The Fishing Line
By: Capt. Billy Pipkin
August 17, 2008Fishing is still going well throughout the area.

SPANISH MACKEREL just keep on coming up the bay. It's amazing that in the third week of August these fish are still steaming northbound.

This has been an excellent mackerel season. They continue to be widespread with both the eastern and western sides of the bay producing. The mouth of the Rappahannock, Great Wicomico and Potomac rivers are all yielding these fast swimmers.

Small spoons trolled at a quick 7 knots have been producing specimens up to 28 inches this week. The average sizes remain a respectable 16 inches. Gold and/or silver spoons work well on sunny days when the reflection of the sun can be utilized. On cloudy days or near the hours of dawn and dusk when light levels are low, a painted spoon becomes a more natural presentation.

BLUEFISHING has been very good with anglers landing 1-3 pound specimens while trolling. Schools have been moving quickly and seldom stay in the same location for more than a day. This week most of the action remains to the north in Maryland waters. The S.W. Middle Grounds are smoking hot with blues up to 5 pounds. This area is just to the west of and below the Tangier target ships.

The schooling is usually found during the mid to late morning hours but on occasion will provide action throughout the day. As the sun gets higher in the sky, you will notice that the fish become more skittish. In that case, try to keep your boat on the outside edges of the school and let your lines pull through the fish as you make your turn. Keep in mind that when making a turn, your lure speed decreases. Adjust the throttle accordingly to hold the proper speed.

STRIPED BASS have begun to make appearances in the schools of breaking fish as they have already begun their late summer trend of joining the bluefish in schools. These fish remain small with many falling short of the 18-inch minimum size limit in Maryland waters.

CHUMMING continues to offer reliable results. Bluefish in the 2-4 pound range can be found in chum lines at the Northern Neck Reef and up to 6 pounds on the S.W. Middle Grounds. These fish require at minimum a long shank hook but in most cases will part all leaders other than wire.

BOTTOM FISHING is going well again this week with a mix of spot and croaker gracing most in-shore locations. The mouth of the Rappahannock River is holding medium croaker and various sized spot from less than a half pound to over three quarter pound samples.The eastern channel edge from the head of the Cut Channel up to Buoy 62 is holding mostly croaker with a few spot in the mix. Late afternoons have been best in that stretch of channel. Nearer to Tangier Island, the RN2 marker has been a focal point for anglers wishing to find croaker along with a few trout.

The Mud Leads west of Smith Island are yielding large spot this week. The upper area is the most productive at this time.

Anglers fishing the middle to upper Potomac river have found a large percentage of perch in the catches. Croaker continue to bite in those areas also.

FLOUNDER fishing is slowing a bit around the Cell as it seems that more small specimens have moved into that area. Citation size fish have dropped off with only a few big ole doormats being landed over the past week. Some anglers are migrating up and down the edges in the Buoy 41 and 42 area to seek out other flat fish havens. The channel edge between the Northern Neck Reef and Buoy 62 is also offering up a few keepers as has the edge below Buoy 72 where chum lines have lured them in. The patient angler will find success on the flat fish in many locations.

RED DRUM have been found on the S.W. Middle grounds by anglers trolling over the rock piles. This time of year they are usually caught while trolling for bluefish with small spoons. The juvenile red drum, we call "puppy drum", have shown up in good numbers along the western shorelines and have been mixed in with the croaker and speckled trout catches over the past few weeks.

Let's keep our sport of fishing in perspective. For the vast majority of anglers, it is merely a hobby that they partake in to relax and refresh themselves after a hard week of work. Don't take it too seriously. It is not as much about how many fish you catch as how many memories you create.

"Fishing is not so much getting fish as it is a state of mind, a lure for the human soul into refreshment." -Herbert Hoover

Until next time…Fair winds.

Captain Billy's Charters

Chesapeake Bay, VA

804-580-7292