Maryland Fishing Report – October 16
Theodore Post has his hands full holding this large sheepshead he caught at the Ocean City Inlet. Photo by Courtney Hevner
The mornings show signs of the approaching colder weather, but the daytime air temperatures and sunny weather are delightful. Trout anglers are enjoying the fall stocking of trout, while Chesapeake Bay and coastal anglers are focusing on a variety of fish.
With the fall fishing season well underway, anglers are encouraged to participate in the Department of Natural Resources’ volunteer angler surveys. This is a chance for anglers to directly help with fisheries management. The information you provide assists the Department’s fisheries biologists with collection of important data, including species caught, harvest (fish kept), total catches, and fish released.
Forecast Summary: October 16 – October 22:
Expect moderate, sunny weather to highlight our fishing conditions this week in Maryland’s waters. Expect breezy conditions through Friday – 15-20 knots, with higher gusts – but winds lessening to 10-15 knots for the remainder of the week. Shorter daylight periods and cooler daytime air temperatures have cooled main Bay surface water temperatures to the upper 60s, with rivers running even cooler. Salinity in Maryland’s part of the Bay below the Bay Bridge continues to run fresher than average. Areas above the Bay Bridge are slightly above average.
In most places, expect areas with suitable amounts of oxygen – greater than 3 mg/liter – to extend down to the bottom. The improving oxygen and water temperature conditions will continue to provide anglers with more opportunities to catch fish in shallower waters (along with breaking fish) and the traditional places deeper in the water column such as channel edges, underwater points, hard bottom, and drop-offs.
Expect average water clarity for most of the Maryland portion of the Bay. To see the latest water clarity conditions, check Eyes on the Bay Satellite Maps. Except for the Potomac River, expect average flows for the Susquehanna River and some other Maryland rivers and streams.
There will be above average tidal currents all week as a result of the full moon on October 17.
As always, the best fishing areas could be further refined by intersecting them with underwater points, hard bottom, drop-offs, and large schools of baitfish. For more detailed and up-to-date fishing conditions in your area of the bay, be sure to check out Eyes on the Bay’s Click Before You Cast.
Mark Hanson recently caught this large blue catfish in the lower Susquehanna River. Photo courtesy of Mark Hanson
Anglers at the Conowingo Dam pool continue to see late afternoon and evening power generation releases, but every now and then the power plant will skip a day or two. Anglers are lining up as close as they can and often stand in the water to get that extra edge. Waders are soon going to replace shorts as water temperatures decline. Most anglers are casting medium heavy surf rods with thin braid to make the long casts required to get soft plastic jigs, paddletails, crankbaits, and poppers close to the tailrace.
Striped bass are starting to be more common in the lower Susquehanna as water temperatures cool and the fish feel more comfortable. They can be found near rocks, bridge piers, channel edges and riprap. Anglers are casting a mix of crankbaits, jerkbaits and soft plastic paddletails, and jigs.
Striped bass fishing still tends to be focused in the Patapsco River and Baltimore Harbor this week. Anglers are still live-lining spot along the channel edges, but as spot become less available many are switching to jigging with soft plastics or casting paddletails. The water temperature at the data buoy near the mouth of the Patapsco has dropped from 67 degrees to about 64 degrees in the last few days. In the morning and evening, cast a mix of paddletails, crankbaits and topwater lures along the shores that provide structure in the form of riprap, piers, and old piling fields.
Love Point has been another location that provides striped bass action for those live-lining spot or jigging with soft plastics. Anglers are also having good luck along the channel edges at the mouth of the Chester River when they can detect suspended striped bass. Jigging with soft plastic jigs and paddletails is popular when the fish are deep.
Fishing for a mix of blue catfish and channel catfish in the upper Bay and its tidal rivers remains very good this week. The mouth of the Susquehanna River and the Havre De Grace area generally is one of the best areas to catch the largest blue catfish. Blues as well as channel catfish can be found in every tidal river within the upper Bay. Fresh cut menhaden or gizzard shad are two of the most popular baits, but most any kind of fish or items like chicken liver or chicken breast also work well.
Fishing for white perch in the shallower waters of the tidal rivers and creeks remains good but a change will soon begin. As water temperatures drop to the low 60s and into the 50s, the white perch will move to deeper waters at the mouths of the tidal rivers and out into the Bay. Right now, fishing near structure with bottom rigs baited with grass shrimp or minnows works well. Casting small spinnerbaits, soft plastic jigs and spin-jigs works well along promising looking shorelines during the morning and evening.
Photo by Herb Floyd
Anglers in the middle Bay are focusing on the shallow water fishery for striped bass and slot size red drum. In the last couple of days water temperatures have dropped to about 63 degrees at the NOAA station on the Choptank River in the Cambridge area and 67 degrees out at the Gooses. The exodus of young of the year menhaden from the region’s tidal rivers has not begun in earnest yet, so fishing shallow water is still an angler’s best bet.
