Way North Fishing Reports

Way North Chesapeake Fishing Report, May 10 Update:

Fishing options are abundant up north as spawning action is still underway for many species. White perch are still running in the lower Susquehanna. Reports have been mixed, but those who have been able to find the bigger schools are having good luck. One boat fishing out of Lapidum reported that their day started slow trying a few spots on the Harford County side of the river. Once they moved closer to the 95 bridge, they started catching perch on almost every drop. Over a hundred perch came into the boat, most of which were smaller, but weeding through the little ones led to a nice haul of fish up to 12 inches. The fish were hanging out in 20 to 25 feet of water and were caught using tandem rigged shad darts and twister tails. They noted that many fish seemed to still be holding eggs.

The Conowingo Dam has seen a lot of action for a variety of species. Shad, bass, snakeheads, and catfish are all popular targets for anglers casting from the rocks. The striped bass closure is still in effect, and NRP officers are enforcing the no targeting rules strictly. If you happen to hook into a striper, they recommend releasing the fish in the water and then moving locations. Luckily, the closure will be lifted at the end of the month and we can go back to fishing indiscriminately. Check out the Maryland DNR striped bass maps to see when and where areas will be open to targeting stripers. One angler throwing a paddletail below the dam this week caught a few smallies. They then switched to shad fishing and found more Americans than hickories. A few other successful shad reports also rolled in this week. It seems the run is slowing down, but there are still plenty of fish worth targeting. Big American shad have been making an appearance and tandem rigged one ounce shad darts are working well to get them to bite. Red, yellow, and white colors seem to be working well. Slow and steady retrieves with sporadic quick pauses work well to get the shad to bite. It is often crowded early in the morning, but usually thins out by midday. Keep those lures above the rocks too, because they are notorious for snagging baits.

Way North Chesapeake Fishing Report, May 3 Update:

It was a great week to get out and fish as summerlike temperatures gave us a nice switch up from last week’s cool down. Fishing activity responded well to the warm-up as many species seemed more willing to bite. Shad fishing in the area has been on the slow side this spring, but fishing finally made a turn for the better. One angler reported catching a couple dozen in Octoraro creek. They started their day fishing in Deer Creek but didn’t have any luck and moving locations led to a much better bite. Shad fishing below the Conowingo Dam has also been good with white and pink shad darts noted as more productive than other lures. Further down river, schools of white perch are moving in and there were solid reports from those targeting them. A report from a boat fishing out of Lapidum showed a slow bite on the Harford County side in 20 feet of water. Once they made their way to the other side of the river, they found a much better bite and class of fish in 30 feet of water. Another boat fishing in an unspecified area of the lower Susky said they were catching fish on almost every drop with tandem rigged shad darts and Gulp! baits on jigs. 10- and 11-inch fish offered steady picking with even some 12- and 13-inch fish. Great eating size!

The Susquehanna’s waters have been producing plenty of catfish, as expected for this time of year, but including some unexpected mega-catches. We didn’t get a specific weight on this one but there’s no denying it’s an utterly epic catch! The blue catfish have been keeping a lot of anglers busy during the striped bass closure. It will be a few more weeks before anglers can target stripers in the Bay, but the catfish bite should remain hot in the meantime. A couple of reader reports came in of an uptick in the snakehead action, on the Flats and also from the Aberdeen area where one father-son team caught four the weekend before last. Chatterbaits were mentioned as an effective pick. Aquatic grasses are emerging with the warmer weather and snakes are moving into these areas. Up the Susquehanna River Captain Kayla Haile of River Queen Guide Service reports that the smallmouth fishing has been great. Lots of fish are in pre-spawn mode and will soon be spawning as the warm temperatures are heating the water quickly. Spinnerbaits, jerkbaits, and ned rigs have bene producing best. Get out and fish this hot bite now because Captain Haile says that there is usually a lull period while the fish have their minds on spawning. The pre-spawn bite also produces some of the biggest fish of the year, so don’t miss it.