Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, June 23 Update:
Angler in Chief Lenny Rudow says there are a few keepers to be scrounged in the Middle Bay area, though the reports seem significantly better from north of the Bridge or south in the Potomac. Thomas Point produced a handful of dinks and a 21-incher late last week, and readers checking in from the Choptank report fish up into the mid-20s on topwater in the shallows mostly at daybreak and dusk. Other reports from the Thomas Point and Choptank area indicated an alright bite; most fish were landed on white soft plastics. Contributor Eric Packard also reported catching a couple keeper-sized rock along with the first cutlassfish of the season while casting jigs around docks in the lower Pax.
Trollers who cruised the channel edges this week were reporting that they burned a lot of gas, often with mixed rewards. Although the fish aren’t dense in any specific area, a few trollers we heard from mentioned that even though they covered a good bit of ground they struggled to get into fish.
Some slightly good news on the white perch front, finally: some anglers casting the shallows of the South River with grass shrimp found a good bite early this week, catching 30+ fish along some fallen trees on the shoreline with six in the 10-plus-inch range. We also had a reader check in from the Patuxent in the Myrtle Point area with plenty of keeper white perch in the bucket. However, we’re also still hearing about a mysterious absence of them in some areas, including historically reliable ones.
Crabbing report: Production Manager and kayak trot-lining sharpie Zach Ditmars let us know he scooped over four dozen feisty Jimmies in the Annapolis area for Father’s Day, in just a few feet of water in a creek. If you haven’t tried trot-lining from a kayak and want to give it a shot be sure to check out his tell-all How to Catch Blue Crabs with a Kayak Crabbing Trotline video.
Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, June 16 Update:
The AIC visited some local haunts including Thomas Point and TPL for some evening light-tackle casting a couple of times this week and says there were plenty of rockfish dinks around, but not many fish pushing up even close to keeper territory. Chartreuse BKDs and pearl paddle-tails got ‘em biting. He also noted that there were some fish up inside the South River also willing to bite on docks and structure one evening, but two days later they were either gone or completely unwilling to bite. He also noted a distinct lack of perch in the usual haunts and said casting spinners and tubes produced very few bites. A foray to the Bay Bridge midweek produced mostly dinks again, though there was a 20-incher in the mix, and pearl paddles did the catching. The charters slinging spot appeared to be doing slightly better, netting a keeper every hour or so. Other reports indicate that many boats are heading to the Bay Bridge and if they’re willing to burn the fuel, even further north. Live-lining is the favored method, for sure, producing more quality fish. Spot are just off Sandy Point, and perch can also be caught in shallow water around the pilings. Contributor Eric Packard did better still in the lower Patuxent this week, catching numerous rockfish up to 24 inches plus some nice perch while working the docks.
Reports from the CCNPP were mixed this week, with one reader reporting a slow bite and dinks but four-and-a-half-year-old Julian, shown here, live-lining his way to a 27-incher! There are also mixed reports coming from the Choptank, with some anglers reporting skunks in the box but some others saying the shallows are producing early in the day. Another reader reported doing some catching on rock and some big perch between Chesapeake Beach and the West River. In general, the fish have been difficult to pin down from day to day.
Crabbing report: It’s picking up a bit, but still pretty dismal by most accounts. We spoke with a commercial trot-liner working near Annapolis who had a bushel and a half one morning, and the AIC says he worked all morning to put 17 (mostly nice ones) in his basket.
Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, June 10 Update:
The Angler in Chief reports having a tough day in the Middle zone last weekend and wishing he’d headed north (see the Upper Bay report), with just a few dinks to show for casting jigs at Thomas Point, multiple locations in Eastern Bay, and around Poplar. He also noted that there was a small fleet live-lining at Hollicutt’s, but no bent rods were sighted. Contributor Eric Packard reported similarly lackluster results and relatively low numbers of mostly small rock after slinging jigs at the CCNPP, Punch Creek, and Hoopers, although they did also have some nice white perch in their mix. He noted better action simply casting piers in the lower Patuxent, though the bulk of the catch was undersized fish there, too. Readers checking in from the shallows of the Choptank report a much better bite on topwater, including fish up into the mid-20s. That Choptank info mirror’s the reports from Angler’s, who also mentioned that casting plastics is doing the trick there, too.
More on those white perch: they have kick in in the tribs. Multiple reader reports and the tackle shops are all reporting a decent if not red-hot bite in the creeks on spinners and grass shrimp fished on darts and under bobbers around docks and rip-rap. They’re also being caught mixed in with spot on hard bottom areas including Hackett’s and in the mouth of the South.
Crabbing report: After a very slow start we’re beginning to hear more on the crabbing front, with a couple of reader reports of catches by the dozens from the Severn and West rivers. We haven’t been hearing about full bushel baskets as of yet but it does at least seem worth baiting up the trot line or stacking up the traps.
Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, June 3 Update:
Middle Bay anglers welcomed the arrival of schoolie season with open arms and a number of locations provided good action in response. The Bay Bridge has been steady for those tossing jigs or live spot to the pilings with most fish in the under- or barely-keeper to mid-20-inch range, but some 30-inchers are popping up as well. Thomas Point has been giving up 20-somethings as well for anglers casting BKDs on half-ounce heads. But by most reports Eastern Bay takes the pole position right now, with multiple readers reporting fast action on fish in the 20- to 30-inch range. Hollicutt’s Noose, the drop-offs south of Parsons, and Poplar were all reported as producing fish. Alltackle echoed our reader reports here, mentioning that Poplar has been an excellent location for light tackle anglers.
Trolling remains super popular. Much of the fleet was trolling the shipping channel this week, dodging boats and keeping an eagle-eye out for other spreads. They’ve been pulling a mix of white and chartreuse spreads comprised of bucktails, umbrellas, and sassy shad. White seems to be the best color right now. Trollers are generally hooking into the larger fish, although bites seem to be spaced out a bit. Angler’s Sport Center and Alltackle suggested trolling around Hackett’s or Buoy 83, both productive areas.
Chumming is a possibility now, too, but the anglers that we talked to mentioned that they had a pretty significant chunk of their spread snatched by catfish. If you’re cool with the cats, chumming is a wonderful way to double-down on the species you’ll be reeling in. Chances are, you’ll be hooking up both the bass and the blue catfish. Angler’s mentioned that chummers are getting the whole spread of sizes, too.
White perch are in the tribs, now hanging out in their summer haunts. Fishing for them with a bottom rig with bloodworms, grass shrimp, or Fishbites is common. Some anglers are also opting for small spinners, casted around shaded structure, docks, and piers.