Casting poppers and Zara Spooks in the early morning and late evening hours provides a good way to fish over grass and enjoy the explosive surface strikes for which striped bass are known. In waters where grass is not a problem, fishing with paddletails, spin-jigs, crankbaits, and jerkbaits is a good choice. Anglers are reporting the action may last well into the late morning.
The Bay Bridge piers not only attract striped bass but anglers as well. The action is not described as exceptional but worth checking out if you’re in the area. Some are drifting live spot, white perch, eels or cut bait back to the pier bases on the east side of the bridge. Casting soft plastic jigs during the morning and evening hours is always a fun and productive way to fish. A moving tide is essential.
There have been reports of breaking fish near the mouth of Eastern Bay and Poplar Island, but they have turned out to be sub-legal striped bass. Sometimes large striped bass can be found underneath holding close to the bottom. Jigging with soft plastic jigs is usually a good bet and if the smaller fish persist, then it is time to look elsewhere.
October and November is when anglers start to bring umbrella rigs onboard. They are rigged with hookless sassy shads on the umbrella arms with a sassy shad on a bucktail or jig head as a trailer. Some anglers will place hookless spoons on the umbrella arms and a Drone Spoon as a trailer. The edges of the channels will be the place to troll and heavy inline weights will be needed to get the rigs down to where the fish are.
White perch are still holding in their typical summer habitats, but they will not be there for long. Once water temperatures drop below 60 degrees they will start moving to the deeper waters of the tidal rivers and eventually out into the Bay seeking warmer water temperatures down deep. When they go deep, bottom rigs baited with peeler crab, pieces of bloodworms or minnows will be needed. The other option is to jig with a dropper rig that has a sinker or jig as the main weight and small soft plastic jigs above. Anglers need to remember that only two hooks are allowed, so many choose to use a sinker and place two small soft plastic jigs above.
Photo by Travis Long
The large bluefish are still in the lower Bay this week. Anglers are urged to take advantage of this fishery that will not last much longer. Water temperatures are in the upper 60s and the bluefish will soon be heading further down the bay. Trolling has been the most effective way to catch them; they tend to be deep, 25 feet or more along main channel edges. Surgical tube lures and large spoons are good choices to be pulled behind planers to get down to the fish. The channels near the Target Ship and the mouth of the Potomac River are the best places to find them this week. Occasionally the bluefish are reported close to the surface chasing bait and if you’re lucky enough to encounter that situation, casting metal jigs with a wire leader is the way to go. We’re talking about some serious teeth and a large mouth.
The shallow water fishery for a mix of striped bass, puppy drum, speckled trout, and white perch continues to be a fun and exciting way for light-tackle anglers to enjoy some excellent fishing opportunities. The tidal rivers and creeks flowing into the lower Potomac River are excellent places to fish this week. Casting poppers and Zara Spooks during the morning and evening hours offers a lot of fun. Paddletails, crankbaits, and jerkbaits are also good choices for lures.
On the eastern side of the Bay, the cuts through Hoopers Island, Tangier Sound, and Pocomoke Sound offer good fishing for puppy drum and speckled trout and the occasional striped bass. Poppers, Zara Spooks and popping corks with a trailing plastic shrimp are excellent items to work over grass. In deeper waters, paddletails make a good lure choice. Drifting peeler crab baits where the currents prevail is a good way to fish for puppy drum and speckled trout.
Blue catfish are available for anglers who’ll fish for them this week. The Potomac River and several of its tributaries are holding a lot of blue catfish. A simple bottom rig with a sliding egg sinker, an inline small float, and a circle hook is popular when fishing from a boat. Shoreline anglers often use a regular sinker as a sliding sinker to better hold bottom. Any cut bait of chicken parts are popular baits. The Patuxent River from Benedict to Jug Bay and the Nanticoke River near Sharptown are two other good places to fish for blue catfish, and more are showing up in the Wicomico River.
Fishing for white perch remains very good this week in the tidal rivers and creeks near structure or prominent points. Small spinnerbaits, jigs, and spin-jigs are popular lures for casting. Fishing minnows under a bobber is a great way to target larger white perch along deeper shorelines. A mix of spot, small croaker, and kingfish are still being caught at the mouth of the Patuxent River, Tangier Sound, and Pocomoke Sound.
Recreational Crabbing
Recreational crabbing remains good this week and the crowds have diminished. Crabbers report the best results are coming from waters less than 8 feet deep. They are also getting a lot of drop-offs when running a trotline. Those using collapsible crab traps report better catches with a full bushel from most middle and lower Bay locations. In the upper Bay most crabbers are catching a half bushel or more, except in the Chester River where catches are much better.
Jim Gladden caught and released this beautiful smallmouth bass in the upper Potomac recently. Photo courtesy of Jim Gladden
Put-and-take trout anglers are enjoying the fall trout stocking of trout in the put and take areas this week as the fall stocking program completes its first full week. Delayed Harvest management waters and those set aside for blind and youth anglers are also being stocked. To see the latest stockings as they occur, check the trout stocking website, which also has maps where trout are stocked. The results of the recent trout fishing survey and more information concerning this shift in trout rearing can be found on the DNR website.
