Even if many trollers in the Maryland and Virginia portions of the Chesapeake Bay complain about an apparent lack of cooperative striped bass, the Bay’s bluefish and visiting Spanish mackerel are taking up the slack. The stripers will bite big-time the moment cooler temperatures arrive. September isn’t all that far away now.
In St. Mary’s County, Ken Lamb at the Tackle Box in Lexington Park reports catches of blues and tasty mackerel at the Cedar Point and Cedar Point Hollow sector, but also throughout the Bay above and below Cedar Point. The bluefish go for surgical tubing eels and spoons, fished from planers that drive the lures down. There’ll be a few rockfish hammering the same lures. Meanwhile, the “Spanish,” as local anglers call the 2- to 3-pound mackerel, strike small silver or gold spoons trolled high in the water column. The use of light in-line sinkers is advised.
Expect large red drum to hang around the Middlegrounds. These bronze-hued fish, known also as redfish or channel bass, can weigh well over 40 pounds, and most of them have to be released because the slot limit is from 18 to 27 inches.
As far as the largemouth bass in the tidal Potomac River are concerned, water temperatures measured 83 degrees in the Chicamuxen and Mattawoman creeks two days ago. Despite that, we found largemouth bass that jumped on wacky-rigged Zero and Senko worms, early-hour topwater lures, and my favorite, a 2-inch-long PowerBait minnow fished on a 1/16-ounce jig hook. Similar action is reported from all the feeder creeks. The upper freshwater rivers, including the Potomac and Rappahannock, are good for smallmouth bass that jump on 1/8-ounce tubes and jigs. Wading fishermen aren’t complaining.
(Ratings key: ****=Excellent fishing; ***=Good; **Fair; *=Poor)
AREA 1: D.C. AND VICINITY
TIDAL POTOMAC RIVER: 0-35 miles (***) — At Fletcher’s Cove (Georgetown, off Canal Road; call 202/244-0461) there’ll be some large catfish caught with slabs of cut fish that must be kept on the bottom. With the water temperatures hovering above 80 degrees throughout the river system, most successful upper tidal river anglers start at first light and stop by 10 a.m. They use topwater poppers and “grass rats” over weed beds in creeks and in the main stem, then switch to small finesse worms or wacky-rigged “fat” Senko and Zero worms for their largemouth bass. By the time you leave the tidal bass waters and enter the area between the Port Tobacco River mouth and the Route 301 bridge and beyond, it’s hit-and-miss for rockfish trollers and bottom bait bouncers hoping to catch croakers. Some find action, others don’t. The sure catches now point more to white perch that hang out along riprap rocks, weed-bed edges and inside feeder creeks’ boat docks and such where in-line spinners and small white or chartreuse spinnerbaits work well. Some anglers use thumb tip-sized pieces of peeler crab in deeper water and they catch perch, spot and occasional croakers between Swan Point and St. Clements. The flounder continue to deliver the goods from Piney Point down to Cornfield Harbor, with catches also made on the Virginia side of the river at Sandy Point and the Coan River’s Walnut Point.
WICOMICO RIVER: 55 MILES (***) — Once again, it all depends on whom you ask. One fisherman will say that the croaker and spot fishing is terrible; another will say it’s pretty good. We do know that the grassy mats and shoreline dock pilings hold fair-sized white perch that jump on Beetlespin lures and such.
MATTAWOMAN CREEK: 40 miles (***) — Start early, quit early — that’s the method now. The water is warm enough to bathe a baby. Early-hour topwater lures bring strikes from bass in most all of the creek’s grass beds. As the sun rises, switch to wacky-rigged plastic worms or weightless Texas-rigged plastics.
SOUTHERN MARYLAND LAKES: 40-50 miles (**) — Gilbert Run Park’s Wheatley Lake (Route 6, east of La Plata) is slow, very slow. Few fish are caught. At St. Mary’s Lake (south on Route 5, past Leonardtown, to Camp Cosoma Road) you might find a bass or two, but overall successes are not at all what they’ll be like when the water chills down a bit..
LITTLE SENECA LAKE: 30 miles (**) — Black Hill Regional Park (off Route 117 near Boyds, 301/972-9396) and the nearby Seneca Creek Lake (Clopper Road, Gaithersburg, 301/924-2127) have slowed considerably. Few fish are hooked. Remember, freshwater bodies slow down quicker than tidal rivers and bays.
