Tangier, Pocomoke, and Lower Shore Fishing Report, February 28 Update:
Temperatures in the 60’s this week gave us a glimpse of what’s to come as winter is slowly losing its grip on us. Water temperatures are still very cold, and fishing opportunities are still limited at the moment, but there are a few bites worth getting out for right now. The highlight for the lower Eastern Shore is the Pocomoke River where crappie are providing excellent action from Snow Hill to Pocomoke City and south. The crew from Sea Hawk Sports Center has been out this week taking advantage of the milder temps and reported that the bite has been good with a few trips filling stringers of eating size fish. Minnows seem to be the ticket right now and trolling them or drifting and fishing them in the bottom half of the water column is working well. Other potential catches include yellow perch, largemouth bass, pickerel, and catfish. The white perch run is also on the horizon, and we need water temperatures to tick up a few more degrees to kick them into spawning mode. Mid-March to early April is usually when the big numbers head up the spawning tributaries. The seasons are starting to change and soon the start of daylight savings will give us more time to fish during the day. Good things are on the way folks.
Striped Bass Closure Update: Starting Saturday, March 1st, many of the Chesapeake Bay tidal rivers and parts of the Upper Bay will be closed for targeting striped bass. Other sections of the Bay will remain open for the month of March before the entirety of the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland governed waters closes from April 1st to May 15th. Anglers can view an interactive Striped Bass Regulation Map on the Maryland DNR website to see when and where closures take place.
Tangier, Pocomoke, and Lower Shore Fishing Report, February 21 Update:
Eastern Shore anglers should be happy to know that they finally have some trout opportunities close to home as several counties were stocked. Wicomico, Worcester, and Caroline counties were stocked this week and isn’t it fitting than a winter storm moving through lower Delmarva to blanket the area with a healthy coating of snow? Now that is trout fishing weather. These initial stockings in Maryland are just the preseason stockings and there will be more on the way in the coming months. The forecast is calling for warmer weather next week, so it should be great conditions to get out and trout fish if that holds true. The most up to date stocking information can be found on the Maryland DNR trout stocking website. While we patiently wait for spring, and more fishing opportunities on the Bay, anglers still have plenty of opportunities in the Pocomoke River for a variety of species. Crappie are a highlight right now and anglers trolling minnows have been doing well this month. Yellow perch, bass, and pickerel are also common catches when fishing with minnows. The yellow perch are scheduled to start their spawning run soon, which usually kicks off at the end of February or early March. They are followed by white perch which usually run towards the end of March. We need a warming trend to bring up water temps and then we should be in business. As soon as the fish start running, we will let you know.
Tangier, Pocomoke, and Lower Shore Fishing Report, February 14 Update:
As winter continues to roll on, there have not been many reliable fishing opportunities throughout the Tangier and lower Eastern Shore region. Striped bass fishing on the Bay is very hit or miss with water temperatures still below 40 degrees for the most part. The saving grace this winter has been the Pocomoke River. Sea Hawk Sports Center reports that some of their crew had excellent action earlier in the week for a mix of crappie, yellow perch, pickerel, and even a few largemouth bass. The best bites came on the last hours of the ebb and the first hours of the incoming. Sea Hawk perch rigs with two-inch pink and chartreuse curly tails tipped with small minnows was the hot bait in four to 12 feet of water. Most of the fish hit while trolling baits along creek channel edges. Trolling with minnows is a tried-and-true method for catching crappie and other species on the Pocomoke. The crappie bite usually heats up even more in the spring, and the yellow and white perch spawning runs should offer another reliable opportunity. I know we are all ready for warmer weather and more chances to get back out on the Bay.
Tangier, Pocomoke, and Lower Shore Fishing Report, February 6 Update:
The start of the spring spawning runs is on our doorstep and action in the lower Eastern Shore tribs is heating up. The Angler in Chief says the bite up the Pocomoke was okayish earlier this week, the action wasn’t hot but there was a great mix of species with a few bass, pickerel, crappie, and catfish all willing to bite. The bass came on minnow on shad darts suspended under a bobber and all the other species hit the same baits jigged on bottom in the channel in 10’ to 12’ of water. A reader found that yellow perch, pickerel, crappie, and bass were all biting strong this week, up one of the creeks on the southernmost portion of the Eastern Shore. He noted that many of the perch were females fat with eggs so he let them go; look for skinny males to drop in the frying pan. We should start to see yellow perch get more active this month as they get ready for their spawning run up the tributaries. Mid to late February and early March is usually when we see these fish make their push and white perch follow shortly after them.
