Luke Wrye shows what can be found in the deep waters of the Atlantic Ocean with this beautiful golden tilefish caught August 15. Photo courtesy of Luke Wrye.
The coastal areas are seeing heavy surf and higher than normal tides, and perhaps strong winds will occur later this week. It’s a good time to fish in more protected waters or perhaps just stand on the beach and watch nature’s fury.
A reminder to all Maryland anglers, please participate in DNR’s Volunteer Angler Surveys. This allows citizen scientists to contribute valuable data to the monitoring and management of several important fish species.
In particular, striped bass anglers are urged to report their catches and fish they release, which is very helpful to striped bass biologists helping monitor this iconic species.
Forecast Summary: August 20 – August 26:
Expect warm and sunny fishing weather and unstable conditions for Maryland Bay waters this week. There is a chance of rain on Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday. As reported by the NOAA buoys, main Bay surface water temperatures are currently in the lower 80s but will be warming. River temperatures are slightly cooler in the lower 70s.
Salinities are below normal for most Maryland waters this time of year. Along the eastern shore from Tolchester down to Bloody Point, there is adequate oxygen down to about 25 feet. In the Potomac River, there will be adequate oxygen down to less than 10 feet in the Colonial Beach area but improving downstream towards Point Lookout. Recent rain and cloudy days have cooled Bay surface waters and improved low oxygen conditions in the main Bay waters.
Expect average water clarity for Maryland’s streams, rivers, and main Bay waters. To see the latest water clarity conditions on NOAA satellite maps, check Eyes on the Bay Satellite Maps. There will be above average tidal currents all week as a result of the upcoming new moon on August 23.
Don Goff and his son Copper hold up two nice striped bass they caught at the Conowingo Dam Pool over the weekend. Photo courtesy of Don Goff
Anglers who come prepared for long casts to the turbine wash at the Conowingo Dam pool are enjoying good fishing for striped bass. The cool water and the possibility of injured or disoriented baitfish in the turbine wash is enough to keep striped bass coming back for more. A light to medium weight surf rod spooled with braid is the key to casting soft plastic jigs, paddletails, or crankbaits into that sweet spot.
Anglers report slim pickings for striped bass along the edges of the Susquehanna Flats, and generally that is the story for most of the upper Bay and the concentrated striped bass action in the Patapsco River of last week has tapered off. Anglers are puzzled as to where the striped bass went. There is still some live lining action going on at the concrete islands for the high electric lines crossing the Patapsco River. If anglers do not bring their live spot with them, there are some spot to be caught close to Fort Carroll. Anglers and boaters must pay attention to the safety zones near the remains of the Frances Scott Key Bridge, where crews are working to rebuild the structure. The safety and exclusion zones are marked with buoys, and the Maryland Transportation Authority provides updates for waterway users in the Key Bridge area.
Anglers are poking around the upper Bay checking for striped bass at some of the traditional locations hoping to find a few cooperative fish. Pooles Island is usually on the list, as are the Love Point rocks and Baltimore Light. All are worth dunking a few live spot for a few minutes to see if anyone is willing to take a bait.
Blue catfish are always on the short list for fishing in the upper Bay. The Chester River, the mouths of the Susquehanna and Elk rivers, and the Pooles Island area are excellent places to fish for them. Cut bait, chicken parts, and scented baits are popular when fished on a bottom rig.
Although some consider them sparse this year, anglers are finding good fishing for white perch on various lumps and knolls in the upper Bay. A good depth finder is key in finding schools of white perch holding close to the bottom. Dropper rigs outfitted with a combination of shad darts or small soft plastic jigs have been the best way to catch the perch. Anglers are reminded that regulations permit only two lures per dropper rig.
A mix of spot, white perch, and small croakers continue to be found on hard bottom areas in the upper Bay. The waters close to Fort Carroll, the Chester River near Hail Point, the mouth of the Magothy River, and the shallow end of the Bay Bridge are good places to catch them.
Overcast weather and cooler water temperatures have helped put the shallow-water striped bass fishery back to a better place. The shallow-water action can be seen extending a little more into the morning hours past sunrise and better evening fishing. Casting topwater lures in the form of poppers and skipping bugs is always pure entertainment with striped bass and speckled trout. Casting paddletails is also a popular way to fish. The shorelines of Eastern Bay, the Poplar Island rocks, and the lower Choptank and Little Choptank rivers are good places to look for striped bass.
Striped bass fishing continues to be on-and-off at the Bay Bridge piers this week. One day, it seems all conditions align to put striped bass in a feeding mood, other days not so. Drifting live spot towards the pier bases is a very popular way to fish the bridge but casting skirted soft plastic jigs at the pier bases is always worth a try. At the shallower ends of the bridge white perch and a mix of spot and croakers can be caught by using peeler crab, grass shrimp or bloodworm baits.
Bluefish are being caught by anglers trolling a mix of red and green surge tube lures and small spoons behind inline weights along the main channel edges. The east side of the bay has been a good place to look for bluefish from Buoy 83 south past the Sharps Island Light, the False Channel, and past the CP Buoy below the mouth of the Choptank. The west side of the Bay below the Chesapeake Beach area has been experiencing some dissolved oxygen problems and causing fish kills of juvenile menhaden.
