This coming Saturday, April 21, is a big day for those who dream of catching a trophy striped bass. More than a few anglers will spend the night before checking alarm clocks just to find themselves waking up a half-hour before the alarm is set to go off anyhow. Weather is predicted to be a Read the Rest…
Cold nights and chilly days have prevailed far too long in the past couple of weeks, but change is on the way, with air temperatures of 80 degrees promised for the weekend. We are a little more than a week away from the opening day of the trophy striped bass season and it would be Read the Rest…
It continues to be a chilly spring and there seems to be no immediate end to it. We’re a week into April and water temperatures are considerably lower than usual — in the mid-40s in the tidal rivers and bay. By comparison, last April 5, the bay was just about 50 degrees and the tidal Read the Rest…
It’s safe to say that more than a few trout fishermen will spend a restless Friday night glancing at their alarm clocks. Opening Day holds all the promise and anticipation one can imagine, like something out of our youthful fantasies. A carnival-type atmosphere will greet most anglers as they arrive at the more popular and Read the Rest…
Most everyone in the fishing community has heard the news by now: an iconic figure has passed to what he referred to his “spirit spring.” The world will not be the same without Lefty Kreh, the Maryland hometown boy who shook up the fly-fishing world like nobody else ever has or possibly ever will. Lefty Read the Rest…
We are less than a week from the official first day of spring, and the recent switch to daylight saving time gives us an extra hour of daylight to enjoy some fishing after school or work. Daffodils are blooming and so are the fishing prospects. There is plenty of fun trout fishing to be had, Read the Rest…
Most everyone has some observations they consider harbingers of spring. It could be as simple as crocus or daffodils popping up in the yard, geese flying north or even the sound of spring peepers in a nontidal wetland, singing the evening away. For many anglers spring means fishing for yellow perch and white perch as Read the Rest…
Maryland started off 2018 with a deep freeze, and it remains to be seen what old man winter has in store for us in the next month. But as long as temperatures remain relatively moderate, there are all kinds of fishing adventures out there from the Atlantic Ocean to Mountain Maryland. Anglers in the tidal Read the Rest…
All Hands on Deck for Bay Restoration Happy New Year! At the end of 2017, I reflected on the progress that we’ve made protecting and restoring our most precious natural resource and treasure, the Chesapeake Bay. Now entering 2018, I want to focus on partnerships and opportunities we have to build on in the coming Read the Rest…
Joint Department, University Team Develops Nutrient Monitoring Plan The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (UMCES) and Maryland Department of Natural Resources have been named one of five winners of a $10,000 Stage 1 Prize in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s national Nutrient Sensor Action Challenge. UMCES and Maryland Department of Natural Resources worked Read the Rest…
This fishing report will close out 2017, but there are plenty of fishing opportunities for all regions of Maryland through the winter. The preseason stocking of trout has begun and will pick up pace in January and February. Yellow perch are moving into the upper reaches of the tidal rivers while crappie, chain pickerel, catfish Read the Rest…
Winter’s grasp on the Maryland landscape is steadily getting tighter and windows of mild weather are becoming less frequent. This week high winds could make for a tough time on open water. If you do go out, be careful and wear your life jacket. Trolling along deep channel edges in the upper Chesapeake Bay region Read the Rest…
The striped bass fishing community always anticipates the possible appearance of large fall migrant striped bass in our portion of the Chesapeake Bay. The fall migration was late this year, but the first confirmed report came in over the weekend — so there is hope for anglers wishing to catch a trophy-sized striped bass before Read the Rest…
Water temperatures in Maryland continue to drop as the weather turns colder. In many areas, fish are seeking out warmer temperatures found in deeper waters. The tidal rivers of the Chesapeake Bay are seeing surface water temperatures in the mid-40s while the bay itself is around 50 degrees. The upper bay region has been providing Read the Rest…
Cold weekend temperatures have descended on just about every location in Maryland, putting an end to any summer plants and many of those pesky insects that were lingering into November. Cold weather is also pushing freshwater and saltwater fishing closer to a winter pattern. This is a time of great transition and great opportunity for Read the Rest…
The fall colors are in full swing throughout much of Maryland this week, offering some added delight to fishing experiences; the leaves won’t last much longer so don’t miss out. Meanwhile, many of the best fishing opportunities are occurring this month, as fish feel the need to feed and prepare for the winter.
