8/24/2017 Northern Maryland and Delaware Fishing Report Update:
Herb’s Tackle Shop reports that the Conowingo Dam releasing water has muddied conditions throughout the Susquehanna, decreasing water clarity and stunting the bass bite. Despite a drop off in the amount of bass being caught, rockfish continue to provide a strong early morning bite for anglers casting topwater lures. The same holds true in the evening as the sun goes down. Cloudy water is also plaguing the Susquehanna flats, but on the bright side catfish have been in great abundance there, taking cut bait on bottom rigs.
Many anglers fishing the upper part of the bay have been heading south to Love Point, Swan Point, and Snake Reef, where the rockfish have been continuously active through August. Sarge’s Bait and Tackle Shop reports that chumming, live lining, and light tackle jigging have produced the most fish in these spots. That being said, this week the schools of small bluefish we’ve been hearing about stuck around, and have continued to destroy most angler’s spreads, kill live baits, and snatch hooks, making the fishing a struggle.
There are still plenty of catfish off Turkey Point, plus in the C & D canal. Perch anglers throughout the area are doing well casting tiny spinnerbaits (like Beetle-Spins) to shoreline structure, or drifting bottom rigs baited with bloodworms over hard bottom.
Crabbing has continued to be lackluster, however some crabs can be found in local creeks and in shallow water. The determined crabber’s best bet for bringing home a bushel is to head south and below the Magothy, where crabs are abundant and heavy.
8/18/2017 Northern Maryland and Delaware Fishing Report Update:
Herb’s Tackle Shop let us know that the early morning bite for striped bass plus some largemouth has remained steady for those casting topwater in the Conowingo Dam pool. Catfish have been active around the dam pool as well, providing some midday action when rockfish and largemouth bass may not be biting as much. Catfish are also thick in deeper waters near Turkey Point.
In addition to the strong but early striped bass bite, many area anglers are targeting largemouth bass, which have also been most active in the early morning cool water. Most are hitting soft plastics and topwater lures primarily in the morning before moving into cooler, deeper water during the late morning and afternoon. The best bass bite has been in tributary coves and creeks, such as the Northeast, Elk, and Sassafras Rivers. In some of these same areas casting small jigs or spinners also produces white perch, and people targeting perch are also finding success by fishing bloodworms and grass shrimp in the C & D Canal. There are also stripers in the canal but mostly very small ones.
8/11/2017 Northern Maryland and Delaware Fishing Report Update:
This week we talked to the guys at Herb’s Bait Shop to learn more about what’s been going on up north. Herbs told us that fishing has slowed down this week, and fewer striped bass have been caught near the Conowingo Dam, on the flats, and elsewhere. Anglers who have caught them have been casting topwater at the break of dawn or near dusk. FishTalk art director Zach Ditmars gave the Susquehanna a shot last weekend but found high, muddy waters as a result of dam discharges and had to go above the dam to find fishable waters.
Catfish have been biting whatever is dropped in front of them throughout the area, especially bloodworms and cut bunker. The C & D Canal remains a good option for anglers looking to catch those cats. Another strong location for catfish anglers has been around Turkey Point, at the mouth of the Elk. Sarge’s Bait and Tackle Shop let us know that while the rockfishing may have been slow this week, bass and catfish are still plentiful throughout the northern areas of the Bay. In the area tributaries, with the past weeks' drop in temperature bass have been more active in shallow water during the mornings. The most popular lures for bass have been buzzbaits and frogs.
Crabbing has stayed slow, especially as colder weather has moved in.
8/3/2017 Northern Maryland and Delaware Fishing Report:
Every tackle shop we talked to this week reported that rockfish have left their normal feeding grounds and are moving into shallower water, primarily around structure. Joe Yak attributes this to a few cool days we had in July that managed to drop the water temperature almost 10 degrees, spurring rockfish into a fall feeding pattern early. Yak recommends checking tide charts for when the current will be strongest before heading out, because most fishing has been tide dependent. In addition, the best bites have been in the morning and at dusk. A few stripers have stayed on the Susquehanna flats, where fishing has been steadily good for the past month or so. Herbs Bait and Tackle Shop recommended using topwater lures to target rockfish up near the shoreline or around riprap in open water. All in all, however, rockfishing has stagnated this week with fewer fish being brought home and most that are caught have been smaller in size.
Perch fishing has stayed good, however, and Captain Bone’s Bait and Tackle reports that the Woodland Beach and Saint Augustine areas are hotspots. Perch are taking bloodworms there, as well as some grass shrimp. Most have been schooling around structure close to shoreline, or near underwater stumps and lumps. Catfish are hanging around where the perch are, and have been taking whatever cut bait is dropped in front of them. Captain Bone’s also reported that crabbing has improved over the past week, and crabbing at Port Penn and near the Route 9 bridge has been filling bushel baskets. Chicken necks have been the bait of choice.