Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, November 29, 2019 Update:
The Middle Bay has been hopping with boats this week, with some of opportunities to catch as the bulk of the stripers migrate south. Angler’s let us know that Eastern Bay and the channel on Poplar’s Island's south side have been steady areas, providing action for anglers trolling between 25 and 35 feet. Most boats have switched to using larger baits – six- and nine-inch soft plastics are now common. The traditional chartreuse, white, and pearl BKD’s and Gulp! lures are doing well for jiggers, especially when dressed in skirts. While the aforementioned areas have been hotspots, anglers have been catching along channel edges throughout the area, with the standouts changing from day to day.
Angler in Chief Lenny Rudow reports that it’s easier to find fish in Eastern Bay than it is to get one on the hook, with long periods of inactivity between feeding sprees. He had a tough afternoon there this week, as fish didn’t even think about biting until 3:30 when there wasn’t much daylight left. Stripers in the Choptank have also become tougher to catch though they are still present down south in the mouth, and a foray to the Power Plant produced very slow action. Though a couple late-season specks might add to the excitement, overall the fishing there was slow and difficult, as it seems to have become in most waters north of the Pax.
Speaking of the Pax: The Tackle Box reported that anglers in the Patuxent have been getting into stripers in much better numbers, with plenty on the oyster bars and around the drop-offs. Trolling Half Pone Point to Sheridan Point has been great for anglers keeping their rigs close to the bottom.
The pickerel bite in the tributary rivers has kicked in, with XWraps and #3 Mepps inline spinners doing well. Pickerel have been available to both shoreline and boating anglers throughout the day.
Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, November 22, 2019 Update:
With the striper season wrapping up soon, we’ve still got a few good weekends on open water before winter games begin to the north and west with frozen lakes and sliding between fishing holes. Although the next few weeks may be blustery and cold, the grade of striped bass coming off the channel edges right now is totally worth bundling up for. Anglers Sport Center reported that trollers and jiggers hitting the channel edges are enjoying a healthy population of stripers ranging from not-quite-legal to family dinner (in the upper 20s and occasionally lower 30s). Both tactics are working well, with traditional fall jigging the favored method. Alltackle in Annapolis suggested sticking to the classics: chartreuse, white, and pearl BKD or Gulp! soft plastic lures on half-ounce jig heads. Currently, cruising around with the depth finder on is the best way to locate fish. Trollers are keeping rigs low with inline weights to get in on the best bite near bottom. Pulling bucktails with sassy shads and umbrella rigs has been the most popular and productive choice. A large portion of the catch is still coming from anglers dropping lures under or casting through schools of boiling fish under working birds, but the larger fish have been close to the bottom.
Angler in Chief Lenny Rudow reports that it became a bit tougher to get the fish biting in many Mid-bay areas last week, or at least the quality-sized fish. A foray to the mouth of the Choptank provided plenty of action under birds, but they were mostly dinks. Keeper fish were eventually located off North Beach, but these fish were sitting on bottom and getting them to bite was best described as difficult. White and chartreuse were the best colors. He also said a troller he spoke with did better than the jiggers, catching multiple fish in the upper-20s the same day.
We also had several reader reports of solid success jigging, trolling, and also casting from shore (the Navy station and the fishing pier at Solomons) in the Patuxent. Fish in the upper teens and low 20s are still meandering their way down the river and are also being caught just outside it off Cedar Point. Contributor Eric Packard had a great day this week in the river, deploying pink and white bucktails with paddle-tail plastics on the hook.
Perch have moved away from the shore and found their winter homes in deeper water. Anglers heading out this weekend should consider bringing a few bloodworms along and dropping them on an oyster shell bottom… the perch have been chunky!
Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, November 14, 2019 Update:
Striper fishing in the Middle Bay hasn’t been stunted by the cold, with plenty of opportunities for anglers to embrace in the next few weeks. Alltackle in Annapolis reported that the best bite has been happening for jiggers hitting the channel edges. Bouncing six-inch white, chartreuse, and pearl Gulp! and BKD soft plastics off the bottom has been incredibly productive. Anglers choosing to jig are also getting into larger fish that have been keeping tight to bottom and can be located with a depth finder. Angler in Chief Lenny Rudow reported his best day of the fall bite thus far off North Beach, where fish between 18- and 28-inches were thickly scattered through 22- to 25-feet of water. They weren’t under birds and they were striking jigs bounced along the bottom, but birds were within a few hundred yards. The Choptank has also been producing solid numbers of fish up into the same class. And contributor Eric Packard reported having a 20-plus fish day this week while jigging the Patuxent river channel.
Although plenty of guys are choosing to jig, Anglers Sport Center mentioned that the trolling bite has also been great this fall. Most anglers have been keeping close to channel edges, pulling bucktails, spoons, and hoses. Keeping rigs on the bottom has been important for getting into larger fish. Boats on the water should all be tuned into the horizon – spotting working birds is a quick way to get into schoolies.