WSSC RESERVOIRS: 20-30 miles (**) — (Triadelphia, off Route 97, or Route 650, in Montgomery County; Rocky Gorge, off Route 29 in Montgomery County) You’ll find a willing sunfish here and there, maybe a bass or two if you fish in deep layered water with jig’n’craws or plastic worms, but the fishing has been tough.
BALTIMORE-AREA RESERVOIRS: 50-75 miles (**) — Prettyboy Lake is on Route 137; Liberty is on Oakland Road in Eldersburg, Carroll County.) Slow going for all species, but cooler weather is on the way. Even if it’s still in the 80s, it’s better than the jungle weather we have had.
PATUXENT RIVER: 25-60 miles (***) — The Tackle Box in Lexington Park reports that Norfolk spot are plentiful in the river but are moving about and can be difficult to locate some days. Good advice is offered by those who say you need to fish in deep water. Lots of white perch are now in the creeks and main stem. Small spinnerbaits, Beetlespin and in-line spinners will do the job around grass edges and dock pilings. During the dark hours, the stripers are feeding among the stone slabs and rock piles that surround the base of the old Cedar Point lighthouse.
OCCOQUAN RESERVOIR: 25-30 miles (***) — Ranger Smokey Davis at Fountainhead Regional Park said, “Early mornings and late evenings are best for bass. The topwater bite during those hours can be very good. Fish the flats near main-lake points for the best action. If you can stand the heat after sunup, fish the deep blowdowns on the shady side of the reservoir with Texas-rigged plastics such as lizards or Brush Hogs. Green pumpkin with red flakes have been a popular color for savvy anglers. The heat has been good for the catfish bite, however. … The crappie action has slowed. Bluegills love meal worms and are readily available. The reservoir is down a couple of feet, slightly stained, with surface temperatures in the high 80s.”
BURKE LAKE: 29 miles (***) — (Ox Road, Route 123, Fairfax County) The bass catches can still be good, but now you must fish when your prey is most active: the early and late hours of the day. Soft plastics or quarter-ounce spinnerbaits can score around points and sunken structure.
AREA 2: CENTRAL, WESTERN MARYLAND
UPPER POTOMAC RIVER: 35-100 miles (***) — Waders and small-boat drifters from Knoxville to Dickerson can connect on smallmouth bass using tubes, grubs, jigs, spinners and small crankbaits, but daytime sun and the accompanying heat aren’t helping.
DEEP CREEK LAKE: 179 miles (***) — Lake guide Brent Nelson (240/460-8839) said he’s sticking with floating docks and skipping tubes under the narrow openings. Largemouth bass lie in those dark waters, and they will attack a tube. The edges of grass beds also can promise some action, including large- and smallmouth bass, even walleyes and jumbo yellow perch. However, weekend boating traffic and the inevitable waves made by passersby craft can ruin a good fishing trip.
SUSQUEHANNA RIVER: 65-100 miles (**) — The Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ Keith Lockwood said, “In the lower Susquehanna, afternoon water releases for power generation at the Conowingo Dam spurs largemouth and smallmouth bass into activity, and it’s a great time to fish.”
AREA 3: CHESAPEAKE BAY
MARYLAND: 45-75 miles (***) — The water temperatures in the Bay now run into the low 80s and that has slowed the rockfish catches, but bluefish and Spanish mackerel appear to be taking up the slack — especially the tooth-laden blues. They can be found roaming vast areas of the Bay now from the Virginia state line up toward the Route 50 Bay Bridges and beyond. Even the flounder have moved north. Some fair-sized ones are caught around the Bay Bridges’ pilings. A continuing hot fishing story involves the large red drum that have gathered around the Target Ship and Middlegrounds. Although you can keep only one a day that fits the 18- to 27-inch slot limit, there are many heavy-duty redfish that have to be released. As far as the croakers are concerned, many are in deeper water now and prefer to feed after sunset. That means drop your baits in the general Choptank River mouth, the Eastern Bay, Hooper Island Light and of course the always productive Middleground area of the lower Maryland parts of the Bay.
