This Chesapeake Bay sunset helped close out the 2024 striped bass season. Photo by Keith Lockwood
This will be the last weekly fishing report of 2024. All of us at the Maryland Department of Natural Resources wish you the happiest holidays with family and friends. There is still plenty of fishing to be had during the winter months so please be sure to check what’s in season and enjoy.
The Maryland Department of Natural Resources and Sport Fisheries Advisory Commission are seeking nominations for the annual Maryland Sport Fisheries Achievement Award, a celebration of conservation, education, and sportsmanship. Nominations for the Maryland Sport Fisheries Achievement Award are being accepted now through January 31, 2025. Recipients will receive a proclamation signed by the Secretary of the Department of Natural Resources and the chair of the Sport Fisheries Advisory Commission. More information about the nominating process is on the DNR website.
Forecast Summary: December 18 – December 24:
With Bay and river temperatures at the low 40s, Bay fish are at winter holding areas. With plenty of cool waters and oxygen from surface to bottom, look for concentrations of fish in some of the remaining warm water areas. In the main Bay, warmer bottom waters — less than 50 feet — are located from about Bloody Point down to the Virginia state line on areas with good structure and protection from strong current such as underwater points, the bottom of channel edges, and bridge pilings with nearby oyster bottom and reefs. The other warm water areas to consider are near the water discharges of your local power plants.
For those hearty cold-water anglers, all water conditions maps, plots and satellite pics will be continuously updated and posted. For more detailed and up-to-date fishing conditions in your area, be sure to check out Eyes on the Bay’s Click Before You Cast.
Upper Chesapeake Bay
Water releases at the Conowingo Dam have been substantial recently, dumping a lot of cold water into the dam pool and lower Susquehanna River. Most anglers there are fishing for smallmouth bass and walleye, and that fishery will continue through much of the winter.
Blue catfish are holding in the deeper waters close to the bottom where the water is slightly warmer. The dam pool is currently holding some large blue catfish, and the deeper channels of the lower Susquehanna will see blue catfish holding deep and close to the bottom. The deep hole below the railroad bridge is a good spot to fish for them during the winter. Yellow perch traditionally move into that same hole during the first months of the new year and unfortunately fall prey to the large blue catfish. Fishing with a dropper rig with enough sinker to hold bottom and a small minnow tied in above is a good way to target the yellow perch holding there.
White perch can be found in some of the deeper waters of the upper Bay during the winter; they hold deep where the water is slightly warmer. It will take a watchful eye on a depth finder to locate the perch holding close to the bottom. Jigging with a metal jig is one of the best ways to fish for them.
Middle Bay
Anglers who have not winterized their boats yet or perhaps can book a charter trip may see some excellent catch-and-release fishing for large striped bass that are showing up this week. It appears some of these large striped bass took a right turn into the Chesapeake on their southerly fall migration along the Atlantic coast. Jigging with large soft plastic jigs will be the best way to target them along the deeper edges of the shipping channel. Trolling with umbrella rigs is not recommended since it can cause undue stress to these very large fish; after all catch-and-release fishing is about the experience.
Anglers who feel the itch to get out on the water can focus their attention on white perch. The white perch can be found deep in the channel areas of the Bay and at the rock piles at the Bay Bridge. The deeper waters off Kent Island near the Brickhouse Bar and off Matapeake are good places to explore. A good depth finder will be very important to locate the schools holding close to the bottom. Jigging with metal jigs is one of the best ways to fish for them.
Fishing for a mix of blue catfish and channel catfish in the middle to upper sections of the region’s tidal rivers can be a fun option. Channel catfish and a limited number of blue catfish can be found in every tidal river. The Choptank River from the Dover Bridge area to Denton holds the greatest number of blue catfish. They can be found holding in the deepest channels and most fresh cut bait or chicken liver are good to use.
Steve Morgan holds up a beautiful striped bass for a quick picture before releasing it. Photo by Jamie Clough
Striped bass anglers who are not ready to hang up their fishing equipment are treated this week to an influx of large ocean migrant striped bass in the lower Bay. Much of the action has been on the eastern side of the shipping channel in the region of Buoy 72, but these large fish are bound to show up anywhere along the steep edges of the shipping channel. Jigging with soft plastics and heavy spinning gear will be the best way to target them and they should do well in regards to catch and release if fight time is kept to a minimum. Cold water temperatures and sufficient saline water conditions are key factors in their speedy recovery.
Striped bass anglers can still fish the main stem of the Potomac River (downstream of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge) through December 31 and keep one striped bass measuring between 19-24 inches. Anglers are advised that Maryland’s tributary rivers feeding into the Potomac are closed to possession of striped bass. Trolling umbrella rigs down deep at 35 feet or more with heavy inline weights and heavy tackle are tools that are needed. Chartreuse trailers of bucktails dressed with sassy shads are the most popular offering.
Anglers can look for white perch holding in the deeper channel waters out in the Bay and often near the mouth of several of the region’s tidal rivers. The white perch will often be in water depths of 35 feet or more and hugging the bottom. A good depth finder is important to locate the schools and once found jigging with metal jigs is a good way to target them.
