Kyle Beliczky holds up a large Chesapeake Channa, or northern snakehead, he caught while fishing in the Rhode River. Photo courtesy of Kyle Beliczky
There are fun fishing adventures waiting out there and hopefully everyone can spend some time at their favorite fishing hole, or perhaps seek out a new spot or species. The first two Saturdays in June are free fishing days where no fishing license is required, so consider taking a friend fishing – it could change their life for the better.
Forecast Summary: May 28 – June 3:
Stable fishing weather is ahead for this upcoming week with more moderate conditions for Maryland Bay waters. Main Bay surface water temperatures have dropped to the mid 60 degrees. River temperatures are slightly cooler and in the lower 60s.
Due to recent rains, expect above average flows for most Maryland rivers and streams. However, the long-term rain deficit continues to result in Bay salinities that are still currently above average. There is also plenty of oxygen from surface to bottom for all Bay gamefish. Horseshoe crab spawning peaks occur at high tides near each full and new moon in May and June with water temps greater than 60 degrees. They will spawn on beaches and protected coves in areas with salinities greater than 6 ppt.
Expect reduced water clarity for the upper bay from the Flats to the Patapsco rivers from recent heavy rains. 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 through Sunday as a result of the new moon on May 27.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
Craig Schuelke holds a very nice large white perch he caught recently. Photo by Craig Schuelke
Anglers who enjoy fishing for striped bass in the lower Susquehanna River and the Conowingo Dam pool are looking forward to this coming Sunday. All areas of the upper Bay, including tidal rivers, will be open for striped bass fishing on June 1.
The typical tactic at the dam pool is to wade in a bit (no more than knee high) and cast as close as possible to the turbine wash. Medium sized surf casting spinning rods are popular, spooled with braid and using a mix of paddletails, soft plastic jigs, jerkbaits, and topwater lures. Chesapeake Channa, or northern snakeheads, can also be a part of the mix in the dam pool and in the river. Drifting cut bait is also another tactic that will entice a mix of striped bass, blue catfish or flathead catfish to gobble up a bait.
White perch fishing is still a good option in the lower Susquehanna this week, casting tandem rigged shad darts of fishing a bottom rig baited with grass shrimp or pieces of bloodworm are a good tactic. There are plenty of blue catfish in the lower Susquehanna and nearby tidal rivers. The mouth of the Susquehanna is a hotspot for large blue catfish. The Chester River has a large population of blue catfish and due to the water being slightly warmer than the Susquehanna, many are showing signs of spawning this week. The Crumpton area of the Chester River would be a good location for blue catfish at this time.
Fishing for Chesapeake Channa continues to be an exciting challenge in the tidal rivers of the upper Bay. The fish are holding close to grass and in some instances, they are beginning to spawn. Once that occurs it can be difficult to entice them to strike a lure. Check the Maryland DNR calendar for Snakes on the Dundee, a Chesapeake Channa fishing tournament scheduled June 7 at Gunpowder Falls State Park. Tournaments like these can provide fun fishing opportunities and educational information for anglers.
Anglers fishing for striped bass below the line between Hart-Miller Island and Tolchester are enjoying good fishing in a variety of methods. Casting a mix of topwater lures and paddletails along promising looking shorelines during the morning and evening hours is a fun way to fish for striped bass. The mouth of the Patapsco and Love Point rocks are two places that are always good to check. Jigging at these two locations is also a good bet this week.
Trolling tandem rigged bucktails dressed with soft plastics or swimshads is popular this week along some of the channel edges in the upper bay. An inline weight will help to get them down to where the fish are suspended. Other anglers are going deep with umbrella rigs pulled behind inline weights and using bucktails and swimshads as trailers.
Middle Bay
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This happy angler holds up a nice slot size striped bass. Photo by Travis Long
Anglers are targeting striped bass at the Bay Bridge this week with good results. Live-lining spot and drifting them back towards the bridge pier bases is a good tactic. Drifting soft crab baits back towards the pier bases also works well. During the morning and evening hours, casting soft plastic jigs and bucktails at the pier bases is also a fun way to fish. If you’re not chipping paint off your jigheads you’re not getting close enough to the bridge piers.
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 program biologists.