Anglers interested in catching white perch should now look to deeper waters. They’ve moved away from the shorelines, and are holding in creeks and the mouths of rivers. Contributor Eric Packard reported while he was striper fishing on the Patuxent this week, boats around him were cleaning house while targeting them.
Crabbing report: Go to the seafood store.
Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, November 8, 2019 Update:
You may have heard this season called, autumn, fall, harvest time, whatever, but let’s be real - on the Chesapeake, the proper way to refer to this period of time is "jigging season". So to reinforce last weeks’ message, break out every bag of soft plastics you can find and get out on the water because the Middle Bay bite is hot. Eastern Bay from Bloody Point south and down at the Choptank have been hotspots for anglers lately. The shipping channel has been hot as well. Alltackle in Annapolis reported that many boats are cruising around with eyes on the depth finder and the horizon, in hopes of spotting fish on the screen or birds that’ll lead them to some action. Larger fish have been on bottom, so dropping six to eight-inch white, chartreuse, or pearl BKD and Gulp! lures under birds has been a good move. Although this is jigging season, a fair number of boats are also choosing to troll the channel edges. Trollers have typically been pulling hoses, bucktails, spoons, and bucktails rigged with sassy shads. Anglers Sport Center stressed the importance of keeping rigs down near bottom where larger fish will be more likely to take them.
Angler in Chief Lenny Rudow reports a solid striper bite for 20-something (and very fat) stripers under birds off Franklin Manor, Deale, and Chesapeake Beach, on six-inch plastics. White and chartreuse were the best colors and even when birds were working, the best catches came by meandering around until fish were spotted on the meter and then jigging the bottom. Birds are also still working off the mouth of the West River, but most of the fish patrolling the area are smaller and many are throwbacks. The mouth of the Choptank also has a better grade of fish, and plenty of bird action.
The shallow water fishery throughout the region continues offer some action, though it hasn’t been exactly red hot. Anglers casting topwater from shore and by boat are doing well in low light with the best bite reported from the Pax.
Meanwhile back in the creeks, the perch seem to have evacuated after this last cold front and headed for deeper waters. They should still be available and willing to bite, but from here on out it’ll be a matter of locating schools in the trib channels or at deep-water structure like the rockpiles at the Bay Bridge.
Middle Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, November 1, 2019 Update:
Fall is hitting late, but it’s finally here, and that means light tackle striper jigging season on the Chesapeake is kicking into high gear. Make sure you’re stocked up on plenty of the classic soft plastics before hitting the water this weekend. Of course, that means cleaning out your local tackle shop of pearl and chartreuse Gulp! and BKDs and grabbing some skirts to pair them with. Alltackle in Annapolis let us know that the jigging bite along the channel edges is scattered and widespread. They also assured us that although most boats have been cruising for a bit before getting into a school, larger numbers of keepers are coming in than in past weeks. This is a welcome change from the schoolie-dominated fishery that had us bringing plenty of fish to the surface the past few weeks, but with little reward on the dinner table. Alltackle also mentioned that shoreline anglers have been enjoying a solid bite along the banks of the tributaries. Although it hasn’t been producing high-grade fish, casting topwater in the mornings and late evening is providing steady action and it’s always exciting to watch a striper strike topwater. Angler’s confirmed that the jigging bite is hot, but suggested that those who’d like to cover more ground switch to trolling, which has been fairly successful. Most of the larger fish have been on bottom, so they recommend weighing your spoons, bucktails, tandems, and hoses down to get them close to the prime catch.
Angler in Chief Lenny Rudow checked in to let us know that in the mouth of the South and West Rivers and Eastern Bay there are a lot of pods of stripers between 14- and 22-inches constantly popping up and down. Bird action usually lasts just a moment or two, and the trick is to get into the area quickly then use your meter to locate the fish. Nine out of 10 come from jigs worked on bottom shortly after the birds break up, though occasionally you’ll get there before the fish sound and catch ‘em up top. White has been a stand-out color, as well as white... and also white.
The Tackle Box reported shallow-water trollers doing well in the Patuxent, which has also been great areas for lure casters working structure. Contributor Eric Packard reminds us to keep a lookout on the horizon for working birds. He found jigging under them is still proving to provide quick action this week at the mouth of the Pax, though it’s mostly throwbacks with limited keeper catches mixed in.
The shoreline bite remains fair for anglers targeting white perch with blood worms and a bottom rig. We highly suggest going after white perch using this method rather than topwater plugs, which we had a report of an angler doing this week. We aren’t sure what inspired this, but if you’ve ever had a white perch hit your Badonk-A-Donk, we’d love to hear about it. Regardless, make sure to hit up your perch spot before they head out for the winter.