Tangier, Pocomoke, and Lower Shore Fishing Report, May 28 Update:
Team FishTalk/PropTalk made a foray to Smith Island this week for multiple days of fishing and when it comes to the speckled trout bite, it was hands-down speck-tacular. The AIC says there were times when it seemed like every other cast a speck between 18” and 21” would smack your five-inch paddle-tail, with white being thoroughly effective. Art Director and resident FishTalk kayak fishing sharpie Zach Ditmars cast a white bucktail trimmed with a four-inch Electric Chicken paddletail, however, and that offering took the (Smith Island) cake. There were plenty of schoolie rockfish (including keepers) in the mix as well. The last of the outgoing tide proved best in areas with six to eight feet of water and the specks wanted their offerings low in the water column and unusually slow and steady, as opposed to the erratic retrieve they often prefer. Fish-crushin’ Kaylie caught the biggest fish of the trip, the group stayed at The Pearl (a VRBO-house/fish-camp with a slip and pier), and they report that it was an utterly epic fishing experience — they definitely recommend checking it out if you want to run your boat to Smith Island and spend a few days speck-hunting in these waters. Disclaimer: getting into the golf cart (the main mode of transportation on the island) with Zach at the wheel after you've been hanging out at Jack and Pickles may result in injury or property damage and should be avoided at all cost!!
Sea Hawk Sport Center echoed all the fishing news above, and noted that flounder are still leaving the water with relative frequency. Bouncing soft plastics on bottom or drifting chunks of bait is working well. Though the FishTalk/PropTalk crew did attempt to find them, they caught only rockfish along the edges of Kedges. We did also have reader reports of a bull red caught near the Honga, and drove past Capt. Walleye Pete as he fished the islands to get a shouted report of specks, more specks, and plenty of rockfish, though by late in the week the wind-riled waters had made finding clean water a challenge.
Tangier, Pocomoke, and Lower Shore Fishing Report, May 21 Update:
To catch speckled trout in the Sounds right now, close your eyes and say this three times fast: speckled trout speckled trout speckled trout. There’s a fair chance you’ll have one on your hook. Okay, while this may sound like pseudoscience that makes astrology seem like truth, one thing is for sure right now: if you’re fishing the shallows in the Sounds, you’re likely going to be reeling in some specks. Sea Hawk reported that the bite took off this week, and plenty of anglers coming in were eager to show off photos of their catches (though we did hear from one reader who fished in the strong breeze the other day and didn't have any luck). Most are abiding by the age-old speck favorites: four to five-inch white and pink paddle tails, retrieved with quick and semi-sharp action. Their numbers aren’t the only impressive thing right now, either — plenty of the specks they saw this week were hefty. There are even more stripers than specks, though, and most anglers are having no problem filling their one-fish limit by accident while hunting for the trout.
Flounder are another hot topic in the sounds. While they aren’t as abundant, we saw more of them in the past few weeks than expected and they’re certainly no rarity right now. Shelfs and drops in the 12- to 20-foot range have been the zone to find ‘em.
Tangier, Pocomoke, and Lower Shore Fishing Report, May 14 Update:
Welcome, speckled trout! This week was a bit tough at times due to the stalled warm-up but we still had enough reports this week to safely say that they’ve begun moving into the Tangier and Pocomoke in solid numbers. The Tangier produced multiple reports over the past week of specks ranging from severely undersized to Facebook-worthy. Almost all of them were caught on four to five inch white, chartreuse, and pink paddle tails. Anglers had success applying moderate to fast action on the retrieve. The specks are up in the shallows along salt islands and marshy shorelines, especially grassy areas that they prefer. Although they’re in now, don’t expect to head out and slam ‘em — more will fill in as the season goes on, but for now, we’re still in the first wave of fish. You can expect, however, that you’ll also have plenty of action from stripers of varying sizes up into the mid-20s, which have been plentiful in the shoal water hotspots.
No word of reds from the Sounds as of yet, but farther down the shore some seriously big bulls have been caught on peeler crab and fresh cut bunker baits set on bottom around shoals and structure. A few blacks have been mixed in, as well. In other news, Sea Hawk reported flounder are around as well, along the drop-offs of the lower shore and as far up as the Tangier. Drifting squid chunks or bouncing white and pink soft plastics on bottom is a great way to get them on board. Most haven’t been large, however, we’re ecstatic to see them.
Far up the rivers, crappie, largemouth bass, white perch, and snakehead are all available. Overall, there’s plenty of action to be had right now and a wide (and growing!) diversity of options to go after.
For those who tried to tune in to Live With Lenny last night we apologize for the technical difficulties, evidently we broke the internets. The show has been rescheduled for next Wednesday evening at 5:00 p.m. when we'll have a striper season update and discuss targeting invasive species like snakeheads and blue cats with David Sikorski from the CCA.
Tangier, Pocomoke, and Lower Shore Fishing Report, May 7 Update:
There was plenty going on in the Sounds this week — Sea Hawk reported that close to the mouths of the Sounds, flounder have moved in! They’re happy to take lures bounced off the bottom, although a couple of anglers who went after them reported catching on drifted squid strips. They caught four before the end of the day, as well as some speckled trout. The specks haven’t moved into the Sounds in huge numbers yet, however, a few early birds are being caught. As usual, soft plastics, twister tails, and Mir-O-Lures were what got ‘em on the hook. One angler also reported a puppy drum, but this is neither confirmed nor photo-verified.
In open waters trollers have been looking for monster stripers north of the state line. A few have found them, but just a few. White tandems have been the top offering here, as with just about everywhere else.
Sea Hawk also reported that snakeheads are being caught far up the rivers, in shallow areas. They’ve been incredibly active this past week and aren’t holding back on feeding. Topwater frogs, buzz baits, and poppers were top lures, while none of the anglers who reported catching were utilizing bait.