Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, April 24 Update:
With travel restrictions still limiting fishing opportunities in many areas, we note that if you’re headed out to fish all the regular regs for the season are still in place and social distancing orders are a go, even if you’re on the water, whether you live in Delaware, Maryland, or Virginia. Don’t forget that our Social Distancing While Fishing page has links to all the different state authority webpages with the latest info and updates on when, where, and how fishing is allowed. With many businesses still closed, we’d also like to give a big thanks to all you readers who sent in reports and pictures. Please keep them coming to lenny@fishtalkmag.com.
White perch are dominating the substance fishery right now, with plenty available throughout the Middle Bay region. Though the fish have mostly departed up-river spawning areas they're now filling in the salt ponds, and Angler-in-Chief Lenny Rudow brought home white perch dinners fishing local salt ponds a couple of times the past week, with over 20 fish in the bucket on one trip. Grass shrimp on a shad dart jiggled two feet under a bobber was the ticket. Contributor Eric Packard fished a salt pond a bit farther south this week and encountered a 28-inch striper. Alltackle in Annapolis reported that anglers are also catching whites at local community piers and docks using bloodworms and grass shrimp on bottom rigs.
The Tackle Box reported that catfishing in the Patuxent is excellent right now. Fishing fresh cut menhaden or chicken liver is the way to get ‘em on your line. On the eastern side, we had a couple reader reports of success on white perch in the Cambridge area, fishing bloodworms on bottom rigs. And while there's no pre-fishing going on, word from the pound netters is of loads of rockfish swimming through the Bay right now.
Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, April 17 Update:
With travel restrictions still limiting fishing opportunities in many areas, we remind you that if you’re headed out to fish all the regular regs for the season are still in place and social distancing orders are a go, even if you’re on the water, whether you live in Delaware, Maryland, or Virginia. Don’t forget that our Social Distancing While Fishing page has links to all the different state authority webpages with the latest info and updates on when, where, and how fishing is allowed. With many businesses still closed, we’d also like to give a big thanks to all you readers who sent in reports and pictures. Please keep them coming to lenny@fishtalkmag.com.
With plenty of white perch in the tribs, multiple reader reports came in this week from upper Patuxent locations between Jug Bay and Davidsonville park, including a confirmation from Angler in Chief Lenny Rudow who reported grass shrimp on bottom rigs were the best bait. Some catfish were mixed into the catch. The Choptank above Cambridge also got a thumbs-up for white perch this week, with one reader reporting a photo-documented full cooler of fatties caught on bloodworms on bottom rigs. Alltackle suggested going after them well equipped with bottom rigs and either grass shrimp or bloodworms. If you’re running low on tackle (we can’t think of a time when we’re not) remember that while most tackle stores in the area might be closed, you can still support local businesses from the comfort of your home, if they support internet sales.
Tailored Tackle reported that crappie are still hanging around Laurel Spillway and will take highlighter and neon shad darts tipped with a small minnow. We also received reader reports from those chasing crappie in many freshwater locations in the Middle Bay area, as they’ve become a favored sustenance fishing target in recent weeks.
Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, April 10 Update:
Hey, anglers! With fishing in many parts of our turf limited to sustenance only, we remind you that if you’re headed out to fish all the regular regs for the season are still in place and social distancing orders are a go, even if you’re on the water, whether you live in Delaware, Maryland, or Virginia. Don’t forget that our Social Distancing While Fishing page has links to all the different state authority webpages with the latest info and updates on when, where, and how fishing is allowed. That said, in light of the current circumstances many of our local, well-loved tackle shops have closed their doors for the time being. Every week since FishTalk’s founding they’ve contributed much of the information for this report, which we’re immensely thankful for. As many of them are shuttered for now, we’d like to thank you readers for the reports you sent in via email this week. You’re all helping us keep the reports going during these unprecedented times, and we hope that they help everyone – especially those who have a real need for harvesting their own dinners – hone in on their fishing plans for the weekend. Again, a big thanks to everyone who’s chimed in, and please send future pictures, reports, and updates to lenny@fishtalkmag.com.
Many anglers across the Bay right now are also encountering good numbers of catfish, caught on cut alewife, chicken livers, and menhaden. Overall, for anglers looking to find dinner while fishing in the tribs from mid-river areas up, this has been the most reliable bite. White perch have also been providing anglers with dinners and are accessible both from shore and by boat, but they’ve also been here-then-gone-again in many spots. They’ve been taking grass shrimp and bloodworms on bottom rigs, when a school can be located. Reader reports of finding them versus hunting around without much luck have been about 50-50. Most of those who have found some fish have been either fairly far up the rivers (the Choptank got a reader report mention this week) or fishing salt ponds that support runs. Angler in Chief Lenny Rudow reports that spending several evenings hitting local salt ponds resulted in just a handful of perch and they really haven’t been “right” yet, in those areas. He also noted that judging by the emails coming in, many anglers have chosen to instead focus on either catfish or freshwater bites for species like crappie and bluegill, which have been more reliable for sustenance anglers.
Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, April 3 Update:
Fellow FishTalkers: We know you’re all rearing to get out of the house and on the water like we are. We live and breathe fishing, and are quite bummed about the limits placed upon being on the water right now. While it’s tough to keep away from the docks and shorelines, we encourage you all to abide by the regulations put in place by Governor Larry Hogan. If you’re a substance angler, remember to abide by social distancing requirements while keeping in mind that all the normal fishing and boating rules and regs are still in effect. With such stringent limits put in place regarding who can be on the water right now, as well as reduced hours and customer contact in most tackle shops, we’d like to forewarn you that the reports are going to be a bit thin this week and probably will remain so until this blows over. We also know there’s been a lot of confusion over exactly what the current regulations are regarding who can and cannot fish. We can’t tell you the regs in this report because they differ by the area and are changing by the day, but visit our Social Distancing While Fishing page, and in the fourth paragraph you’ll find links to the different state and federal agency websites and announcements regarding the legalities.
White perch are your best bet for a fresh fish dinner; Angler in Chief Lenny Rudow reports that last weekend some were being caught in the Western Shore salt ponds that sustain a run, including at Triton, but the bite was very slow. Grass shrimp jiggled on a shad dart under a bobber was the preferred bait. We also received some reader pics of catfish being caught from the Middle Bay tribs this week. Prior to the stay-at-home order there were some reports of shad caught on the Eastern Shore, however, as fishing for them would be catch and release only (and therefore a violation of the substance-only fishing order), we will not be reporting on this fishery for the time being (same goes for stripers).