Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, 10/26/2018 Update:
Well, the offshore season has come more or less to a close between some windy days and the departure of the billfish. We did hear of one boat still bailing for dolphin with double-digit success this week, so that remains an option. The calendar also says some wahoo should be around, so if you have the urge to head out and troll be sure to bring a Z-wing and purples and reds; read John Unkart’s October Wahoo article, to get the scoop on how to target ‘em. Closer to home, the wrecks and reefs continue to produce good sea bass with some flounder in the mix. The flounder have been hit or miss with some big hits but the bass are the (much) more reliable fishery, with clams proving the best bait.
At Indian River, snapper blues are providing plenty of action and a flounder pops up here and there to make things interesting. The first of the tog have also been caught in Indian River and Ocean City inlets, on crab and sand flea baits, but this action is just beginning and hasn’t yet kicked into high gear. The flounder bite is still good in the East Channel and around the inlet in OC, though, whether you’re using Gulp baits or live mullet. Anglers hitting the Virginia inlets are also reporting some flounder though as you make your way south the main target becomes speckled trout, especially in the inlets on the south side of the Bay (see the Way South and VA report, for more info). Most have been small, but they are plentiful.
Back on the beaches, the striper bite hasn’t picked up yet for us here in the Mid-Atlantic region, though a few rare keepers have been reported from Indian River (off the rocks on live eels) and Ocean City (near the Rt. 50 bridge on jigs, live spot, and mullet). The bite at Rt. 50 has been strong for smaller stripers, as well.
The beaches will provide you with a crazy amount of small bluefish and some kingfish, depending on your bait. The red drum bite is still hit or miss with mostly misses, but it seems that Assateague Island would be the only area that they’d swing by at this point of the year. Angler in Chief Lenny Rudow fished Assateague with Coastal Correspondent John Unkart this week, and cut mullet and bunker produced endless bites from snapper blues, sometimes hitting so fast that by the time you felt the weight hit bottom and got slack out of the line, there was already a fish on. While the fast action is a ton of fun, it also makes it tough to even keep a decent drum bait in the water. The biggest blue was 12-incher, which Unkart said “nearly ripped his arms out of the sockets,” divulging just what size fish he’s used to catching. Fishbites and squid bits, meanwhile, produced numerous puffer fish plus three (small) pompano.
Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, 10/19/2018 Update:
Well, the offshore season is coming to its ceremonial close as the men in the white suits, along with their other billfish compadres, head down south until next July. The dolphin do still seem to be sticking around the lobster balls and buoys thus far, but we don’t foresee that being the case for much longer at all. Which is fine, it’s October after all, and the inshore bite is shaping up to be great all month.
Inshore boats working wrecks and reefs off Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia are reporting that the sea bass bite is excellent, with squid and clam baits doing the best. Though the flounder bite has slowed in the same areas, Capt. Monty on the Morning Star notes that some anglers are still swinging flatfish over the rails, too.
Staying even closer to home has been paying off better in a number of areas recently, with snapper blues hitting in Indian River, as well as a few stripers slurping up live eels just before the change of tide. The sheepshead and rockfish bite around the Rt. 50 bridge in Ocean City is doing great, too, with some keepers being in the vicinity. The north and south jetty are seeing the same situation as well throughout most of the day and in varying conditions. Coastal Correspondent John Unkart fingered the south jetty as the hottest spot, but he’d also heard of a lot of action from the Rt. 50 bridge. Flounder are also snapping away around the bridge pilings and jetty sections of Ocean City, many of them on white Gulp! baits or cut bait. Spot are doing the trick just as well if not better.
Looking towards the surf side of things, Assateague has been the hotspot for a few large stripers that are straggling through, and the bull red drum that are just now receding out of the Bay for the season. Cut bunker is the number one option if you’re going after the big mammas, so keep in mind the amount of time that goes into quality over quantity. However, bluefish are also picking away at whatever you toss into their feeding grounds from the beach. They’ve been present from the Delaware beaches down through the region, can be tons of fun, and while the majority are smaller there’s a good chance you can tie into a nice five to 10 pounder while you’re out there.
Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, 10/11/2018 Update:
Inshore, anglers from Delaware and Maryland both are enjoying a fine sea bass bite, with Capt. Monty on the Morning Star reporting that along with the good numbers of bass there are also a few monster flounder around, as seen above! Meanwhile, in Indian River anglers are doing best targeting (generally smaller) flounder in the bay, while in Ocean City the sheepshead are in the sights of a lot of anglers. The Rt. 50 bridge has been okay, but the south jetty is the hot spot when dropping sand fleas around structure. Flounder fishing around the back bays of OC and Assateague has also been good, but dwindling a bit. Coastal anglers leaving Virginia Beach have often been more focused on mackerel. Spanish are still around off the beach in exceptionally good numbers for October, hitting small spoons. Larger spoons and baits trolled a bit farther out (12 to 20 miles) over humps and structure are producing strong king mackerel, too.
A message to all surf casters: the chopper blues have struck in preliminary numbers, so utilize some small cut bait or mullet rigs to grab some bluefish as they make their rounds through our parts. This bite should pick up as the water chills. Meanwhile, kingfish and spot are also still around. A great way to get blues on the line is to catch some spot on bloodworms, and send chunks of 'em back out into the ocean on a hook.
Offshore anglers continue to bring home the bacon in the form of mahi-mahi, with anglers who are focusing on the species taking them by the dozens from the Poor Mans down to the Norfolk. Billfish are also still present in good numbers in these zones with many boats reporting up to a half dozen white releases and at least one boat hitting double-digits this week. The wahoo have started to show up, too, but not in the numbers one would hope for at this time of year. Offshore deep-droppers continue to bang on blueline tilefish in 280 to 350 feet of water.
Closer to the beach the flounder bite on the wrecks and reefs has slowed in northern areas off Delaware, and seems more or less like a done deal the farther south you head. However, sea bass have picked up the pace with Capt. Monty on the Morning Star reporting an excellent bite including some limit catches last week. Up and down the coast Spanish mackerel and bluefish (still mostly small fish but now also including some larger ones of five pounds and up) are hitting trolled spoons, from Fenwick Shoals down through Virginia waters. Bigger news, however, is the appearance of strong numbers of king mackerel – including some real smokers up into the 50-inch class – off the Virginia coast. They’re being caught around shoals in the 12 to 20 mile range, including near the light tower. Trolling spoons, slow-trolling cigar minnow or ballyhoo on wire king rigs and King Busters are all effective tactics.
Back on the beach, surf fishing is producing a mix of kingfish, spot, and mostly small bluefish. We didn’t hear about any more redfish showing up in the suds after their brief appearance last week, but there has also been some scuttlebutt of pompano here and there. Bloodworms on doodlebug rigs have been best for the panfish, and cut mullet or fresh-cut spot is best for the bigger fish.
The Indian River and Ocean City inlets are both seeing sporadic runs of small blues, plus a few sheepshead on sand fleas fished close to the rocks. The south jetty and Route 50 bridge in Ocean City is providing the best sheepshead action, but it’s slowed from previous weeks. Flounder are also in both bays, mostly throwbacks but some keepers are being caught by those who work at it. Green and white Gulp Swimming Mullet tipping tandem bucktail rigs bounced along bottom is the top tactic.
-By Parker Martin