Fishing for smallmouth bass and walleye is good this week in the upper Potomac. Water flows are good and with water temperatures cooling the walleye and smallmouth bass are active. Casting root beer-colored tubes, small crankbaits that resemble crayfish, and soft plastic swim baits and working them close to the bottom is a good tactic. Current breaks, submerged ledges, and the deeper portions of the river are excellent places to fish.
The Prettyboy and Liberty reservoirs also offer good fishing for smallmouth bass this week along with a mix of largemouth bass and crappie. Liberty Reservoir has a population of landlocked striped bass. Triadelphia Reservoir also has landlocked striped bass and as waters cool this month they can be found in shallower waters. Most experienced anglers slow-troll with deep running crankbaits and jerkbaits along deep edges from kayaks or canoes – outboard motors are prohibited on the reservoir.
Largemouth bass are on the prowl for baitfish and crayfish that are departing from the shallow grass beds as water temperatures decline. Many areas of Maryland had a frost this past week and out in the western region it is now common. All this means that largemouth bass are actively feeding to build up body stores for the coming winter. Targeting the transition areas from the shallow grass beds to deeper waters can be a good tactic for anglers. Casting spinnerbaits, crankbaits that resemble crayfish, jerkbaits, and soft plastic craws in this area can be a good tactic. Structure in the form of sunken wood, fallen treetops, and rocks should not be overlooked. In tidal waters these areas outside grass beds and spatterdock fields are best fished on a falling tide.
During the early morning and evening, casting frogs, buzzbaits, and chatterbaits over or near existing grass beds can also be effective. In tidal areas, Chesapeake Channa can often be part of the mix when casting topwater lures. As water temperatures cool, the Chesapeake Channa will become more lethargic, and often fishing large minnows under a popping cork outside the grass beds will stir some interest. Fishing on the sunny side of the tidal rivers, where the fish will be seeking warmer water, is also a good bet.
Crappie are feeling the urge to school up near deeper structure this week. This is a great time to target them. The Potomac River near the Wilson Bridge is a popular location; the area on the northeast side of the bridge called “the spoils” has all kinds of structure. The marina docks below the bridge and at Fort Washington are also great spots to work around the docks. Fort Washington has a convenient boat ramp. Placing small minnows under a slip bobber is the most popular way to fish.
The waters below the Wilson Bridge and off Fort Washington are also an excellent place to fish for blue catfish. Several Maryland state records have been caught in the deep channels off Fort Washington. This time of the year the shallower channel edges and shelves are a good place to catch blue catfish.
Photo by Monty Hawkins
Surf anglers have been hampered by rough surf conditions, but prevailing northwest winds may improve conditions. Anglers are enjoying the fall run of large red drum in the surf this week. Anglers report that the catch-and-release action is often best on a high ebb tide, and after dark is a great time to get in on the action. Most anglers are using large cut baits of menhaden or mullet. Bluefish can be part of the mix and anglers targeting them often use finger mullet rigs. Casting Gulp baits or soft plastics rigged with a strip of squid is a good way to catch flounder in the surf.
At the inlet, bluefish and striped bass are the target for anglers casting soft plastic jigs or paddletails. Drifting cut bait on an outgoing tide has also been effective for catching bluefish. Fishing for sheepshead has been very good at the South Jetty and various bulkheads and piers near the inlet; sand fleas are a popular bait. Anglers are reminded that the daily catch limit for sheepshead is four per person with a 12-inch minimum.
Northwest winds are making it a bit bouncy in the back bay areas this week and the wind is predicted to switch to northeast by the weekend. Most anglers drifting for flounder are sticking close to the channels leading to the inlet. Water clarity has not been good due to the wind churning up the shallows, so a flood tide near the inlet would offer clearer water conditions.
A few hardy souls went out the inlet for the opening of the black sea bass season; most stuck close to the inshore wreck and reef sites due to the northwest winds. There was plenty of action reported and most anglers put a good catch together despite a lot of throwback fish that didn’t meet the minimum size.
There were fewer reports from the canyons this past weekend due to strong wind conditions. If the wind subsides, anglers may still find dolphin at the lobster pot buoys and some tuna action. Deep drop fishing always seems to put some meat on the boat.
“There is nothing that attracts human nature more powerfully than the sport of tempting the unknown with a fishing line.” Henry Van Dyke, 1899
Maryland Fishing Report is written and compiled by Keith Lockwood, fisheries biologist with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
Click Before You Cast is written by Tidewater Ecosystem Assessment Director Tom Parham.
A reminder to all Maryland anglers, please participate in DNR’s Volunteer Angler Surveys. This allows citizen scientists to contribute valuable data to the monitoring and management of several important fish species.
This report is now available on your Amazon Echo device — just ask Alexa to “open Maryland Fishing Report.”
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