The shallower waters of the middle bay region are providing a lot of excellent striped bass fishing this week. The shorelines of the bay, Eastern Bay, the Poplar Island rocks, the Sharps Island Light, the shores along the mouth of the Choptank River, the James Island stump fields, and a multitude of other locations are good locations. All are enjoyable places to cast poppers, paddletails and jerkbaits in the shallows near structure or over grass beds during the morning and evening hours.
Trolling and jigging are two other popular options, which take place along the main channel edges. Trolling with tandem rigged bucktails dressed with soft plastics or swimshads is a great option when pulled behind inline weights. Umbrella rigs are also an option and require heavy inline weights to get them down. Anglers should keep in mind the slot that they are targeting when selecting lure size, chartreuse is always a winning color. Jigging along channel edges when fish are spotted on depth finders is a great light tackle way to fish for striped bass. Live-lining spot along those same edges is another great way to fish for striped bass this week.
White perch can now be found residing in their typical summer habitats which usually means some type of structure. Docks and piers fit the bill for this type of structure and the white perch can be found under the docks or close by. In deeper waters oyster bars can be a good place to fish. When fishing off docks, a simple bottom rig with a number 2 or 4 hook, a one-ounce sinker and grass shrimp or pieces of bloodworm for bait. During the morning and evening hours casting small spinnerbaits, soft plastic jigs and similar small lures along promising shorelines is always a summer treat.
A mix of spot and small croaker can now be found on most hard bottom areas of the middle Bay and the lower sections of the tidal rivers. Pieces of bloodworm or artificial bloodworm baits on a bottom rig is the ticket to collecting spot for live-lining bait. Cownose rays seem to be everywhere in the middle bay region and can be a real problem at times when trolling, jigging or fishing with bait.
Lower Bay
Dustin Darby recently caught and released this large 51.25-inch red drum while fishing in the Honga River. Photo courtesy of Dustin Darby
Anglers in the lower Bay are enjoying a fine mix of fish this week – in addition to striped bass, bluefish have moved into the region. On June 1, all Maryland waters including all sections of the tidal rivers will be open to fishing for striped bass.
A lot of anglers have been fishing the shallower water by casting a mix of paddletails, poppers, and jerkbaits. This type of fishing is traditionally an early morning and evening fishery, but with water temperatures in the upper 60s, the good fishing lasts longer as the morning progresses. Switching from topwater to soft plastic jigs and paddletails in slightly deeper waters is a good tactic as the morning wears on. Bluefish and speckled trout are becoming a more common addition when fishing shallower waters. The lower Patuxent, Potomac, St. Jerome Creek, St. Marys River, Cedar Point rocks, and the Eastern Shore marsh edges are just a few of the good places to try.
Jigging along channel edges where concentrations of striped bass can be located on depth finders is an excellent way to target striped bass this week. The channel edges in the lower Patuxent and Potomac are good places to look for striped bass suspended along those edges. Soft plastic jigs worked along those edges work well for light tackle anglers. Anglers are seeing an increasing number of 2-pound bluefish in the mix.
Live-lining is becoming a very popular way to fish for striped bass; spot are easy to find, and the striped bass suspended along channel edges are ready to gobble them up. Anglers are enjoying good fishing success along the steep channel edge in the lower Potomac River from St. George’s Island to Piney Point. Live-lining success is also being reported at Cove Point and channel edges in the lower Patuxent.
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 program biologists.
Large red drum are steadily moving into the lower bay region, mostly on the eastern side of the bay. Locating schools through looking for slicks, disturbed water and vigilant watch of depth finders lead the way to locating these fish. Jigging with large soft plastic jigs is a popular way to target them, but trolling large chrome spoons behind inline weights is another way to target them.
Large black drum are still being found along the eastern side of the Bay near the Middle Grounds and the Mud Leads above the Target Ship. Dropping soft crab baits to them once located on a depth finder is the classic way to fish for them. Cownose rays are in great abundance in the lower bay at this time, so good-tasting baits don’t last long when they are around. Those who are trolling are not happy with them either, when they become snagged.
Anglers are catching a mix of striped bass, bluefish, and speckled trout along the march edges and cuts of the Tangier Sound and Pocomoke Sound regions. Most are reporting that drifting peeler crab or soft crab baits has been the most successful way to catch the speckled trout. Anglers fishing around the Target Ship with peeler crab are catching speckled trout but also some large sheepshead.