The Patuxent, Potomac, and Nanticoke rivers hold large numbers of blue catfish, and the winter months are a good time to target them. They will be found concentrated in the deep channel waters. The tidal Potomac from the Route 301 Bridge to the Wilson Bridge is a good area to cover and the deep channels off Fort Washington are noted for holding some of the largest blue catfish. The Patuxent River from Benedict to Jug Bay is a good place to target as is the area near Sharptown on the Nanticoke. Cut bait of gizzard shad, menhaden, or eel are good oily baits to attract blue catfish. The DNR website has more information about blue catfish and how to catch them.
Freshwater Fishing
Crappie, photo by Eric Packard
Fishing the nontidal and tidal waters for what are considered freshwater fish during the winter months holds a lot of opportunities for Maryland anglers. Everything from trout in the western region to chain pickerel on the Eastern Shore are ready to entertain anglers.
The trout management areas in western Maryland hold a lot of promise for anglers willing to enjoy catching and releasing trout when using fly fishing gear or artificials. The north branch of the Potomac along with the Youghiogheny and Savage rivers are just a few of the areas to explore. The tail race of the Gunpowder River is another good place to try in the central region. The DNR trout fishing website offers a lot of information on where and how to fish.
Deep Creek Lake offers plenty of fishing opportunities during the winter whether the water is open or if it freezes over. Walleye, smallmouth bass, trout, northern pike, chain pickerel, yellow perch, crappie, and bluegill sunfish are all active during the winter months. Other reservoirs in the region also offer good fishing, including Piney, Rocky Gorge, and the Savage Reservoir.
The upper Potomac will start to flex its muscles as more runoff from the watershed increases flows. Anglers who know how to fish the river will be targeting smallmouth bass and walleye. When fishing in boats, lifejackets are required during this period.
In the central region, a few standout reservoirs that are very popular with anglers are Liberty, Prettyboy, Loch Raven, and Triadelphia. Northern pike can be found in Loch Raven and Triadelphia reservoirs and smallmouth bass in Liberty and Prettyboy. All the central region reservoirs hold excellent populations of largemouth bass and chain pickerel. Liberty and Triadelphia are noted for their populations of landlocked striped bass. The many small lakes and ponds that dot the southern and eastern regions offer good fishing for a variety of species. Anglers looking for fishing opportunities might consider checking the freshwater hotspots website link.
Largemouth bass have moved into deeper waters and usually can be found near deep sunken wood, rocks, and steep drop-offs. Grubs, small crankbaits, hair jigs, wacky rigged worms, and spinnerbaits are all good choices for lures. All should be worked slowly and close to the bottom; bites will usually be subtle.
Crappie will also be holding deep and close to any kind of structure they can find, bridge piers, fallen tree tops, sunken brush and in tidal waters marina docks can be a big draw. Fishing marabou jigs or small minnows is the best way to get them to bite.
Cold water is much to the liking of chain pickerel, and they can be found in both nontidal ponds and reservoirs or in tidal waters in the upper sections of the tidal rivers. They can be found holding close to structure, sunken wood along shorelines is a good place to look for them. The largest chain pickerel will often be found away from shorelines in deeper water near some kind of structure. Many types of lures will work for chain pickerel, and they usually strike them with abandon; be advised if lures are fitted with treble hooks, mortal injuries can occur to the gills. If one is targeting chain pickerel, swapping out treble hooks for single inline hooks will make unhooking easier and cause less damage to the fish.
Atlantic Ocean and Coastal Bays
Ethan Zlokovitz is all smiles with his first bluefin tuna. Photo by Erik Zlokovitz
Reports from the beaches have been quiet this week; anglers are soaking baits in hope of intercepting striped bass moving down the coast. So far dogfish and clearnose skates have been providing all the entertainment.
Inside the Ocean City Inlet is a different story. Anglers are catching striped bass by casting soft plastic jigs near jetty rocks, bulkheads and dock piers. Most of the striped bass being caught fail to meet the 28-inch minimum, but there are some being caught that fit the 28-31 inch slot. Tautog are providing plenty of good fishing in the inlet and Route 50 Bridge area. Sand fleas and pieces of crab are the most popular baits and a fair portion of the fish being caught exceed the 16-inch minimum. The creel limit is four fish per day for each angler.
Fishing for bluefin tuna has been the biggest show in town for the Ocean City fleet this month and it is unknown how much longer the action will last. Most of the bluefin are being caught within about 20 miles of the inlet and trolling ballyhoo rigs behind planers has been a popular way to troll.
Fishing for sea bass at the offshore wreck and reef sites has been good; anglers report that sometimes the bite can be tough, but anglers are going home with fish. Flounder and porgies can be part of the mix. The 2024 black sea bass season is open through December 31, and closes on January 1, 2025. Some anglers headed offshore are targeting tautog and doing well with limit catches.
“A good rule of angling philosophy is not to interfere with any fisherman’s ways of being happy, unless you want to be hated.” – Zane Grey 1919
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.
This report is now available on your Amazon Echo device — just ask Alexa to “open Maryland Fishing Report.”