Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, December 29 Update:
We hope that everyone had a great Christmas and that you got some new fishing gear to try out in the new year. Winter fishing opportunities are limited along the coast, but there are always fish to catch for the determined angler. The bluefin reports dropped of this week and it seems that the big mass of fish may have moved south for the time being. Sea bass are out of season as of the new year, so the tautog will take the spotlight for wreck and reef anglers. Captain Monty went after them this week and reports that aboard the Morning Star they had a decent tog bite but “nothing stellar.” Captain Kane Bounds of the Fish Bound has also been out on the inshore grounds targeting the tog. Reports are similar but some nice fish have made their way into the boat as big as 14 pounds.
Fish In OC let us know they have also had some good reports from anglers at the inshore grounds including a report from a boat that had a crazy good day bottom fishing over the ocean structure earlier in the week. The guys had a limit of sea bass up to six pounds and some big tog up to 15 pounds. The fish are definitely out there, you just may have to cover some ground checking different structures to find them.
Striped bass are still moving along the coastal waters, but many are now unfortunately beyond the exclusive economic zone where they cannot be caught outside of three miles from shore. Some fish have been hanging out inside that mark, but it is a toss-up as to whether you can locate them. There are still smaller schoolie sized stripers hanging around inland such as the Ocean City Inlet, Route 50 Bridge, and CBBT, where here are also some larger fish being caught. Anglers are also still catching smaller tautog around the jetty rocks at the inlets. Sand fleas and pieces of green crabs paired with sweeper jigs have been the best baits for catching them.
Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, December 22 Update:
Christmas has come early for many anglers along the coast. The Atlantic has continued to provide more success with the unexpected swarms of bluefin tuna from Fenwick Shoals to Virginia Beach. Most of these fish have been caught by trolling ballyhoo or nine-inch Sassy Shads. Some very nice fish have been caught and put in the fishbox this week, but a lot of tuna are over the 73-inch mark and have had to be released. Anglers have caught these fish as close as one mile off the beach, sometimes mixed with ocean-run stripers, but the bulk of the fish seem to be from three to 10 miles out in 50 to 60 feet of water. Most reports of over-slot fish have been coming in from the southern grounds near the Chesapeake Light Tower. The tuna have not been this close to our coast in many years, so if you have the opportunity to get out for them, make sure to take advantage of it.
The Morning Star took its first poke at tautog last week but stayed close to the beach due to the wind, and reported a pretty good bite but no double-digit fish. Sea bass are still biting well, though, and on the Big Worm they’ve been catching some keeper flounder plus bluefish along with piles of beautiful bass while running out of Virginia Beach. We also heard reports from The Angler who caught plenty of nice flounder up to eight pounds with a couple big sea bass in the mix during this week’s trips. Chasin’ Tides Charters checked in with the biggest tautog of the week that we heard of. One of their anglers boated a 13.5-pound tog during a trip at the start of the week.
At the Ocean City Inlet, there are still striped bass being caught along the south jetty and at the Route 50 Bridge. Tautog and black drum have also been caught at the south jetty in recent weeks, so if you are fishing that area, it may be worth dropping some sweeper jigs with crab baits along the rocks. Fishing is good right now folks, catch them up!
Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, December 15 Update:
The big story along the coast has been the arrival of bluefin tuna, often mixed in with hammer rockfish. Two readers who set out in search of bluefin checked in, one with a goose egg and the other with a single 120-pound-class fish that hit a skirted ballyhoo. The location was undisclosed, but within 12 miles of the OC inlet and no more than eight miles off the beach. We also heard about multiple Virginia Beach boats hooking up and breaking off on exceptionally large, potential giant bluefin just a few miles off the beaches of the lower Eastern Shore. Fish In OC had multiple boats check in after successful trips chasing after the bluefin. There was even a boat that caught a bluefin just one mile off the beach near 42nd street. The 100-pound fish hit a ballyhoo bait in 21 feet of water. We have also heard of boats catching these fish within one to three miles off Virginia Beach. It has been quite some time since the bluefins have been this close to shore in our region, so get out there and chase them while they are here.