White perch are providing good fishing opportunities in the region’s tidal rivers and creeks, often near docks, piers and rock jetties. Casting small jigs or fishing with grass shrimp or pieces of bloodworm on a bottom rig is a great way to fish. Spot and small croaker have blanketed the lower bay region, and anglers are able to catch plenty of spot for live-lining.
There will be a Chesapeake Channa and blue catfish fishing tournament on June 1 at the Anacostia River, which features a fishing tournament and a list of educational activities. Check the DNR calendar for more details.
Blue Crabs
Recreational crabbers gave it a shot over the Memorial Day Weekend and some did well, and some did not. The best catches came from the eastern side of the lower Bay, and they diminish as one goes farther up the Bay into the upper Bay. Salinities are low right now and have dipped into the single digit-range recently in the middle Bay, which is unusual, and that may be keeping crabs from entering the tidal rivers. Commercial crab potters report doing well in the deeper waters of the Bay.
Freshwater Fishing
Donnie Davis holds up a trophy 11-inch bluegill sunfish he caught. Photo courtesy of Donnie Davis
At Deep Creek Lake anglers are finding good walleye fishing after sunset along the steep rocky shorelines. Small crankbaits and live shiners on a jighead are two of the most popular ways to fish for them. Smallmouth bass are starting to build spawning nests close to shore and offer great catch and release fishing on topwater lures. Largemouth bass can be found near floating docks and casting tubes, soft plastic jigs, and whacky rigged plastics are a great way to fish for them. Jennings Randolph Reservoir is offering the same type of action.
The upper Potomac is forecast to rise to 12 feet this week at Paw Paw, but should taper off as the weekend approaches. Targeting calm eddies behind shoreline points, island cuts and behind emerging grass beds with jerkbaits, spinnerbaits tubes and small crankbaits can be a good tactic.
Largemouth bass are on their spawning beds in many parts of Maryland this week and in some areas have moved off. Anglers can look for the larger female largemouth holding just outside of the shallow spawning areas. Casting a mix of spinnerbaits, jerkbaits, paddletails and topwater lures is a good way to target them. If they are holding near thick grass, using a wacky rigged plastic is a good tactic.
Chesapeake Channa can be found near thick grass and in many areas, and they are showing signs of spawning. When they are spawning it can be difficult to get them to strike a lure. Later when they are protecting their fry balls, one can often threaten the fry with a noisy chatterbait or soft frog and get them to strike.
Crappie are also spawning and in some warmer waters have finished. They typically will spawn near shallow vegetation, lily pads, and submerged brush. Fishing with small minnows under a slip bobber is a good way to fish for them in slightly deeper waters near submerged structure in the form of rocks, brush, or fallen treetops. They can be found in most ponds and reservoirs, as well as tidal rivers.
Atlantic Ocean and Coastal Bays
Luke Wrye recently caught this large bluefish near the inlet at Ocean City. Photo courtesy of Luke Wrye
Surf anglers fishing along the beaches of Assateague continue to pick away at black drum this week. The numbers are down from earlier this month but there are still some to be caught on sand fleas. A few large red drum are being caught and released along with some large striped bass that measure over the allowed slot size, both are being caught on cut mullet or menhaden.
Flounder fishing has been very good in the inlet and close to the mouth of the inlet and the South Jetty. Gulp baits tipped with squid or minnows have been popular baits. Striped bass and bluefish are also being caught inside the inlet and near the Route 50 Bridge area. Soft plastic jigs or bucktails dressed with soft plastics are favored lures for casting.
Coastal bay waters are starting to clear and flounder fishing in the channels leading from the inlet is good this week. A variety of baits are working well, and the throwback ratio can depend on what size bait one is using. Minnows and squid are traditional baits, but larger Gulp baits can attract larger flounder.
Fishing for black sea bass at the offshore wreck and reef sites is very good currently and limit catches of sea bass are common. They are being caught on traditional baits of squid, but jigging has also been successful. Word spread through the Ocean City docks this week of the first yellowfin tuna to be caught out at the canyon waters.
“There is only one theory about angling in which I have perfect confidence and that is that the two words, least appropriate to any statement about it, are the words ‘always’ and ‘never.’ ” – Lord Grey of Fallodon 1899
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.