Smith Point. Point Lookout, the Target Ship, and the Middle Grounds are good places to look for them.
Speckled trout are being caught by anglers throughout the lower Bay when casting a variety of lures in the shallower waters near grass beds. Popping corks trailing plastic shrimp baits, Zara Spooks, and paddletails are all popular lures during the early morning and late evening hours. Drifting soft crab baits or small spot near creek mouths on ebbing tides is another popular and successful method to catch speckled trout.
Fishing for a mix of croaker and spot has been very good this week and should continue through August. They can be found holding over hard bottom in most areas on both sides of the Bay. The lower Patuxent and Tangier Sound have been especially productive. The spot can be caught on pieces of bloodworms, lug worms or artificial bloodworm baits. Croakers can be caught on the same or peeler crab.
Atlantic Ocean and Coastal Bays
Surf anglers fishing with small baits along the Assateague beaches are catching a mix of kingfish, spot, croaker, and blowfish. Anglers casting bucktails or Gulps tipped with a strip of squid are catching flounder. Anglers fishing with large baits of cut mullet or menhaden are still catching and releasing some large red drum along with bluefish, as well as cownose rays and inshore sharks.
At the inlet and Route 50 Bridge area, anglers are catching striped bass and bluefish by casting bucktails and soft plastic jigs, live-lining spot, or drifting cut bait. A large percentage of the striped bass are falling short of the 28-inch minimum, but that does not take away from the fun. Sheepshead, triggerfish, and a few tautog are being caught along the jetty rocks, bulkheads and bridge piers. The sheepshead and tautog are being caught on sand fleas or peeler crab, while triggerfish are caught on small pieces of squid, clams, or peeler crab.
Flounder fishing has not been good in the back bay channels due to cloudy water conditions caused by thunderstorms and wind that moved through the area last week. The immediate forecast is for clear skies so hopefully water clarity will improve by the weekend. In the meantime, a flood tide will most likely give you the clearest water conditions near the inlet. Spot can be caught in the shallower waters near the Route 90 bridge.
Flounder fishing has been very good outside the inlet at some of the inshore lumps and at the wreck and reef sites. The anglers headed out to target black sea bass are doing better catching flounder than they are black sea bass. At times small dolphin are also being caught and triggerfish can be part of the mix. Boats trolling the inshore waters close to the beach are catching bluefish and a few Spanish mackerel. At locations such as the Jackspot, bluefin tuna are being caught sporadically.
Anglers headed out to the canyons are catching a mix of bluefin and yellowfin tuna and a few wahoo. Many are stopping by lobster buoys to load up on small dolphin. Others are deep dropping for a mix 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. Read the full DNR report here.