Along with the bluefins, there are big stripers hanging out in the same general area and a few boats have been hooking up with these fish while chasing the tuna. Birds have been giving away the location of feeding fish on some days and the location of the Omega boats has for those fishing near the southern tip of the Eastern Shore, but on some days you need to keep a close eye on the fish finder. A lot of the stripers being caught off the beaches are over-slot fish with some up to 50 inches. Even though it is cold, please remember to handle these fish with care as they are the future of the fishery depends on their survival. Also at the inshore grounds, the sea bass fishing wasn’t as sure-fire as in the past month or so but remains hot. This week Captain Monty on the Morning Star reports weeding through some spots plugged with dogfish and roving bands of bluefish to find good numbers of bass. The bluefish are big, and plentiful. Tautog fishing has also been picking up and the Fish Bound out of OC has been catching them consistently over the past few weeks. They have reeled in some limits with fish up to 14 pounds.
We have no solid, verifiable reports of mega-rock caught off the beach by surf anglers as of yet, but considering how close these fish are it would seem likely to happen any day now. Dedicated surf fishermen who have always wanted to catch trophy-size rock in the suds may want to consider taking a shot!
Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, December 8 Update:
December has arrived and it has brought some great fishing with it. Readers are reporting some awesome action along the coast from Delaware down to Virginia, with the arrival of some hefty migratory stripers and the surprise appearance of bluefin tuna mostly in the 80- to 150-pound range but some larger ones as well. Trollers have been catching the rockfish pulling Stretch 25s along the shoals just a few miles off the coast, and the bluefin have popped up in the same areas sometimes even pouncing on the rockfish lures. Reports are that the bait is thick, and the predators have moved in to take advantage of its presence. Fish In OC reported that one boat headed out to the offshore lumps around 10 miles off the beach in search of bluefin tuna, but instead hooked up with some quality stripers. They did see some bluefin on the surface but couldn’t get them to bite. They ended up catching and releasing six stripers between 38 and 50 inches that ate a combination of ballyhoo and nomad lures meant for tuna.
Captain Monty on the Morning Star has continued to enjoy excellent action including boat-limit catches along the wrecks and reefs out of Ocean City. A few porgy have been in the mix as well. Virginia sea bassers also report excellent action, with a wider range of species including bluefish, ribbonfish, and an occasional flounder popping up as well. A few of the offshore boats have also started to target tautog now that the water temps are colder. The sea bass still outnumber the tog at the wrecks, but a few nice fish are being caught. This bite will continue to develop.
Fishing at the OC Inlet is still providing good action for anglers going out in the colder weather. The south jetty has been holding good numbers of fish including striped bass, red drum, black drum, and tautog. One angler reported in after fishing the jetty and catching several under-slot stripers and one 35-incher.
Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, December 1 Update:
November treated us to some great fishing in our coastal areas and December is looking to offer up some great opportunities too. It looks like phenomenal black sea bass action isn’t letting up at the inshore wrecks and reefs, and Captain Monty on the Morning Star has continued to enjoy excellent action including limit catches. Keeper flounder and tautog are also being caught at the bass grounds. Fish In OC checked in with an epic late season report from the offshore grounds. Angler Robert Lamoreaux checked in with them after catching nine yellowfin at the Poorman’s canyon. Robert was fishing on board the private boat Bad Habit when they found a 59-to-67-degree temperate break where they “killed them on the troll.” Now that is awesome!
Surf fishing has taped off for the moment on the northern beaches, but a reader casting from Sandbridge said roundhead (kingfish) and puffers were still biting small doodlebug rigs baited with Fishbites bloodworm. We did have one successful report from a surf angler that spent a day fishing the north end of Ocean City where he caught a spiny dogfish, a clear nose-skate, and one bluefish using shrimp. He then headed down to the inlet where he landed one under-slot rockfish, two tautog, and a few eels using both shrimp and swim jigs.
Fishing in the back bays and around the inlets has been good for anglers braving the colder weather. We saw a report from a kayak angler that hit the south rock jetty at the OC inlet and had a fantastic day. He caught a limit of slot rockfish, a limit of tautog, a keeper black drum, and a keeper red drum. Fish will be on the dinner menu for a few days after a trip like that. Another group of anglers fishing both jetties at the inlet caught four keeper tog up to 18 inches during a mid-week trip. Bridge anglers at the Route 50 and 90 bridges are still catching rockfish while casting artificials around pilings and rock structure. Most fish are under the slot, but a few fishing meeting the 28 - 31 inch requirement have been caught.