Upper Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, 9/28/2018 Update:
Much of the Upper Bay is still littered with debris rolling down from Conowingo, so caution is in order. There are plenty of prop-bending logs and flotsam around. There's also turbid water reaching down to the Tolchester area and even down as far as the Love Point zone on an outgoing tide. Between water quality and the weather, few fishermen hit the Upper Bay this past week. And as a result of the conditions, chumming and live-lining are out-catching the use of artificials until you get up into a tributary and find clear water (where anglers are also catching good numbers of mostly undersized stripers), or down as far as the bridges. Podickory remains a hotspot, as does the Love Point area. There are still spot around but they are becoming more difficult to catch, so some anglers are including small white perch in the mix while live-lining; they're being caught mixed in with the spot in 15 feet of water in the mouth of the Magothy, and at Hacketts, though there do seem to be more perch up inside the rivers along piers and rip-rap most recently.
Working the bridges continues to be a top option, for bait anglers and jiggers alike. BKDs and similar soft plastics in white and pearl cast in-between the legs of multi-leg pilings, and jigged near the rockpiles, are producing fish up to the mid-20s with lots of throw-backs often at a ratio of five to one or higher. Those who are live-lining are getting a better ratio of keeper fish. There are also some nice white perch being reported from around the rockpiles for those dropping bottom rigs baited with bloodworm or peeler crab. Another way to get 'em, along with a few stripers, is jigging tandem rigs with a three or four inch spoon on the bottom and a small streamer or tube for the top lure.
Crabbing in most Upper Bay areas is off a bit from the past couple of week, but still is worth the effort. A reader report from the Magothy told of a little over a half-bushel caught on chicken necks, during a morning of crabbing in five to seven feet of water.
Upper Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, 9/21/2018 Update:
The dam overflows have been all over fishing reports and anglers’ complaint lists and there are plenty of logs and branches to smack into right now, so be wary still if you’re fishing out on the Upper Bay! With that out of the way: Chumming has been incredibly consistent, with many spots like Podickory Point, Belvedere Shoals, Swan Point, and the Bay Bridges all making the headlines. There are reports of success in anywhere from 18 to 25 feet of water, especially at the start of an incoming tide. Jiggers tossing BKDs and Bass Assassins and live-liners are also continuing to score at the Bay Bridges, with fish scattered along the pilings on both east and west sides plus the rockpiles. Some anglers have simply been anchoring between the bridges and setting back live spot in a chum line, with success. There are plenty of throw-backs, but many of the fish are in the low to mid 20s. Some very big white perch have also been hauled up from around the pilings and rockpiles, mostly on peeler crab baits fished along bottom.
Anglers casting jigs in the tidal creeks are landing a surplus of throwbacks around docks, pilings, and rip-rap. The Magothy has also been giving up some decent-sized fish being caught on soft plastics. The top water bite has turned off a little bit the past few days but is still going on in the shallows. Try utilizing those topwaters during the early morning for some good yields. Also in the Magothy, white perch fishing around the docks and pilings has been picking up with the recent cool-down. We had a reader report a full stringer after scooping grass shrimp and dangling them on a shad dart, and another of steady action on Mepps spinners up in Old Man and Cockey Creeks.
Lastly, the spot bite has been doing very well for this time of year; most are caught on bloodworms in a variety of areas in the Upper Bay. Many anglers are finding them in the mouth of the Magothy, around the Bay Bridge pilings on the western side, and also around the Narrows, usually in 10 to 15 feet of water. The best fishing for spot continues to be further south in the Bay, though, especially near the mouth of the Patuxent, the Pocomoke, and Tangier Sounds - check out the Lower Bay and Tangier reports, for more details!
Upper Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, 9/14/2018 Update:
Editor’s Note: Due to Hurricane Florence, some areas of our region (particularly to the south) will be unfishable this weekend while others may be fishable but with challenges like unusual tides on top of breezy conditions. Please note that while we’ve done out best to gather quality intel, basically, as this storm causes radically changing conditions, all bets are off.
The dam flows have been all over fishing reports and anglers’ complaint lists, so be wary still if you’re fishing out on the bay! The water levels had been getting stable, but the impending hurricane should change that. Luckily, the bite has been doing great all over the Upper Bay.
Chumming has been incredibly consistent, with many spot also being in the mouths of most tributaries and Podickory Point and further north to Belvedere Shoals. There are reports of success in anywhere from 18 to 25 feet of water at the start of an incoming tide. The Bay Bridges also continue to hold lots of fish up into the mid-20s, with most being caught on either live spot or chum but jiggers also taking their fair share.
Anglers casting jigs in the tributaries and creeks are landing a surplus of throwback-sized rockfish. Using smaller lures and Perch Pounders results in plenty of white perch. Casting around docks, pilings and rip-rap earlier in the morning or later in the evening has been the best times, but many fish have been caught in the middle of the day also. Popular colors have been white and chartreuse. Both the Severn and Magothy have been giving up decent sized fish on soft plastics (Bass Assassins & BKDs are very popular) while working channel edges, grass beds, and oyster reefs. The topwater bite, however, had turned off a little bit the past few days. Try utilizing those topwaters during the early morning for better yields.
The spot bite has been doing very well for this time of year; most are being caught on bloodworms in a variety of areas in the Upper bay. Many anglers are finding them in the mouth of the Magothy, around the bay bridge pilings, and also around the Narrows in 10 to 15 feet of water. The best fishing for spot, however, continues to be further south in the Bay.
Upper Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, 9/7/2018:
The dam overflow and resulting discoloration and debris have been all over fishing reports and anglers’ complaint lists, so be wary still, if you’re fishing out on the Bay! However, the debris has scattered somewhat with the currents. G.I. jig heads are recommended when paired with white or chartreuse plastic tails around the five inch mark. The jigging has been hot around the Bay bridge pilings, among other spots. Angler in Chief Lenny Rudow reports that interestingly there have been stripers all over the pilings, east and west sides, north and south, as opposed to them being schooled in any one specific location. He found white plastics and live spot were both effective for fish up into the low to mid 20s, despite crowds of boats at the pilings and the rockpiles. Other decent bites this week have been at Podickory Point, Love Point, Swan Point and around the Key Bridge in the Patapsco. The fish are constantly on the move looking for cooler, oxygen rich waters, and can usually be found in these areas in about 20 feet of depth. Live-lining and chunking have also been doing well in these same locations, with fresh bunker being the bait of choice for keeper rockfish.
The white perch bite continues to be good in the Upper Bay area. Early in the morning you’ll find perch along the shorelines and holding tight to shallow structure. Small spinnerbaits like the Perch Pounders have been bringing them up recently for the most part. Once the sun is up, however, you’ll have a better chance of hooking up with them by fishing hard bottom areas in 10′ or deeper water. Bloodworms or grass shrimp are other great alternatives.
Lastly, the spot bite has been doing very well for this time of year; most are being caught on bloodworms in a variety of areas in the Upper Bay. Many anglers are finding them in the mouth of the Magothy, around the bay bridge pilings, and also towards the Narrows in 10 to 15 feet of water. The best fishing for spot continues to be further south in the Bay, however. Check out the Middle and Lower Bay reports on our website for more details!
- By Parker Martin