Tangier and Lower Shore Fishing Reports

Tangier, Pocomoke, and Lower Shore Fishing Report, March 28 Update: 

More fishing opportunities are arising as springs arrival is putting things into motion. C.L. Marshall of Tangier Sound Charters was out on the Pocomoke this week with Scott Lenox from Fish In OC and they put around a dozen nice size white perch in the cooler and released another 15. They also caught a 15-pound blue cat. The white perch run on the shore is in full swing and the fish are pushing up the tributaries. The Nanticoke and Pocomoke have been very productive recently. Also in the Pocomoke, the crappie action hasn’t skipped a beat with anglers continuing to put eater size fish on their stringers. Minnows are still working best with both trolling and fishing them under bobbers producing bites. Sea Hawk Sports Center also says that two-inch curly tail jigs trolled along channel edges is working well. The back half of the outgoing tide has seen the most action in depths of four to 10 feet of water.

Flounder action is slowly picking up and most of the action is still south along the Delmarva coast. A few more catches out of Chincoteague and Wachapreague have rolled in, nothing stellar, but a few fish here and there. Two anglers fishing with Captain Tim Walsh to the south of Chincoteague boxed a few nice flounder that included a 17, 22, and 24-inch fish. Other reports show a few keepers and some shorts for successful anglers. The outgoing tide will be best this time of year as water is warmed in the shallow bays. The warm water often triggers the flounder to feed more aggressively than when the colder ocean water is being brought in with an incoming tide. Minnows, shiners, squid strips, bucktails, and Gulp! baits are all popular options to put on double dropper rigs and bounce bottom for the flatties. Warmer weather will continue to bring in flounder from the ocean and we should start to see these fish show up around Ocean City in the coming weeks. Along the beaches, the first reported black drum was caught this week by an angler fishing in Chincoteague. This is just the start of the drum run and we should see increasing numbers of black drum running in the surf from Virginia Beach up to Delaware through April and May. Sand fleas and crab baits are excellent choices when targeting drum in the surf.

Tangier, Pocomoke, and Lower Shore Fishing Report, March 21 Update: 

While yellow perch spawning runs are winding down, the white perch are really starting to kick into gear on the Eastern Shore tidal tributaries. Captain Kenny Spicer has been enjoying excellent action on the Nanticoke River this week. He was out during the later half of the week and reported a hot and heavy white perch bite using blood worms and bottom rigs. He said the bite was slow until the outgoing tide got going, then it was fast action. He and his anglers caught white perch up to 13” with a lot of 10” fish in the mix. They also caught nine striped bass and one five-pound catfish. Kenny says that if you have a boat and can get out on the river, you can enjoy some of the best white perch fishing of the year. Most fish have been holding in depths of six to eight feet. He has also been fishing the Delaware millponds around Laurel and says the bass bite has been a grind, but he has been rewarded with some big fish up to six pounds. A black and blue jig has been working well to entice the pre-spawn big girls. The millponds around Salisbury will be a great option for pickerel fishing over the next few weeks. The fish are approaching their spawn and are very aggressive this time of year. Jerkbaits, spinnes, and chatterbaits should all be effective lure choices. Down on the Pocomoke River, the crappie bite has remained steady with minnows proving to be the most effective. Slow trolling them or fishing them under a bobber have both been reliable tactics.

Tangier, Pocomoke, and Lower Shore Fishing Report, March 14 Update: 

The first flounder of the season has been caught! Sea Hawk Sports Center reported that they got the first confirmed report of a flounder behind the Virginia barrier islands this week. Captain Matt Abell reported the catch, and it was a 24”, five-pound fish that was caught on a Sea Hawk flounder rig. This is the start of the exciting return of one of the most prized fish along the coast. More fish will continue to move inshore in the coming weeks, starting along the southern barrier islands and making their way north from Wachapreague, to Chincoteague, and eventually Ocean City. The flatties aren’t the only fish to get excited for as black drum will also start to make an appearance along the beaches in April. Time to start dusting off the fishing gear if you haven’t already.

Warming trends this month should get red drum more active, and we already have good reports from the Virginia Beach area. Locations along the southern Eastern Shore of Virginia may start to see these fish show up soon. Fisherman’s Island would be a good place to search for schools of drum across the shallow flats around the island. As spring progresses, these fish will slowly make their way north. Until then, anglers can continue to enjoy the excellent fishery that the Pocomoke River provides. The action didn’t slow down this week and the crappie fishing has been great. Captain C.L. Marshall of Tangier Sound Charters checked in and said that he ventured up the Wicomico earlier this week looking for perch. He did find some white perch willing to bite, but said fishing was on the slower side. That bite should only get better in the coming weeks.

Tangier, Pocomoke, and Lower Shore Fishing Report, March 7 Update: 

Warmer weather has made it more enjoyable to get out and chase the most popular Pocomoke Panfish. The crew from Sea Hawk Sports Center had plenty of crappie action this past week on the Pocomoke River. Dropshot rigs tipped with live minnows did the trick to get bites and put fish on the stringer. They mentioned that the fish were tight to bottom instead of suspended in the water column. They also caught a few yellow perch, pickerel, and a good number of largemouth bass. The recent warming trend seems to have kicked the white perch into gear too and Sea Hawk is reporting that the Wicomico and Nanticoke are providing action this week. Anglers are finding the best success using bottom rigs baited with bloodworms. The lower Eastern Shore tidal rivers also have plenty of blue catfish to target, especially the Nanticoke, but all of them can offer some catfish pullage.

As spring is on the way, we have a few bites to look forward to. A popular one that will be here soon is the black drum run. The brutes can start showing up in the Tangier and Pocomoke sounds as early as late March, but April is typically when they arrive. The big fish, sometimes upwards of 50 pounds, can be caught near wrecks, reefs, and shoal sites. They tend to take a liking for soft crab. The black drum will also offer a good run along the coastal beaches where surf anglers will flock to cast their lines throughout April and May. Sand fleas and crab baits work well and by mid-April, anglers should be able to dig in the sand and find enough fleas to use as bait for their outing.