Maryland Fishing Reports sponsored by Solomon's Charter Captain's Association and Tri State Marine.
Serious anglers love this time of year since there is little competition from pleasure boats for prime spots. Even so, many anglers are seeing less rockfish which indicates that fish are in transition. The rockfish have been in small tight schools but there still out there for the taking. Also, as the water temperatures continue to drop the big fish are moving into tributaries to intercept schools of spot, perch, and silversides. In the lower Bay there is definitely good spot action. As for the middle and upper Bay, there are still plenty of stripers left ranging between 12 and 16 inches.
(Photo: Courtesy of Captain Sonney Forrest.)
Tournament & Events:
Pasadena Sportfishing Group
Meeting on Monday, October 8th at Earleigh Heights Volunteer Fire Company, 161 Ritchie Highway in Severna Park. The guest speaker will be Tom Hughes; he will discuss 'Light Tackle Casting & Trolling the Upper Chesapeake Bay'. Prize Table with fishing equipment, special kid’s drawings, door prizes and a 50/50 drawing. Meeting begins at 7:30 p.m. Doors open at 6:00 p.m. with food and beverages available. Meetings are open to the public and are free. BRING A FRIEND!
The Chesapeake Bay Fall Classic
20th Annual MSSA Fall Rockfish Tournament
November 17 & 18, 2012
2011 marked the best year in the tournaments long history with 250 boats and a payout in cash and prizes of $93,000.
2012 is looking to be even better with our neighboring states looking to come in and compete against us. Let’s not lose our tournament to Virginia or Delaware or New Jersey!
2011 Top Payouts (Total paid out over $93,000)
Andrew Turner – $43,225 – 42.45 lbs
Steve Dodson – $21,875 – 51.65 lbs
John Patchett – $15,410 – 41.5 lbs
Doug Scott – $8,100 – 41 lbs
How To Register:
ONLINE
Call: MSSA at 410-255-5535
Mail: 8461 Ft. Smallwood Rd., Suite C, Pasadena, MD 21122
Attend one/all of the four Captains meetings
CAPTAINS MEETINGS – (all meetings 6-8pm)
All Captains Meetings will have food and drink available. You may also register for the tournament at these meetings, OR, pick up your Captains Packet if you registered online. Door prizes will be at all meetings courtesy of Alltackle.
November 12th – BOE Marine – Kent Island
November 13th – Commodore Hall – Essex
November 14th – Alltackle – Annapolis
November 15th – Solomons Pier Restaurant – Solomons Island
FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT MSSA Online OR CALL 410-255-5535
Chesapeake Bay Fishing Reports:
LOWER CHESAPEAKE BAY AREA – Good spot action just outside the Lesner Bridge, while flounder and speckled trout action has been fair to good, inside the inlet, with best results coming on the incoming tide. Good spot action is also available at the M&M Crossing, Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel and Twin Stakes. Along the Bay Bridge Tunnel, nighttime anglers are finding increasing numbers of grey trout, while daytime anglers report good catches of tautog. Anglers fishing topwater baits around the Fourth Island are taking good numbers of school stripers, and bluefish to five pounds. Spanish mackerel are again showing off Cape Henry. Speckled trout and puppy drum are "just about everywhere" inside Lynnhaven Inlet, with some of the best action coming along the "Ditch". Nighttime anglers are finding speckled trout in front of the Duck-In Restaurant, around high tide. Around the Chesapeake Light Tower/Artificial Reef area, chopper blues to 15 pounds, and large Spanish mackerel are hitting deeply trolled spoons. A few amberjack continue to linger around this structure also. Bottom fishing with peeler crab is producing some of the best fishing of the year in the Severn River, lower York River and Mobjack Bay. Grey trout, spot and flounder are providing excellent action.
