Upper Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report August 26 Update:
The story has been the same pretty much all year and that is that the Upper Bay is the place to be for the best rockfish action. FishTalk’s kayak fishing guru Zach Ditmars stepped aboard a larger craft last weekend and cruised first to the waters outside of Fairlee Creek, where catfish (along with one striper) chewed up their rockfish baits. Shifting slightly north and to the west side of the channel off Worton, he reported that they observed multiple boats landing rockfish in the 22-inch range on live eels, but the fish showed zero interest in jigs (and he says big thanks to the guys that handed him off a couple of eels!). Edgemere Bait and Tackle confirms that the eel bite at Pooles island is on fire right now. There are many fish being caught in the mid 20-inch range and even some fish into the lower 30s. They also let us know that birds have been working breaking rockfish and smaller bluefish at Seven Foot Knoll on up to the Key bridge. Successful reports came in this week of some boats bottom bouncing along the channel ledges near the Patapsco in 20 to 30 feet of water picking up some quality rockfish. We also checked in with Angler’s this week who let us know that the Patapsco, Severn, and Magothy have all been good for rock. Fishing shallow water around points and rocky shorelines using jerk baits, topwater, or paddletails on light jig heads has been producing action. The morning and evening bites are best, especially for topwater. If you are fishing from shore, soft crab is the way to go.
Perch fishing is excellent all over the Bay. The mouth of Back River and up at the oar piers have been some of the best hotspots. Pieces of soft crab on bottom rigs or Chesapeake Sabiki Rigs work great in deeper water in the rivers or main bay. Readers have been reporting catching perch consistently in the 10 to 12 inch range. Now those are some good eating fish! In the shallows of the rivers, Anglers recommends using spinners like Perch Pounders or Beetle Spins. Two of the White Perch Open winners were fishing with electric chicken Perch Pounders.
Crabbing Report: The crabbing has been tough in the Upper Bay. One report came in from Bear Creek of some very nice sized crabs but only about a dozen to show for a few hours work. Another report came in from the Bodkin where only two dozen keepers were caught in about five hours. They did note the crabs were on the larger side. It’s a grind right now folks but crabbing should pick up as we move into September.
Upper Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report August 19 Update:
The relief from the persistent summer heat has made for some great fishing days lately. Cooler temps have been welcomed by both the fish and those fishing. Fishbone’s let us know that the rockfish hotspots have been Podickory Point, Love Point, and the mouth of the Magothy, Patapsco, and Chester Rivers. These areas have been good for both live lining spot and light tackle jigging. Pooles island is still holding lots of rockfish as well. The best bites are coming on live eels and cut bunker with a moving tide. Reports came in of birds breaking around Seven Foot Knoll and inside the mouth of the Patapsco this week. Those trolling channel edges in the Patapsco have been rewarded with a nice class of fish. Topwater bites for rockfish are picking up as the weather cools off. Points and other structure with moving water are best to target on early mornings and late evenings. Dog walking spooks on the surface can tempt hungry rockfish into biting.
White perch have been eager and willing to bite in most areas of the Upper Bay. The Six and Seven Foot Knolls and points and the mouths of rivers are good places to check out north of the bridge. Anglers recommends targeting them with Chesapeake sabiki rigs or if you want to go after the jumbo perch, throw a larger profile lure such as a Z-man three-inch minnow on a light jig head. Spot have also been hanging around in good numbers on the knolls and bars. They are starting to put some size on them as we get later into summer. Dropping down bloodworms or bloodworm flavored Fishbites are the best baits of choice. Inside the rivers, you will be able to find perch pretty much anywhere that has decent structure and reader reports have been getting a lot better for the species than they were earlier this sumer. Docks, rock jetties, pilings, and any other structure will likely be holding schools of these tasty fish.
Upper Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report August 12 Update:
Rock fishing continues to be best in this portion of the Bay with many boats catching their limit on outings. We checked in with Clyde’s Sport Shop to see how the bite has been on the Eastern side of the Bay. Tolchester and Love Point seem to have the highest concentration of fish in that area and boats are getting on the schools by live lining spot with fish up into the mid 20’s. Bowley’s Bait and Tackle reports exceptional fishing around the entirety of Poole’s Island. They do note that the rock are starting to prefer fresh cut bait over the live eels they were loving before the closure. Boats live lining spot are having steady action as well. Most fish in the area are in the low to mid 20s. The Bay Bridge pilings have also been producing fish in good numbers with live lining again proving a top tactic, though there are many throwbacks being caught there as well.