The fall months offer some exciting fishing opportunities for anglers across Maryland, from the trout management waters of Garrett County to the shores of Ocean City. Daylight is getting sparser and this weekend the clocks fall back an hour, making it a little harder to get some fishing time after work and school. We’re all Read the Rest…
Maryland’s Water Quality Monitoring Data Indicates Second Best Year on Record Dissolved oxygen conditions in Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay mainstem were much better than average this summer, according to Maryland Department of Natural Resources. The results show that 2017 had the second-smallest Chesapeake Bay hypoxic volume (dissolved oxygen concentrations below two milligrams per liter) since 1985, for the regions and times Read the Rest…
It seems hard to believe but the month of October is slipping away and November is just around the corner. Temperatures continue to be somewhat mild, and it is a wonderful time to take the young ones out fishing after school or on the weekends. The fall trout stocking program for October is almost over; these put-and-take Read the Rest…
The much anticipated annual striped bass young of the year survey results have been released and they are positive. The number of two-year-old striped bass that are being encountered in all three regions of the bay also bode well for the future of striped bass fishing in the Chesapeake Bay. At present the two- and Read the Rest…
The recent cold evenings this week are beginning to have an effect on water temperatures in the Chesapeake Bay and tidal rivers. Bay surface water temperatures are down to about 70 degrees Fahrenheit and the tidal rivers are in the mid to upper 60s. As a result, the upper bay region striped bass fisheries are Read the Rest…
The heat and humidity hanging over Maryland continues to hold a grip on us, but it won’t be long before fall is here to stay. The striped bass fishing in the upper bay remains rather stable this week due to warm weather keeping water temperatures in the mid-70s. However, at some point in early October Read the Rest…
Many would agree we are entering one of the most beautiful times of the year in Maryland. Mornings are cool and daytime temperatures are inviting for outdoor activities. Where I live crops are being harvested, wildlife is on the move, bait in the tidal rivers is beginning to feel the urge to move out into Read the Rest…
After being away for two weeks, I’m struck by the changes that are occurring as we drift out of the grasp of summer. We all need to thank Erik Zlokovitz for doing such a great job covering the fishing report and keeping you informed of our fishing opportunities in Maryland while I was away.
Dissolved oxygen conditions in a portion of Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay mainstem were better than average for late August, reports the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. The hypoxic water volume (areas with less than 2 mg/l oxygen) in the study area was 0.33 cubic miles, which is much smaller than the late August 1985-2016 average of 0.80 cubic miles for that reduced Read the Rest…
This is Erik Zlokovitz filling in once again for Keith Lockwood on the weekly fishing report. The big weather story this week is Hurricane Irma, which is making landfall in the Lesser Antilles region of the Caribbean islands. The storm made landfall as a Category 5 on the Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Scale, making it the most Read the Rest…
As the summer vacation time for kids begins to approach the end, I could not help but notice many of them are enjoying more simple things to do with the week or so left before they go back to school. Summer camps and other organized types of children’s activities are winding down, or already over Read the Rest…
Dissolved oxygen conditions in Maryland’s portion of the Chesapeake Bay mainstem were much better than average for early August, reports the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. The hypoxic water volume (areas with less than 2 mg/l oxygen) was 0.91 cubic miles, which is much smaller than the early August 1985-2016 average of 1.31 cubic miles. Read the Rest…
Although the waters of the lower Susquehanna River and Flats area are still showing some stained water, it is a big improvement from last week’s conditions. Slowly the early morning striped bass bite at the dam pool is improving. Around the edges of the Susquehanna Flats, the early morning topwater action has been a mix Read the Rest…