VIRGINIA: 75-150 miles (***) — Charter fishing captain Billy Pipkin (www.ingrambaymarina.com) said trolling action for bluefish and Spanish mackerel improved. The fishing has been good along the western shoreline from Mobjack Bay north to Smith Point and up the Potomac River a few miles. The ship channel holds fish around the buoy 62 area. For bottom fishermen, the mouth of the Rappahannock River up to the bridge has been holding a mix of croaker, spot and small trout. “The largest croakers are usually caught in skinny water during the evening hours,” Pipkin said. The toughest fish in the lower Bay, the cobia, is now moving into Northern Neck waters. They’ve been found as far up as Ingram Bay, Pipkin’s home waters. Meanwhile, down at the mouth of the Bay, Virginia Beach’s Ken Neill said the cobia season thus far has been one of the best ever. “Fish are being caught on chum slicks, by running the buoys, and just cruising around in open waters and casting to [cobias]. Spanish mackerel fishing has been fine inside the lower Bay and decent numbers of sheepshead are being caught at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel. Neill said the flounder bite along the bridge-tunnel is nothing short of fantastic. Flounder are hooked from the First Island to the high rise of the crossing. “A number of flatfish over 10 pounds have been caught this week,” Neill said.
AREA 4: EASTERN SHORE/MARYLAND
CHOPTANK RIVER: 120 miles (***) — (Route 50 east to Cambridge) Evening hours turn up croakers in the deeper waters around the mouth of the river. Spot and white perch are plentiful and many of those can be found clear up to the newly named Bill Burton Fishing Pier (the fishing bridge) in Cambridge. Bluefish and some Spanish mackerel are in the mouth now and then, but rockfish are tough to locate now. Bass anglers up around Denton and Martinak State Park catch some largemouths during early hour tides, using plastics and crankbaits when the sun isn’t baking the water.
POCOMOKE RIVER: 140-170 miles (**) — (From Snow Hill down to Shad Landing) Bass catches have slowed somewhat, but a lot of the poor bass fishing has to do with fewer boaters trying because of the heat.
NANTICOKE RIVER: 120 miles (**) — (Sharptown ramp off Route 313, or use the Marshyhope Creek ramp outside Federalsburg) Not much fishing traffic and consequently not many fish are being reported, but I’d bet that an early morning outgoing tide will turn up a few fat bass that hide in the myriad brush, spatterdock, bridge abutment and wood pilings from Federalsburg up to the railroad bridge in Delaware.
AREA 5: CENTRAL VIRGINIA
LAKE ANNA: 82 miles (***) — (Route 208, Spotsylvania County) Jim Hemby’s Lake Anna Striper Guide Service (www.jimhemby.com) reports that the landlocked rockfish in this nuclear power station lake have cooperated so well 2009 has been the guide service’s best fishing year in two decades. “There are still many schools of fish breaking on the surface throughout the lake. Most any topwater bait will catch them [but] the deep bite is still on and once you locate the fish on your depthfinder you can troll deep-diving Redfins, drop rigs or umbrella rigs to catch fish. You may have to use lead core line to get down to the fish, downlake the fish are suspended between 30 to 45 feet deep. Mid lake the fish are shallower, usually between 15 to 30 feet deep,” Hemby said. The largemouth bass continue to relate to deep structures where bait is present. Main-lake points, humps, roadbeds, brush and rock piles along with bridges hold the Bass now with numerous techniques catching fish. Deep-diving crankbaits are working well now along with a “Shaky-Head” worm.
RAPPAHANNOCK RIVER: 47-100 miles (***) — Hydrilla is being reported in the river parts around Port Royal. If so, that will be a new marfine growth and one that can change the bass fishing for the better — the boating for the worse. Some bass have been caught on Rat-L-Traps above Port Royal in a few creek mouths. Upper freshwater river sections have given up smallmouth bass that like a broad variety of lures, from tubes to plain Mepps spinners. The Rapidan mouth area has been good.
LAKE BRITTLE: 59 miles (**) — (Route 793, off Route 29) We don’t know if it’s the heat keeping the fish away, or if the bass are lying low, sweating buckets. Either way, the fishing for bass and most other species hasn’t been the best. Blame the heat.
LAKE ORANGE: 75 miles (**) — (Concessionaire: 540/672-3997; look for left turn sign on Route 20 before entering town of Orange) Slow for bass and crappies, but bottom-fished liver strips have attracted channel catfish.
