Upper Bay Fishing Reports

Upper Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, January 16 Update:

Early this week we had a report from the Magothy that winds have kept most of the river ice-free so far. Upper arms and creeks have been skimmed and lower portions are skimming nightly but opening up during the day, so finding pickerel and/or perch may be a roll-the-dice possibility. Yellow perch also offer winter opportunities in the Upper Bay tidal tributaries including the Magothy, Gunpowder, and Bush rivers. They will mostly be schooled up in the deeper portions of these tribs where they can be targeted with live minnows or artificial jigs. In February, we should start seeing them push into shallower tidal creeks in preparation for the spring run.

Water temperatures in the Upper Bay have been in the mid to upper 30’s which has any resident striped bass very lethargic and holding close to bottom. Anglers wanting to do some catch and release fishing for them should search along main channel ledges using sidescan and downscan. If/when you locate some fish, drifting while jigging along the bottom may produce bites, or the fish may have lockjaw. It is a toss up in the dead of winter. Any warming trends we see may turn on the bite, but the forecast is calling for extended cold. Hang in there folks, spring is only two months away.

Upper Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, January 9 Update:

It might be time to start getting ice fishing gear ready for yellow perch folks. Old man winter returned with a vengeance this week as most of the Upper Bay region got at least a few inches of snow. Cold and windy conditions have persisted for much of the week which has kept most anglers off the water. Not to mention that boat ramps, marinas, and creeks are freezing up quickly with the sub-freezing temperatures. These factors combine for less-than-ideal fishing conditions. On the bright side, we may get a chance to do some ice fishing on our tidal creeks if the cold weather sticks around. There is already a lot of ice covering coves and creeks in the Upper Bay tribs, but we need it to get at least three inches thick before venturing onto it. If the ice builds up, yellow perch, white perch, and pickerel should be willing to bite, especially on the Magothy River.

Upper Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, January 2 Update:

Happy New Year folks! Let’s make the 2025 fishing season another great one. Pickerel have been biting good in the upper Bay tribs when anglers can access the creeks. The upper Magothy River, Bodkin Creek, Stoney Creek, and Baltimore area creeks are all holding pickerel that will be a reliable target throughout the winter. The recent warmup should keep ice at bay for the moment, but Contributor Eric Packard reported that late last week a venture to Stoney Creek for pickerel was foiled by ice. With the incoming cold, this could become more of a problem in the near future.

Fishing for striped bass has slowed down this week and we didn’t hear of any rockfish reports from the Upper Bay. That is likely due to the windy conditions that have been lingering for much of the week. Many anglers have been heading south below the Bay Bridge recently to chase higher concentrations of migratory fish, but even that bite seems to be slowing down. If you are looking to stay close to home, the Patapsco River is one of the more productive tidal tributaries in the Upper Bay where you can catch striped bass and white perch during the colder months. Water temps are hovering right around 40 degrees, so both species will be hanging out in deeper depths close to bottom. Main ledges and holes in the 40’ to 60’ range will be good areas to search. Small metal blade baits have been very productive, especially for perch, this winter.