Freshwater Fishing Report, September 26 Update:
Largemouth bass are active throughout most of the day now that temperatures have cooled off. They are looking to feed on baitfish, crayfish, and still frogs. Top-producing fall baits include spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, and jigs rigged with creature bait soft plastics. While snakeheads are often regarded as a spring and summer fish to target, you can still catch them in the fall. The next few weeks will be the best time to target them before they get lazy and transition to deeper water due to colder temperatures. There is still a lot of aquatic vegetation in our freshwater tributaries, including the Potomac and Blackwater. Anglers should continue to fish the thick vegetation with topwater lures, especially on warm afternoons. Thick marsh shorelines lined with phragmites are also great areas to throw subsurface lures for snakehead. In areas of open water with muddy bottom close to vegetation, a minnow under a bobber can be very effective.
Mossy Creek Fly Fishing reports that the rain we received this week was much needed. The runoff will help with stream flows in the western trout zones and will hopefully make fish less spooky. The brook trout streams are running low. If you plan to fish them, stealthy approaches will be very important. Approach from downstream and try to spot them in the shallow pools. Mossy Creek also warned that falling leaves on larger rivers may make fishing difficult in the coming weeks. Low wind days will make it easier to navigate the sections of rivers free of leaves. Carp, bass, and musky are all on the table right now. Trout anglers should focus their attention on the spring creeks at the moment. Trout anglers will also want to keep checking the trout stocking schedules for their state, as October usually brings the first fall stockings of the year. Virginia anglers can check the Virginia DWR trout stocking website and Maryland anglers can check the Maryland DNR trout stocking website.
Freshwater Fishing Report, September 19 Update:
Catfish are a great species to target in our freshwater rivers. Blue catfish are the most abundant, and this invasive species is growing in size and number every year. A reader checked in after fishing the Susquehanna River and catching some mega-catfish. He noted that the big blues were hitting drifted baits that were suspended, near the Port Deposit area. All the tidal rivers of the upper Bay have populations of blue catfish, but the area around Port Deposit and Havre De Grace is known for producing big blues with 20 to 30 pounders being common. The blue catfish have been very active in the upper tidal Potomac River in Maryland and D.C. Anglers are catching them around Fort Washington, the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, and near Three Sister’s Island. There are several other rivers in our region that boast big numbers of blue catfish. These include the Rappahannock River, York River, James River, Chester River, Choptank River, and the lower Eastern Shore tidal rivers.
Freshwater Fishing Report, September 12 Update:
The cooler temperatures provide excellent conditions to fish for largemouth bass in our area's ponds, lakes, and reservoirs. Bass will be more active throughout the day, but fishing the mornings and evenings will still be a good bet, especially if you want to throw topwater lures. FishTalk contributor Eric Packard was out this week fishing a southern Maryland farm pond and reports that he caught 11 largemouth bass and seven crappie. The bass were caught on a shaky head jig with a Rapala Crush City Customs Janitor Worm in sprayed grass color. The crappie were caught on a small jig with a white twister tail. As we progress into fall, aquatic vegetation will begin to die off. The edges of these grass beds will be perfect locations to target largemouth bass. Whether it be arrowhead fields, hydrilla, waterweed, or other varieties, keep an eye out for these transition zones when fishing. Crappie will also be more active with cooler water temperatures, and the best time to target them is fall through spring when the weather is colder. Crappie are often found suspended near submerged structures such as trees, fallen wood, docks, rock piles, and bridge pilings.
The lack of rain has lowered water levels in our region’s freshwater rivers and streams. This has created good conditions to wade for smallmouth bass. A few of the more productive rivers include the Susquehanna, Potomac, Rappahannock, and James. A reader wrote in with a report after fishing the Monocacy south of Frederick last weekend. They said that the smallies were very active, but the fish were all on the small side. They caught over 20 smallmouth bass on jigs and swimbaits, but all were under 16 inches. When the water is running low and clear, anglers should use stealthy approaches and make long casts to avoid spooking fish. This rule also applies if you plan to fish the western trout streams. There are good opportunities right now in Maryland’s gear-restricted catch and release trout management waters. Anglers can find more information on area regulations on the Maryland Department of Natural Resources website. We are also approaching the start of stocking season, which usually starts in October, so be on the lookout for that.
Freshwater Fishing Report, September 5 Update:
The freshwater bite is going strong as temperatures have been below average over the past month. Contributor Eric Packard says the cool weather has kicked the freshwater fish into high gear, and at St. Mary’s Lake he was recently catching “every which way.” Largemouth bass, crappie, yellow perch, pickerel, and bluegill were all hitting with the best bite on a Wacky Worm fished over a weedbed in five to eight feet of water. Lipped plugs, shaky heads, jerkbaits, and Beetle Spins were catching, too. Another reader fishing a pond in southern Maryland said that the bass have been active in the evenings lately. While bank fishing, he caught half a dozen bass up to three pounds while throwing a chatterbait with a black and chartreuse paddletail. The smallmouth rivers have been running low and clear for the most part, as we have had very little rain over the past month. The Upper Potomac, Upper Rappahannock, Upper James, and the Monocacy are all in prime shape for wade fishing. Smallmouth anglers have been enjoying a great bite in these waters recently with crawfish imitations, swimbaits, and jigs all working.
FishTalk contributor Adam Greenberg checked in this week with a report from the Eastern Shore. He said he recently spent a few hours in the afternoon running around fishing spots in the vicinity of Cambridge searching for snakehead. He tried three areas and only caught one fish, though at the first two spots he had several blow ups on his topwater frog, the fish just missed it. At the third spot, he was pitching a weedless hook with an underspin and a white paddletail to half dead pad fields when he connected on a fish. As the weather cools off, seasonal aquatic grasses will begin to die off. The edges of these areas are great locations to search for predatory fish looking to ambush bait. As fall approaches, trout fishing is appearing on many anglers radar. Mossy Creek Fly Fishing reports that fishing in the western trout zones has been technical lately as water levels have been steadily dropping in recent weeks. They say that mountain streams are running very low and will require long leaders, a sneaky approach, and smaller flies in 14-16 range to keep from spooking fish. Spring creeks are seeing a lot of tricos, ants, beetles, and big grasshoppers along with hex hatching in the evening hours. Any cloudy weather and rain we get will present great opportunities for streamer fishing.