LAKE GASTON: 179 miles (***) — (Route 46, Gasburg) Lake-side resident Marty Magone said: “With the daytime temps reaching 100 degrees, fishermen should get out early and enjoy the topwater action available in the main river grass flats before Hawtree Creek. Most activity has been from 5 to 7 a.m., but if there is a breeze or some cloud cover topwater will remain in effect all day. Surface poppers are lures of choice, but remember the hydrilla is very thick in many areas so the larger bass will have an advantage in the shallower sections. Main-lake grass points are a fine choice for fishing plastic baits once the sun gets high.”
KERR RESERVOIR: 185 miles (***) — (Route 58, Clarksville) Early-bird anglers connect on bass with soft plastics and topwater lures in the creek mouths and along main-lake points and brushy shorelines. Catfish are active throughout if you offer them juicy slabs of fish and serve them on the bottom of the lake, sometimes within sight of Clarksville.
JAMES RIVER: 115 miles (***) — (Tidal Richmond area and downstream) Catfish, some bass, and a few errant stripers are possible between Dutch Gap and the downstream Walker Creek.
CHICKAHOMINY RIVER: 135 miles (**) — (Williamsburg area) Slow going for most species except catfish. They’ve cooperated fairly well, picking up bottom-fished slabs of herring and other baits.
AREA 6: WESTERN VIRGINIA
SHENANDOAH RIVER: 75-85 miles (**) — (Route 340, Front Royal, Luray and Bentonville areas) There will be smallmouth bass galore this weekend if monsoon rains stay away. Grubs, tubes, Zoom flukes, spinners, streamers — all will work.
SMITH MOUNTAIN LAKE: 210 miles (***) — (Route 122, east of Roanoke) This place is loaded with sharp drop-offs around lake points and creek entrances, so figure on the bass staying down low during hot weather. “Feed” them a jig’n’craw or jig’n’pig, as well as soft plastic worms. Early hours, however, can find them near shore hunting food. Capitalize on that with topwater baits or lipless rattle lures.
UPPER JAMES RIVER: 130 miles (***) — (Route 6, south of Charlottesville, Scottsville) You’ll catch smallmouth bass for sure if it doesn’t rain heavily. This is one of the best smallmouth bass rivers on the East Coast.
AREA 7: ATLANTIC OCEAN
MARYLAND: 153-175 miles (***) — (Route 50 to Ocean City) The governor of Maryland, Martin O’Malley, was on hand last weekend to congratulate two anglers who broke state records at the White Marlin Open Fishing Tournament in Ocean City. Bob Farris of Charlotte, N.C., caught a 1,062-pound blue marlin, the first blue marlin over 1,000 pounds ever caught in Maryland. A second record was set by Jamie Gill, of Crofton, who caught a 254-pound scalloped hammerhead shark. Meanwhile, offshore catches have dropped this week, due to strong southwest winds, but some boaters are finding a few tunas and billfish. Back in Ocean City, the flounder fishing is said to be more rewarding. Larger bait strips or fillets of fish have resulted in a better class of the flatfish. In the surf, anglers are finally getting good mixed bags of flounder, croakers, kingfish, spot and snapper bluefish, but the evening hours are almost a necessity if you want to catch a decent dinner.
VIRGINIA: 210 miles to Virginia Beach (***) — Eastern Shore flounder fishing has seen better days, although some occasional keepers are taken in the usual hangouts in Chincoteague and Wachapreague. Neill said that the Spanish mackerel fishing is very good from the Chesapeake Light Tower on up into the Chesapeake Bay. Sizes are good with fish ranging from 16 to 24 inches long on average. “Amberjack fishing at the South Tower is just crazy,” said Neill, referring to the relative ease of hookups that fishermen enjoy. “The billfish bite off the Virginia coast is heating back up just in time for the Virginia Beach Billfish Tournament next week,” added Neill. For charter bookings, check with the Virginia Beach Fishing Center, 757/491-8000.
Look for Gene Mueller’s Outdoors column Sunday and Wednesday, and his Fishing Report on Thursday, only in The Washington Times. E-mail: gmueller>washingtontimes.com. Also check out Inside Outside, Gene Mueller’s blogs about outdoors happenings here and elsewhere. Go to www.washingtontimes.com/sports and click on Inside Outside.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.