Maryland Fishing Report 8-05-10

[Saltwater Fishing]

Maryland Weekly Fishing Report Overview | August 4, 2010

Welcome to August and the peak of the summer season; life is good so enjoy all there is in our wonderful state. There are cool streams and rivers in western Maryland, lot's of summer migrants in the Chesapeake Bay and exciting fishing opportunities along the beaches and offshore waters of Ocean City. Watermelon, steamed crabs, fish steaks or fillets on the grill and lots of laughter are all a part of the good life we have here in Maryland. Please make the time to enjoy it because you'll soon be hearing about "Back to School" sales and Labor Day Weekend.
Chesapeake Bay

Fishing for white perch has been at the top of the list for many upper bay region fishermen recently on the numerous shoals and reefs from the mouth of the Susquehanna down to the Bay Bridge. This smaller cousin of the striped bass makes for some consistent action and fine eating. Bottom rigs baited with bloodworms, grass shrimp or peeler crabs are typical baits when fishing some of the deeper reefs and shoals out in the bay; croakers and spot are also occasionally being caught. In the shallower waters near shoreline structure, small lures such as jigs with spinner blades are a good choice for bumping rocks and similar structure.

Fishing for striped bass by chumming or live lining spot in the upper bay has been fair to good near the Swan Point and Love Point areas. At times the channel edge at Podickory Point has also been good. Perhaps the best striped bass fishing has been at the Bay Bridge piers and the sewer pipe on the northeast side of the bridge where fishermen are jigging with soft plastics and live lining spot. The tactic has been to position up current of the structure to be fished and drift jigs or live spot back to where the fish are holding.
Photo Courtesy Keith Lockwood, click to enlarge.

Fishermen in the middle bay region have a variety of choices for fishing this week but of course striped bass tend to take center stage. Perhaps one of the hottest spots to look for striped bass lately is the area around Poplar Island and the mouth of Eastern Bay. Fishermen have been finding good fishing there in the evenings and early morning hours. The evening bite tends to center around casting to breaking fish near the rocks. During the morning hours and later on in the day trolling and live lining spot have taken center stage. Trolling bucktails or #2 Drone spoons behind #2 planers have been a very effective method of fishing. London Walker and Angus Richardson paired up on these two fine looking striped bass caught while trolling on the northwest side of Poplar Island.

The western side of the shipping channel from Breezy Point south to Cove Point has also been a good place to troll with the channel edge off Parker's Creek and the Calvert Cliffs Power Plant being two of the best locations. Concentrations of striped bass and bluefish are being seen breaking on the surface and other times they can be located by slicks and the smell of menhaden oil. Live lining spot has also been a popular tactic generally around the 35' channel edge out in front of the CCNPP and Parker's Creek.

Croaker fishing continues to be good but most of the action is taking place after dark at shoal areas near deep channels and the Gooses and the crab pot line at the mouth of Eastern Bay have been two standout places to fish. Channel edges at the mouths of the regions major tidal rivers have also been a place to fish for croakers; again mostly in the evening and night time hours. Fishermen are reporting that table fare sized spot are hard to come by in the region but white perch are very plentiful at many of the shoal areas in the lower sections of the tidal rivers. White perch can also be found along shoreline structure by casting small jig/spinner combos such as Beetle Spins and Stump Jumpers or a chartreuse spinner. Shallow water fishing for striped bass has become a mostly pre-dawn enterprise most likely due to warm water temperatures. Flounder are being caught on some of the flats such as those off James Island and Cooks Point but fishermen report they have to work for them.

The lower bay region continues to offer good fishing for a mix of summer species this week. Striped bass are always high on the list of most fishermen and they are being caught in a variety of locations and methods. Live lining spot at some of the steep channel edges continues to be a major focus for fishermen targeting striped bass. There are plenty of spot in the tidal rivers and the 35' channel edge out in front of the Gas Docks and Point No Point are just two examples. Cruising over edges and watching depth finders for concentrations of fish is standard practice for this type of fishing. Trolling spoons and bucktails behind inline weights or planers is another method that is working as is casting or jigging to breaking fish or suspended fish. A mix of striped bass and bluefish have been chasing small menhaden throughout the region recently and now the first Spanish mackerel are beginning to show up this week. At present only a few Spanish are being caught here and there but fishermen are hopeful more will arrive soon. Fishermen are also catching and releasing large red drum in and around the Target Ship and Northwest Middle Grounds areas; mostly by trolling spoons. There are plenty of bluefish around with most being about 16" to 18" in length and some larger ones coming from the Middle Grounds area. A few boats are reporting chumming has been successful at the Middle Grounds, Buoy 72 and the mouth of the Potomac River.

