October Northern Chesapeake and Delaware Fishing Report 10/27/2017:
Herb’s Bait and Tackle reports that the bite from last week is still hot on the Flats. Most anglers have been taking advantage of a productive sunset bite, and those with schedules permitting have been enjoying an equally productive sunrise. Rockfish have continued to hit steadily, as have largemouth bass and for anglers soaking bait, catfish. Most anglers fishing on the Flats are getting a mixed bag of these species, depending on the tactic they’ve been using. Topwater is becoming increasingly popular with the seasonal change, and Captain Bones reports that many rockfish have been in the 20 to 26 inch class for anglers who are casting topwater. They also mentioned that a few anglers are still trolling and vertical jigging in deeper areas, however these tactics seem to have produced less and less fish in the past few weeks. Captain Bones also had the same report that those who are soaking bait are getting large numbers of sizable catfish. Cats are also willing to bite in the canal, and while we're all sure perch are available, the bites for these other species have been good enough that most anglers aren't focused on perch at the moment so reports on them haven't been flowing in.
Anglers fishing small jigs and minnow up in the fresher reaches of most of the tidal rivers are finding plenty of crappie. Like many other species this one is feeding hard to fatten up for winter and they can be found around structure and deadfall, fished with a bobber and the offering three to four feet down. Shad darts or marabou jigs tipped with a small bull minnow are tough to beat.
October Northern Chesapeake and Delaware Fishing Report 10/20/2017:
With cooler weather starting to take hold across the Delmarva region, Herb’s reports that rockfish have moved into their fall feeding patterns. Many have come up out of rivers, and began to school on the flats. Where as there’s been a fairly consistent jigging and trolling bite in past weeks, anglers fishing this week have found more success throwing topwater lures. Captain Bones adds that although some larger fish are still residing in deeper waters, many 16 to 25 inch rockfish have been up top hitting bait on the flats. They suggested keeping a half-ounce jig head and some soft plastics on the boat not only to toss at fish up top, but to jig for big ones on bottom. The early morning and late at night have been the most productive feeding times, however the tide change was also mentioned as a key time.
In addition to the rock fishing, bass fishing, which has been good on the flats and in the northern Upper Bay rivers, has become even better. During the summer, there was a relatively brief window of time to catch the bass before they became inactive, however this window has widened. It's now well past just very early morning cool waters, and very late evening cool waters. Into much of the day the bass have been apt to hit little topwater plugs, as well as flies and soft plastics shaped like crawfish. Mossy Creek Fly Fishing also reported a decent largemouth bass bite in the Conowingo Dam Pool.
Mixed in with the bass and rockfish catch anglers have been reporting been a fairly large number of catfish. As usual, they're swallowing pretty much anything left on bottom. To target them, cut bait ranging from a slice of cut bunker to a night crawler will get them on the end of your line.
Perch are still in rivers, however, we heard far fewer reports than in past weeks of their presence, possibly because of a decline in the catch, and possibly because of all the excitement over decent rock fishing.
October Northern Chesapeake and Delaware Fishing Report 10/12/2017:
Windy weather and tough conditions have kept a lot of anglers off the water this week. That being said, Herb’s Tackle Shop reported that although not many anglers got out in the past few days, those who did were doing fairly well jigging and casting topwater on the Susquehanna Flats. Fish have been smaller, but the report was better than last week, when fewer fish were being caught. We are hopeful that as we continue to move into the fall season, baitfish will move out of rivers and into the Bay itself, allowing for a hot fall season. Most anglers in this area who wanted to target stripers this week have been traveling down south to fish Upper Bay areas like Podickory Point, Snake Reef, and Love Point.
Bass fishing continues to be good on the flats and in the Conowingo Dam Pool, particularly around structure. As the day goes on, bass can oftentimes be found in deeper water. The most productive times to go out and catch largemouth bass has been early in the morning and at dusk. Most of the bass are being caught on Bombers, Senko lures, and small soft plastic worms. Anglers casting cut bait on bottom have been encountering plenty of catfish in the Conowingo Pool, too.
Perch fishing has been great this week, and they are packed tightly into most northern rivers. Captain Bones reports that the Delaware sections of the Nanticoke are holding plenty of crappie right now.
October Northern Chesapeake and Delaware Fishing Report 10/6/2017:
Herbs Bait and Tackle reports that striper fishing has slowed down as the weather has continued to change this week, and fewer anglers are coming home with rockfish. The anglers who have been catching them have been heading to the flats, and casting topwater or jigging. Most of the fish reported to Captain Bone’s and to Herb’s have been fairly small. Despite this, we’re hopeful that as the weather cools down we’ll still see a run of bigger striped bass up north. And although rockfishing has dropped off, bass fishing has become a hot topic in most northern tackle shops. Herb’s reports that bass have been active later in the day than in previous weeks, especially during morning hours. Bass are still typically hanging around structure, however some have been venturing into deeper water as the day goes on. The most popular tackle to catch the bass has been little plastic Senko lures, night crawlers, and small Bombers.
Perch are also being caught in the northern creeks and rivers, as well as in the C & D Canal. Grass shrimp and bloodworm on bottom rigs has been the best way to get them in deep water, and casting Beetle-Spins to structure is working well in shallower areas.
Flow from the Susquehanna has been down recently, which has made fishing bottom for catfish a bit easier. Cut baits cast into holes will do the trick for the cats.
Captain Bones had an exciting report for crappie and perch in the Nanticoke, where both species have been abundant. Little grass shrimp has been the best way to get them biting. They’ve been fairly spread out in the river, with no specific hot-spots where fish have been schooling. Local ponds have become a good bet for anglers casting for bass and crappie, as weeds die off and fishing becomes a bit easier.