Blue and channel cats are still biting strong in the Bay. The areas where the catfish are being caught haven’t been holding many rockfish so boats looking to target the rock have been moving elsewhere. Boats wanting to target the cats can be sure to get some tugs at the end of their lines chumming with fresh cut bunker. The entire stretch of 10 – 20 feet of water on the bayfront between Gibson Island clear to Poole’s Island are reliable areas to target them.
The white perch bite has picked up quite a bit this past week. This is good news for those looking to fish the Anglers White Perch Open, which is being hosted at Podickory Point Yacht Club on August 14th. Perch can be caught just about anywhere in the rivers that have rock jetties or dock pilings by casting spinners. Big schools of perch will also be roaming the deeper waters of the rivers and the main stem of the Bay. Reports indicate recent hotspots have been Six-foot Knoll, Seven-foot Knoll, and the Bay Bridge pilings. Those dropping down a Chesapeake sabiki rig with fish bites have been catching a steady mix of perch, spot, and croaker.
Upper Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report August 5 Update:
We have a new Fishing Reports editor, folks! FishTalk welcomes Dillon Waters to the team, an angler who has sent in reader photos in the past that have made us thoroughly jealous — stripers, specks, and reds that any of us would be thrilled to catch. Dillon says:
“I’m a lifelong resident of Maryland. What an awesome state for fishing, right? I’m an avid outdoorsman and my main hobbies include fishing, hunting, and photography. If I have any free time, you will either find me on the water or in the woods! I graduated from St. Mary's College of Maryland in 2021 with a B.S. in Biology and Environmental Studies and currently have a full-time position with the Department of Natural Resources Wildlife and Heritage Service working as a wildlife response technician. My favorite freshwater fish to catch is crappie (St. Mary's Lake has been very reliable) and my favorite saltwater fish to catch are speckled trout (the Tangier Sound is a beautiful place to target them). One of my other big interests is baseball — go O's! I look forward to being able to provide detailed and accurate reports to FishTalk’s readers moving forward.”
Welcome aboard, Dillon!
Rockfish Alert: It’s time to hit the water folks, rockfish season reopened on Monday! Yay! Early reports indicate that they are still holding strong in their areas from last month. Please remember to handle these fish with care when releasing them as hot temps and low oxygen are putting them under high stress!
Tochtermans reports that striped bass remain in good numbers in their pre-closure areas from Pooles Island up to Worton Point. Boats looking to live-line have not had a problem finding their spot before going to get on the rocks. There seems to be a good class of fish with keepers up to 31 inches being reported. Those throwing over the trolling rods have had good success as well with many reports of fish in the mid 20s. A few smaller bluefish have been hitting the deck for trollers, but larger blues have not shown up this far north yet.
We also checked in with Fishbones this week who reports breaking fish around Podickery, Seven Foot Knoll, and Sandy Point lighthouse. Trolling number-one and two planers with clark/drone spoons near the breakers have been leading to hook ups. Small bluefish have been mixed in with the rock, though the breakers have been a smaller class of fish overall. Anglers targeting rock up near the Key Bridge have found a steady bite on the southern side of the bridge. Perch fishing is consistent in the same area with large schools hanging off deeper water edges in 20- to 25-feet of water. Bloodworm and peeler crab are bringing in the big white perch and some jumbo spot up to 12 inches near the Southern tip of Belvedere Shoal and at Snake Reef.
Crabbing Report: You have got to be willing to work for them right now but when crabbers are getting them, they have been BIG. A lot of females have shown up. The key has been finding a good edge. Inside the Magothy, Patapsco, and the mouth of the Bodkin have been putting crabs in baskets. There are reports that clams have been producing double the number of crabs as chicken necks. They also hold up better against the smaller crabs and abundance of females chewing on them right now.