Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, September 26 Update:
Big blues are still chopping near the Target Ship, with multiple readers reporting good catches of fish on hoses and spoons trolled over areas of live bottom. Many have been in the five-plus-pound range. Contributor Eric Packard says they found the blues holding at mid-depth in 22’ to 24’ of water one day early this week, and although they weren’t visible up top most of the time, they were very willing to come up to the surface to blast topwater lures, and they caught over a dozen. The Tackle Box also confirms that there has been a fair number of bluefish being caught on the main stem of the Bay. Charter boats are still trolling up fish anywhere from Point No Point down to Deltaville. The bluefish have not been picky when it comes to lure color, so white, pink, chartreuse, orange, and a variety of other bright colors should spark their interest. Recent reports show that the bigger class of bluefish have been hitting the surgical tubes, while spoons are still seeing a lot of action, but the class of fish is a bit smaller.
Readers are reporting a good bite for slot rockfish in the Potomac, with the 301 bridge and Colonial Beach areas both mentioned as productive. One noted that a ¾-ounce white bucktail trimmed with a 5” pearl grub was doing the trick in 10’ to 20’ of water. Trollers are also getting in on the action, with umbrella rigs and bucktails also catching fish. Ledges and rock piles from the 301 Bridge down to Breton Bay have been productive, and there is still the occasional bird show popping up on any given day. Anglers fishing in shallow tidal creeks in the Lower Bay are catching a mix of spot, croaker, white perch, schoolie stripers, small black drum, speckled trout, and puppy drum. The Virginia tidal rivers have been much more productive for keeper speckled trout and red drum. Anglers fishing on the Rappahannock, Corrotoman, and Piankatank are catching increasing numbers of speckled trout. We also had reports of schooling puppy drum near unspecified marsh islands. One angler fishing near Urbanna on the Rapp reported catching a limit of slot reds plus several others while fishing in two to three feet of water. The puppy drum will stay active in the shallows well into next month.
Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, September 19 Update:
The fishing is heating up as the weather is cooling down. Several readers reported more monster chopper blues coming from the Target Ship area, with trolled red hoses producing the bites. Trolling is taking the lion’s share of the fish, but they are busting surface here and there for mostly brief periods of time some days. Most are in the low to mid 20” range, but some are stretching beyond the 30” mark. Wreck and reef sites in the Lower Bay have been producing some big bottom feeders, including red drum, black drum, and some sheepshead. Cooling water temperatures won’t keep them around for much longer, but you still have a few weeks to target them. The reds have taken a liking for fresh-cut spot or croaker, while the black drum and sheepshead prefer chunks of crab. Fish finder rigs or bottom sweeper jigs are the most effective when fishing hard bottom structure for these fish.
The striped bass bite in the Potomac River has been very good this month. Contributor Eric Packard said there are a lot of rockfish up the Potomac, and last weekend, after catching some slot rock around the 301 bridge, they found a large school of unicorns: eight- and nine-inch stripers chasing bait on the surface. Packard said the small rockfish were accompanied by a big bird show. Birds working bait and feeding fish have been popping up on the Potomac River over the past month, but it has been a very long time since we have seen a school of rockfish that small. The eight to 10” fish are likely from last years spawning run. Dog Days Fishing has been running trips out of the Potomac and reports that most days, his anglers are quickly boxing their stripers, then enjoying a great bluefish bite. Blue catfish and white perch have also been plentiful in the river. Anglers fishing in the Virginia tidal rivers have noticed a better bite now that water temperatures are cooling off. Fish have been much more willing to respond to topwater lures, and we had a report from an angler on the Rappahannock who caught three striped bass up to 24”, a small puppy drum, as many small bluefish as you wanted, and a few speckled trout up to 28”. All were caught on topwater.
Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, September 12 Update:
It is a great time of year to head out on the Chesapeake Bay to target a variety of species. The Tackle Box reports that there are schools of bluefish and some mackerel out along the shipping channel. The most reliable zone for bluefish has been concentrated around the Target Ship. They also mentioned that they have been breaking with some consistency in the evening. Their recent reports from anglers have shown several double-digit fish, and one up to 17 pounds, measuring 37 inches. The average size of these fish is the three-to-five-pound range. Trolling has been the most effective with spoons and umbrellas. Some boats are even trolling “spoonbrellas” which look like a traditional umbrella rig for rockfish, but instead of sassy shads, they have spoons. Mackerel have been harder to come by, but there are some showing up in the mix with the blues. If you want to target them, the general rule of thumb is to troll between six and nine knots. Other Lower Bay trolling hotspots include Smith Point and Windmill Point.
Cobia reports have been slim lately, and the season will come to a close after September 20th. Boats trolling for blues and macks have spotted some cobia cruising up top just under the surface of the water. Sight casting is still a viable option, but many anglers transition to trolling for cobia with large 12-to-18-inch tubes this late in the season. The bull red reports have tapered off, but the tidal rivers in Virginia waters are producing some slot drum right now. We had reports from the Rappahannock and the Piankatank of slot reds biting in the shallows near docks. The speckled trout also seemed to get a bit more active in the shallow grass beds this week. Rockfish reports from the Potomac River were good this week. There has been a good bite around the 301 Bridge with anglers catching fish on ledges from Dahlgren up to Nanjemoy. In the small tidal creeks on the lower Potomac, anglers are catching white perch, schoolie stripers, small black drum, small flounder, kingfish, a few little puppy drum, and even some pufferfish. Small jigs and jerkbaits are working well to catch a smattering of species.
Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, September 5 Update:
September has arrived and just like that, we have fall fishing to look forward to. Contributor Eric Packard reports some slow bites in the PLO zone recently, with quality fish getting tougher to find at times. That said, he did catch a smattering of interesting creatures, including sea bass and puffer fish. Late this week, Packard fished with a friend on the Potomac River north of the 301 Bridge. Packard reports that the striped bass bite was good. The hot bait was shallow diving jerkbaits, and they caught over 30 fish, including several slot fish. A few white perch were in the mix too. There are several rock piles and other bottom structures scattered throughout the Potomac River where striped bass will be holding nearby. The section of the river from the 301 Bridge down to St. George’s Island has been a good zone to fish this year for stripers. The bite should continue to get better as the weather cools off, and fall is usually the best time to fish for stripers on the river. On the main stem of the Bay, trollers are catching Spanish mackerel and bluefish near the Target Ship and other historically productive areas such as Smith and Windmill Point.
Down on the Rappahannock, anglers are reporting a better bite for puppy drum around the mouth of the river. We had reports from two different kayak anglers who found slot reds fishing near marshy shorelines. There are a few marsh islands near the mouth of the river that are great places to search for puppy drum this time of year. Paddletails, spinners, and paddletails paired with an underspin are excellent artificial lures to keep in your arsenal. The speckled trout bite has not been great in the Lower Bay recently. We can hope that it improves with the cooler weather beginning to settle in as summer draws to a close. Grass beds in the shallows will still be one of the best locations to find speckled trout. Areas with grass beds and deep water nearby are good transition zones to target as well. In the shallows, small flounder are being caught, but there have been some reports of keeper sized fish as far north as Point Lookout. If anyone used to go out for flounder when there was a healthy population, it may be worth going to check some old spots.