| Captain Sonney Forrest reports that he has been busy working on the Reel Relief getting it ready for the best fishing in the fall. “This is when the Spanish leave and we have the schooling Stripers and Bluefish action. We can cast to them or jig them up with metal. Both ways are great action. The mornings depending on the winds have fish near the shore line and some up to 24 inches now. Yes we catch small ones also while trying to catch big Stripers but that is fishing. Friday we tried an AM trip and found fish at Cedar Point in good numbers. Because of so many weekend boats we jigged our fish for about three hours before the fish went down with a changing tide. Trolling was better for some boats but the crazy patterns left no room to move on the fish. So we got in the middle of the school and worked up our catch. On Saturday we tried a few locations on the structure but wanted more action, so back to the Point. Where we did well again until about 10 am and it was over. The Blues are heavy hitters and running about 3 pounds or more. Many of the Stripers are just undersize at 17 inches but lots of them. What this next cold snap will do to those fish is anyone’s guess. The Blues may head south and that leaves us with trolling to fish the Stripers. There are many fish across the Bay; down the Bay there are more schools showing up when they come up to feed. There are Trout caught jigging under those breaking schools, so jigging with a little finesse is called for here. Those Trout have soft mouths and you will pull the hook out easy. No Flounder to speak of yet, but the Perch are still biting. Red drum are getting bigger and some are at 18 inches and keeper.” |
| Captain Tom Hughes reports that there are still plenty of striped bass in the middle and upper Bay. The average striper ranges between 12 and 16 inches and are a pleasure to catch on fly or light tackle spinning tackle. Also, lots of success using 10” Bass Kandy Delight soft plastic bait in Silk Chartreuse rigged on a wide gap 1 ounce saltwater jighead; Storm Rattlin’ Saltwater Chug Bug, 4 3/8” long, 15/16 ounces, Blue/Chrome; Offshore Angler, Freestyle Jig, 2 ounce, Red Chartreuse; Haw River Short Body Stingsilver, 2 ounce in Chrome (remove treble hook and install a single hook). |
| Captain Brady Bounds reports: As the water temperatures begin to decline, two things change. First the water in the shallows goes clear and soon after that, the minnows and small forage start moving out of the marshes and extreme shallow water . What was warmer up in the marsh is now cooler. For a brief time the bait will linger in clear shallow water and the predators will ambush them on points and gut mouths. That is the stage I'm seeing right now in the low marshes. In about two weeks or less if we have a very cold snap, the speckled trout and reds will pull out to the river points exclusively, and then suddenly leave. Stripers will take over the points for an extended period, maybe into late Oct. or as long as that point continues to supply a stream of food, and after that they then relocate in the deeper water as the bait moves there to suspend over warmer depths. Already in the middle bay, the bluefish are bunching and breaking on bay anchovies and menhaden. I ran out of Buzz's Marina this week and observed considerable breaking fish when the tide was moving and observed fish stacking up on deep structure such as the Wilson Bridge reef off of St Jerome's Creek and the hills on the SW Middle grounds. Lastly, it saddens me a little when the fish pull out of the marsh. This week I've guided unbelievable trips catching citation specks and dozens of redfish, as well as stripers galore on both fly rod and spinning. We have gone up into guts and tiny creeks around Smith, South Marsh, Bloodsworth , and Hoopers Islands and just had fabulous results, with nearly a 100% catch & release. We only kept the ones that we killed inadvertently. Anyway the cycle is soon to change, with open water fishing more the norm, deepwater structure and looking forward to guiding my customers on bigger stripers and down into the CBBT with the new guideboat. |
Potomac River Fishing Reports:
Potomac River and freshwater reports from Captain Ken Penrod:
On the tidal Potomac the fishing has been really bad. There is a lot of “transition” going on due to quickly dropping water temperature.
WASHINGTON DC VICINITY: “We are struggling in all or our go-to spots including the bridges, Pentagon Lagoon, Washington Channel and Kennedy Center.”
MATTAWOMAN CREEK VICINITY: “We fished the creek on a good tide with “0” bites, then went to grass beds near the State Park for ONE bass.”
POCOMOKE RIVER: The Pocomoke is fishing very well during low water tides but she’s tough during high water. We tend to favor the area near Shad Landing where we use Big Mouth spinnerbaits, chatter baits and swimming jigs in and around wood cover and spatterdock. For high water, you must get your lure to the shore and that’s a task given the trees and brush. Mizmo tubes and Case Magic Stiks are best for this. Nassawango Creek is a good result most days during outgoing water and swimming worms in “pink” seem to be favored.
DEEP CREEK LAKE: You can bet the fish know winter’s coming so they are eating full-time now and your chances of catching quality bass and walleye are as good as they get NOW. The topwater bite is quite strong and until the grass dies—the bass will hunt there. Schedule your trip before deer season because my guides disappear then.
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