Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, 11/30/18 Update:
The lower bay, despite the harsher temperatures that we’ve come to accept as a reality of this approaching winter, has been crazy good for the amount and size of stripers compared to what we’ve got left in the northern areas of the Chesapeake Bay. There is some word of fish off the mouth of the Pax but birds in the lower Potomac and from Point Lookout south in the mainstem have been way more active then to the north, and gannets are around in these areas. Trolling is your best bet at finding the fish, with umbrella rigs with chartreuse shads causing fish to chomp on what may cross their path. Sinking those sassy shads with inline weights has also been paying dividends for the fleet around the Lower Bay region.
Jigging has been good as well, up to a point. The Eastern side, near the shipping channels, has a few buoys (like 72A) marking areas that are worth the trip. At times fishing has been slow with just a handful of bites for the day but at others the fish are chewing with abandon, and a fair number of stripers in the 30-inch-plus range have been boated by jiggers recently. Chartreuse and white remain effective colors and don’t forget to bring along some fairly heavy (1.5-ounce-plus) skirted jig heads to present large profile baits down deep when you see those arches on the meter.
White perch have moved deep into channels and holes, and have been present in the lower Patuxent (try fishing near the bridge pilings on the south side of the river where the bottom drops off).
Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, 11/22/18 Update:
Happy Thanksgiving, anglers! The Lower Bay bite has been notably better than the Upper Bay and Middle Bay for stripers recently, with the one consistent theme being that trollers have been doing the best. Anglers have been putting out weighted umbrella rigs with chartreuse and pink shads, Spoonbrellas, and white bucktails bounced along bottom, all of which have been excellent bets throughout the Bay for the larger stripers in the region. Getting some offerings down deep has been key; watch your meter to spot the depth the fish are holding at and don’t be surprised if they’re 25 feet down or even deeper. Outside the Patuxent has been a good spot to troll, but in and just outside the mouth of the Potomac has been even better. The ledges off St. George’s Island are another spot to hit and anglers farther up the river have also been catching a few stripers near the 301 bridge. Chummers working the drop-offs of the lower Potomac are still reporting some success, too, but few people continue slinging bait at this point in the season.
Many light tackle anglers have been having a bit of a tougher time snagging keepers but certainly have a leg up on anglers to the north. Looking for birds, including gannets, has been key, as has been presenting your jigs at the exact depths you see fish suspended on the meter. Also key is ignoring the schools of small fish that have been on the surface, and going deep or looking down-current of the breaking fish to find the larger stripers. You can’t expect to find big numbers of very big fish around right now, but some in the 35 to 38 inch class did show up in the past week.
If the perch are more your thing, keep in mind that they’ve switched over to deeper waters for the season and most have shifted to depths of 30 feet or more. Getting them to bite with tandem bottom rigs with bloodworm, tandems with dropper flies, and weighted Perch Pounders, are all ways to grab a few perch.
Meanwhile, in the Crazy Catch of Note category, check out this MONSTER red drum encountered by a lucky angler on Walleye Pete's boat (Four Seasons Guide Service) last weekend - this hold-over (which smacked a chartreuse BKD on a skirted Hardhead Custom Bait) was a shocker!
Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, 11/16/18 Update:
Well, it’s been a good run in the Lower Bay recently and the bite has remained largely the same. Trollers have been doing best. Anglers have been putting out umbrella rigs with chartreuse and pink shads, Spoonbrellas, and white bucktails bounced along bottom, all of which have been excellent bets throughout the Bay for the larger stripers in the region. The Patuxent has been a great spot to troll, just outside the mouth, and there are good numbers of fish in the lower Potomac. The ledges off St. George’s Island are another spot to hit and anglers farther up the river have been catching a few near the 301 bridge. If you can, get your spread down deep and use your fish finder at all times; the schools have been acting erratic to the point that the birds don’t seem to know where to go, and they haven’t been providing a reliable indication of fish location.
Chummers working the drop-offs of the lower Potomac are still reporting some success, but trolling does seem a better bet these days. Many light tackle anglers have been having a bit of a tougher time, with the lack of reliable bird action on decent fish and a slowing (though still somewhat productive) bite in the southern tribs along shorelines and docks. Topwater has given way to sub-surface action for the most part, in these areas.
If the perch are more your thing, keep in mind that they’ve switched over to deeper waters for the season and most have shifted to depths of 20 feet or more. Getting them to bite with tandem bottom rigs, dropper flies, weighted perch pounders, and bloodworms are all ways to grab a few perch.
Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, 11/9/18 Update:
The lower Potomac is still a great spot to set up a chum slick at this time of year, with many of the bass stocking up for the winter run. It won’t be long until the temps negate the effect the chum may have, but don’t rule out this potent option while it’s still here. Many legal striped bass will show up this way, so let those circle hooks/bunker strips relax on the bottom and work their magic. Lower sections of the Potomac including St. George’s and the mouth of the Wicomico, and off Point Lookout, have been prime areas.
Trolling, as you’ve probably heard by now, is a top bet in the Bay right now. Anglers have been putting out umbrella rigs with chartreuse and pink shads to the unsuspecting stripers with ease. And if that isn’t enough, skipping bucktails off the bottom will ensure you’re covering the bottom of the water column. The white bucktails will be your best bet at the larger stripers at the moment as larger rockfish seem to be holding down a bit deeper to search for food. The Patuxent has been a great spot to troll just outside the mouth. If you can, get your spread down deep. Use your fish finder at all times, since the schools have been erratic to the point that it seems like even the birds don’t know where to go.
Speaking of birds, the Lower Bay has been one of the few places to still see working birds as anglers in the Upper and Middle Bay have been dealing with the frustration of watching flocks of birds rise, scan, and sit, or perhaps work for a few moments over very small throwback fish to no avail.
If the perch are more your thing, keep in mind that they’ve switched over to deeper waters for the time being. Yes, they’re still going to be around piers and structures within the rivers, but many of the perch have shifted to depths of 15 or more feet. Getting them to bite with tandem bottom rigs, dropper flies, weighted Perch Pounders, and bloodworms are all ways to grab a few.
The rockfish are out and about, even if the warm air and warm waters are receding, while the remaining blues have become fewer and farther between. Trolling in the deeper parts of the Bay with small umbrellas, spoons, and dark hoses has been picking off the fish but the larger stripers are still hit or miss. Channel edges (especially in depths of 25-plus feet with drops to deeper water) are the place to be when looking for them. Chumming has also remained effective, particularly out by the mouth of the Potomac and around St. Georges Island.
Breaking fish are out and about too, with birds being the omniscient telltale sign and running-and-gunning producing some fish, but often the birds have been marking schools of sub-legal fish. As bait floods the Bay from the rivers the bird action should continue to pick up and will be the key to finding where they are and where they’re heading. Chuck your light tackle lure of choice over the school to press your luck, or off the side by 30 feet to maybe find that lunkering cow. What about finding big fish in skinny water? Like the other areas of the Bay, this past week we heard mixed reviews with some anglers finding mostly 20s and an occasional 30-plus fish smacking plugs, but almost always in the pre-dawn or early morning light. The lower reaches of the St. Mary’s and the Patuxent seem to be holding some keepers.
One final option, anglers headed up the Potomac have been discovering a strong catfish bite clear down past the 301 bridge, and sometimes in areas that are also holding stripers. Plenty have been mixed into the catch for chummers who have some baits set on bottom.