Lower Bay Fishing Reports

Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, June 26 Update:

Summer fishing patterns have set in, and the heat has led to condensed bite windows thanks to hot water temperatures. Contributor Eric Packard says the number of rockfish he’s encountering on the lower Potomac dropped off a bit in recent trips, but the number of specks has been going up with one recent morning producing three nice fish on silver fleck paddletails on quarter-ounce heads. On a follow-up trip he caught multiple specks plus a rockfish and even tied into a 29” cobia from his kayak. Puppy drum reports have been scarce in Maryland waters, but better catches have been reported down in Virginia. Anglers fishing in the Corrotoman, Rappahannock, and Piankatank are catching them near docks, riprap, and other shoreline structure. The bite has been best in the early morning and late evening when temperatures have cooled off a bit. One angler fishing a rip-rap shoreline reported catching half a dozen puppy drum one morning this week. Another angler who was kayak fishing only found one slot pup, but said the keeper trout were biting paddletails in five to 10 feet of water.

The Tackle Box wrote in and reports that spot, croaker, and some perch are available in the Potomac River tributaries. They also mentioned that the lower Potomac has also been invaded by cownose rays and pods of dolphins. These can be a major nuisance for anglers this time of year. Rays are often an annoying bycatch that scream drag and break off lures for light tackle anglers. When dolphins move through an area to feed, that often shuts the bite off as fish will scatter to try and avoid them. If you encounter schools of either species on the water, it may be best to try another area.

We had a report from a pair of readers who found some nice sized bluefish near the Target Ship this week. The blues have also been found holding close to wrecks and reefs in the Lower Bay. Often they are much more willing to hit surface plugs or shallow diving lures rather than jigs. Most of the bluefish are in the 20” range, but some close to 30” have also been caught. There have been occasional open water frenzies as well where bigger schools of bluefish have been found feeding on baitfish. It is worth keeping an eye out for surface action while cruising around in open water. Cobia have also started to make an appearance in the Lower Bay, and anglers have been catching them between Windmill Point at the mouth of the Rappahannock and the Target Ship. Keeper fish have been caught by those dropping down bunker chunks and live eels. We also had a reader write in to let us know they saw a few cobia cruising the surface while running in the Vicinity of Smith Island.

Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, June 19 Update:

The Tackle Box checked in and reports that they are getting good reports of bluefish in the Bay along with the first few reports of cobia. Last weekend, several boats boxed cobia in the vicinity of the target ships. Most of the catches came from trollers pulling tubes intended for bluefish, but cobia are known to hit them as well. Bluefish have been consistently found at wreck and reef sites in the Lower Bay, and they have even frenzied up at times, feeding on bait at the surface. Most are in the 18” to 24” range, but some up to 30” have also been caught. Topwater plugs and jigs are working very well when anglers encounter them. Boats with towers will have the advantage while cobia fishing as fish cruise on the surface. Bait fishermen will also have a good chance at cobia while anchored with eels and cut bait. These baits are likely to get hit by other bycatch as well including, cownose rays and even a shark from time to time. Cobia are also being caught down at the mouth of the Rappahannock near Windmill Point. Their numbers should continue to increase throughout the rest of the summer.

Inshore fishing has been consistent with speckled trout, rockfish, and some puppy drum showing up in the shallows. Potomac anglers are still enjoying good fishing in the main stem of the river from the 301 bridge down to St. George’s Island. In the shallows, rockfish have been found at creek mouths, shoreline points, docks, and rip-rap. White perch have also been in these same areas. Speckled trout have been scarcer in the Potomac than Virginia tributaries, but some have been around. Contributor Eric Packard was out fishing near Piney Point at the beginning of the week where he and a few other anglers enjoyed a good mid-day topwater bite for rockfish. There was also a 25” speckled trout caught on their boat. The specks have been more common over grass flats in the Rappahannock, Corrotoman, and Piankatank. With hot weather not arriving, they will likely be in the shallows during low light hours, then slide to slightly deeper water once the sun gets up. Popping corks with paddletails, straight tails, or shrimp imitations work very well when fished over grass. Puppy drum have been harder to find, but some slots have been found over grass and under docks. We are still waiting for the big push north that we saw last year.

Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, June 12 Update:

Both bull redfish and cobia have been reported moving north of the Way South zone, and boats running out of the Rappahannock have been able to spot fish in the past week. We even had a couple reports of cobia spotted in Maryland waters on the east side, though none confirmed with pictures as of yet. Anglers trolling spoons out of the Rappahannock are reporting that Spanish mackerel are starting to show up with an increasing number of bluefish as well. One boat reported that they caught both fish while trolling at between buoys eight and 10 in around 35’ of water. Schools of bluefish have been reported to be hanging out around the Target Ship and one reader wrote in to let us know they got in on some breaking fish at the beginning of the week and pulled a 31” bluefish out of the mix. Trollers are doing well working depths of 20’ to 30’. As water temperatures approach 80 degrees, more Spanish mackerel should continue to move up to Lower Bay waters.

Contributor Eric Packard spent a few days fishing the main stem of the Potomac River this week. Packard reported that the fishing is in prime form with several locations producing fish for him and a few other anglers on board. Their crew spent most of their time jigging on structure in open water with several rock piles at 20’ depths producing fish. One day they caught around 60 fish and another day they landed close to 30. Most were around the 19 to 24” slot with some unders and overs in the mix too. The Potomac River seems to be where one of the better striped bass bites is happening in the Bay this month. The speckled trout bite is improving as these fish are in mixed stages of their spawn. Some fish being caught are spawned out, while others are still ripe with roe. We had a report from the Rappahannock of an angler catching a half dozen specks up to 27” while fishing over grass beds. The Corrotoman River has also been productive for speckled trout and a few puppy drum. Topwater lures are working well in low light hours and paddletails are getting bites throughout the tide during a moving tide. Popping corks are a tool you should have in your tackle box as they are especially effective for speckled trout when fishing over grass.

Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, June 5 Update:

The Tackle Box reports that schools of bull red drum are moving up the Bay, and cobia are on their heels. The big drum have been found in the shallows of the Eastern Shore. These fish are still shallow as water temperatures are still on the cooler side. Large paddletails, topwater lures, and jerkbaits are working well. Cobia are just starting to enter the mouth of the Bay around the CBBT but will move north when larger schools arrive. The season for them opens on June 15th. Bluefish have returned and are being found around wrecks and reef sites, with some scattered schools pushing bait in open water. When anglers have located these fish around structure, they have been very willing to hit topwater bites and shallow diving cranks. The Tackle Box said there were big catches of two-to-three-pound bluefish below the target ships in the Bay last week.

On the Potomac River, light tackle anglers and trollers are still finding rockfish in the area from the 301 Bridge down to St. Clements Island. Trollers working ledges between 20’ and 30’ are pulling in fish, and the shallows are holding rockfish in areas with shallow structure and strong current. Down on the Rappahannock, the bite has been tough at times, but redfish, stripers, and speckled trout have been found cruising the shallows. Redfish have been harder to come by this year, but specks have been found over grass flats. One angler fishing last weekend caught a few speckled trout on topwater spooks and a few stripers on paddletails. Some rockfish have also been caught by those jigging around the pilings of the Norris Bridge.

Contributor Adam Greenberg wrote in to let us know he had some good luck fishing in D.C. recently. He fished the Potomac last weekend and caught a few small rockfish and largemouth bass on white curlytail grubs and a pink jerkbait. Anglers fishing in the area of Fletchers Cove are still reporting that good numbers of schoolie striped bass are still in the area, though the river has been difficult to fish at times with the bumps in flow from recent rains. An angler fishing at the Tidal Basin in D.C. said snakeheads have been more active, and he caught a 10-pounder on a swimbait this week. Apex Predators reports that the snakehead bite on the lower Bay tidal rivers has been consistent, though some days are taking longer than others to find fish willing to bite. Their anglers have landed several nice fish recently. On an undisclosed Potomac tributary, an angler reported a successful day on snakeheads, catching fish up to 14 pounds. They took home eight snakeheads and also caught some bass using Tactical Fishing Company drag n pop lures.