Anglers are encouraged to be ready to care for bluefish once they are landed. They make the best table fare when iced down immediately and kept cold to ensure the meat is firm. Bluefish left without being iced immediately often become soft.
Fishing for white perch in the tidal rivers and creeks near docks, piers, jetties, and oyster bars is alive and well in the middle Bay. Catches may be short of what anglers experienced years ago but the white perch are still here. One of the best baits that white perch just cannot resist are grass shrimp. They are not difficult to catch once you find them. Visit DNR’s Angler’s Log and type “Grass Shrimp and How to Catch Your Own” in the search box to find an article detailing how to catch grass shrimp for bait.
A mix of spot and croakers can be found in many of the hard bottom Bay waters this week – Tollys Point, Eastern Bay, Black Walnut Point, and the waters near where James Island once resided are good places to look for them. Anglers are now seeing larger spot and croakers measuring above the 9-inch minimum.
Lower Bay
These two anglers hold up a pair of bluefish each. Photo by Travis Long
Bluefish are providing plenty of action throughout the lower Bay this week. They are being caught by trolling along the channel edges with small spoons and red or green surge tube lures behind inline weights. Spanish mackerel are becoming more common and kicking up trolling speeds a notch, and placing small spoons behind planers is a good way to round out a trolling spread. At times breaking fish are being encountered and providing plenty of exciting fishing by casting metal jigs.
When carefully pulling up near breaking bluefish, anglers should keep an eye on depth finders for heavy marks that could reveal cobia or large red drum lurking below and close to the bottom. Dropping cut bait, live eels, or large soft plastic jigs down to those marks may provide some exciting action. Anglers report there has been an influx of cobia into the region so whether you are sight-casting or chumming, keep watch for them near the Target Ship and Middle Grounds.
The recent cooler weather has had a positive effect on the shallow water fishery in the lower bay region this week. Anglers are catching a mix of striped bass, speckled trout, and bluefish by casting soft plastic jigs and paddletails. The Tangier Sound area has
Brett Wilt holds up a big 8.25-inch Jimmie he caught. Photo courtesy of Brett Wilt
been an excellent place to fish for speckled trout. Anglers targeting flounder are finding a few in the Pocomoke Sound on Gulp baits.
Spot and croakers are getting to a size now, that they are providing good table fare. Many of the croakers are now more than 9 inches long. Anglers are also seeing a mix of kingfish, white perch, and northern blowfish when bottom fishing with peeler crab and bloodworms. White perch are also being found in the region’s tidal rivers and creeks, grass shrimp tend to be one of the best baits to use.
Blue Crabs
The lack of rain has elevated salinity values in the tidal rivers throughout all regions of the Chesapeake Bay, causing large male crabs to move far up the tidal rivers in the past few weeks. Trot liners have followed them and are making good catches of quality crabs.
Nathan Edwards recently caught this nice Chesapeake Channa near Blackwater Refuge recently. Photo courtesy of Nathan Edwards
The western and central regions have received significant rain in the past week, and creeks, streams, and rivers are running at good levels. The special catch-and-release and gear-restricted trout management waters are providing good summertime fun for flyfishing anglers. The upper Potomac River is in good shape this week and anglers are enjoying good fishing for smallmouth bass.
The central region reservoirs and ponds across the southern and eastern regions are providing excellent fishing for largemouth bass this week. Cooler weather and overcast skies should make for better fishing. The tidal waters also provide good fishing for largemouth bass and Chesapeake Channa near grass beds and sunken brush. The thick grass beds are a great place to target with chatterbaits or buzzbaits dressed with white soft plastics. Casting white paddletails near grass bed edges has always been a very popular way to target Chesapeake Channa.
Jeff Weeks holds up a beautiful sheepshead caught recently in the Ocean City Inlet. Photo courtesy of Jeff Weeks
Surf anglers and those hoping to head offshore are experiencing rough conditions – it will be a good week to stay on land until at least the weekend. Surf anglers will need a cement block to hold bottom so it will be best to sit it out and perhaps see what the waves cough up on the beaches.
The inside of the Ocean City Inlet may provide some fishing for a mix of bluefish and striped bass for those casting soft plastic jigs or drifting cut baits during the morning and evening hours. Sheepshead can be caught near the jetty rocks on sand fleas and small crabs. Boat traffic should be almost non-existent through the inlet. If the winds pick up, the back bay waters will become churned up, and flounder fishing will be poor. If the waters remain clear fishing for flounder should be good. Croakers and small sea bass will be part of the mix for those fishing with squid strips. Gulp baits and live baits have been catching the largest flounder.
Hopefully, offshore fishing for black sea bass and triggerfish at the offshore wreck and reef sites will be good after the winds blow through, and canyon fisheries might benefit from the rough seas once they calm down. This can often be the case in late August and September with hurricane conditions.
“Time is but the stream I go a-fishing in. I drink at it; but while I drink, I see the sandy bottom and detect how shallow it is. Its thin current slides away, but eternity remains. I would drink deeper fish in the sky, where the bottom is pebbly with stars.” – Henry David Thoreau, 1854
Maryland Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
Click Before You Cast is written by Tidewater Ecosystem Assessment Director Tom Parham.
A reminder to all Maryland anglers, please participate in DNR’s Volunteer Angler Surveys. This allows citizen scientists to contribute valuable data to the monitoring and management of several important fish species.