The best croaker fishing has been occurring at dark and into the night at channel edges and shoals such as the Buoy 72 area and the Middle Grounds. Croaker are being caught during the day in the lower sections of the regions tidal rivers such as the Patuxent, Potomac and the Honga but tend to be smaller. The warm water temperatures tend to move the larger croakers to deep channels where they hold until the evening when they venture out onto shoal areas to feed. Tangier and Pocomoke Sound fishermen report a mix of croaker, spot and small bluefish with the best fishing occurring in the evenings. Flounder are being caught on channel edges and flats by fishermen that are targeting them. Shallow water fishermen are catching a mix of striped bass, speckled trout and a mix of white perch, puppy drum, bluefish and flounder along the shorelines of the bay; especially on the eastern shore.

Recreational crabbers in all three regions of the bay have been doing well with catching crabs on trot lines and collapsible crab traps. They are reporting a large number of small crabs on their baits and that they are culling out a lot of light crabs that are a result of the recent full moon.
Freshwater

Freshwater fishermen are locked into an early morning and evening mode of fishing for the most part due to high summertime temperatures. Basically the fish are in the same mode of activity. As the sun rises in the morning and fish such as largemouth bass retreat to cooler shade; flipping soft plastics, spinnerbaits and small crankbaits under docks, overhanging bushes and working thick grass is a good strategy. Casting small rubber-legged poppers to bluegills on a summer evening can be fun or just fishing a cricket or worm under a bobber. Summertime trout fishing in the western regions cooler trout waters offers good fishing and plenty of solitude this time of the year. The upper Potomac River has a lot of hungry young smallmouth bass that offer entertainment with the occasional larger walleyes and smallmouth being found in deeper and swifter currents at dusk. Deep Creek Lake fishermen are finding largemouth and smallmouth bass under floating docks during the day but fishing in general has been tough. Deep Creek Lake suffered an unusual fish kill recently and MDE after much investigation has determined the cause. Be sure to check out the story on the Fisheries News section on the Fisheries Home Page.
Click to enlarge.
Ocean

The fishing scene has been pretty exciting at Ocean City this week due to the White Marlin Open and this year's tournament has been really busy for the first two days. I personally would not have imagined hearing of another grander blue marlin coming into Ocean City for many years but that is just what happened. James Kontos on the Let It Ride brought in a 1,010.5 lb blue on the heels of last years 1,062 state record also caught during the White Marlin Open.

The dock master at the weigh in station apparently has been very busy and they reportedly didn't finish weighing fish till 11:00 last night. One other fish that really caught my attention was the 53.5lb dolphin caught by Cory Bubb on the Top Gun; that is a very large dolphin in anyone's book.

Flounder fishing has been good in the back bay and inlet areas; triggerfish and tautog are at the South Jetty during the day and bluefish and striped bass are being caught at night in the inlet. surf fishermen are catching a mix of summer species such as kingfish, flounder, small bluefish, croakers and spot in the early morning and evening hours. Large sharks such as sand tigers are being caught and released at night. Fishing on the wreck sites has been fair to good for sea bass and flounder and several cobia have also been caught.

"You did not kill the fish only to keep alive and to sell for food, he thought. You killed him for pride and because you are a fisherman. You loved him when he was alive and you loved him after. If you love him, it is not a sin to kill him. Or is it more?"

-- Ernest Hemingway, The Old Man and the Sea.




http://www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries...port/index.asp

[Saltwater Fishing]

Type: Ocean
Region: Eastern
Location: Ocean City, MD
Tags: White Marlin Open, Ocean City, Blue Marlin, Yellowfin Tuna, Dolphin

The second night of the White Marlin Open in Ocean City established high benchmarks for several categories. Thirty-four fish (white marlin, blue marlin, yellowfin tuna and dolphin) were brought to the weigh-in station at Harbor Island, including a grander and two 90+ lb white marlin. Third place is still open for blue marlin, and so far no sharks or wahoo have been landed.




http://www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries...report/log.asp