Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, March 25 Update:
The shad have arrived! The shad have arrived! Reports are flowing in from the James, Rappahannock, and Potomac of strong hickory shad bites, and despite the recent rainfall we didn't hear about muddy nor poor conditions from anywhere around the dial. Contributor Eric Packard paid a visit to the Potomac south of Chain Bridge and north of the Francis Scott Key Bridge one morning this week, and by 9:00 a.m. had already caught a dozen. Before the morning was out he'd doubled that number of hickories and caught a couple of Americans as well. Tandem rigs with a small gold spoon behind a shad dart did the trick. If you haven’t yet seen our how-to feature and video and want to try this fishery check out Spring Shad Fishing for all the info you need to be successful. We also have a new video up on the FishTalk YouTube channel on How to Tie a Tandem Rig for shad.
Many anglers took advantage of this week's wonderful weather try for catch-and-release striped bass before the season totally shuts down from April 1st. The channel edges of the main bay and lower Potomac saw more action this week than in the past several months, with anglers bouncing jigs off the bottom in hopes of scoring a striper. Overall much of the catch has been on the smaller side, with a few larger prize fish mixed in. However, as report of big catfish keep coming from the rivers - including a 40-plus pounder this week - those big stripers have arrived in similar territory as they prepare to spawn. This week we had reports of a half-dozen or so rockfish ranging from schoolies to 40-inchers hitting baits (fished on circle hooks, of course) intended for the cats.
The white perch bite has been good in the tribs this week, with multiple reports from anglers who fished shad darts and grass shrimp for them. The Tackle Box mentioned that Allen’s Fresh was a good place to look for them but the perch are widespread and are currently hot in many of the historic areas that see a run.
Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, March 18 Update:
Although few anglers managed to get out this week, catfish are sustaining the best bite around for those willing to bare the weather. With the perch department proving hit or miss, catfishing has been the go-to for many anglers in this region. They’re hitting all around, in the waters of the Nanticoke, Potomac, Rap, and James, for those armed with plenty of fresh, savory chicken liver, gizzard shad, cut menhaden, or chicken breast. Many of the cats across the Lower Bay region reported recently have been impressive, ranging from a solid 20 pounds to Facebook-worthy 40-pounders. While bites between cats may take a while and many of the guys catching have narrowed down to their favorite watering hole, there’s plenty of shoreline and water to be explored.
Usually, we’d be reporting more on the perch bite about now, but it just hasn’t been reliable this season and most anglers are finding hit-or-miss action. With the weather fouling up the water and impacting temps recently, we’re hoping things even out with warmer, more stable weather as spring officially kicks off this Sunday!
Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, March 11 Update:
Contributor Eric Packard has been out hunting perch, but notes mixed results this week. At Allan’s Fresh fishing from shore he caught crappie and catfish, but anglers fishing near the bridge had a half-dozen yellows and kayakers who headed upstream came back down with fully loaded stringers. Then just a few days later on a return trip with the kayak, the perch were MIA and fishing was a bust. With weather swinging back and forth this week this seemed to be a theme, as one day the perch have been running hot and the next they’ve been running cold. We also had two check-ins from the Rappahannock from readers hunting yellow perch downstream of Fredericksburg with so-so action (a half dozen in one case and nine in the other) and a couple of white perch and crappie also in the mix.
As yellow perch are making their way up the spawning rivers with anglers eagerly awaiting steadier action, catfish have often been an alternate target. Fishermen who checked in from the Potomac, James and Rap this week were happy, with plenty of big fish caught on bottom. The Hopewell area reportedly provided a prime bite. We have zero confirmed shad reports from the area as of yet, but these fish should begin showing up any day now in upriver areas.
Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, March 4 Update:
Like much of the region, the beginning of the yellow perch run is what’s grabbing the headlines these days. Contributor Eric Packard reports hitting Allen’s Fresh this week for an exploratory trip, having first catching perch there on the 11th last year, but didn’t hook up. Anglers up the Rap have been catching (sorry, no more specifics came in on the exact location) with a reader reporting 12 fish caught one afternoon this week on minnow. We didn’t get any firsthand intel from the James or the York complex, but if they’re biting in the Rappahannock it’s a sure thing they’re hitting in the southern rivers and creeks as well.
