60 degrees- the magic number?

[ronaultmtd]

A week or so ago Bill and I were able to get out on the Pax at Benedict...62.4 degree water...as the outgoing tidal flow increased we saw the water temp drop back to 60.2 degrees...we caught our April fish...this water felt warmer than its temperature indicated...as the sun got lower on the horizon, the chill came back and we beached our kayaks, loaded up (observing social distancing carefully) I gave my catch to shore fishermen that were going fishless...so the water temperature in Southern Maryland is the right temperature for our favorite species to be here...if we could catch a break with Coronavirus...maybe soon there will be light at the end of the tunnel and we can go fishing safely...in the meantime, I am doing lots of tackle maintenance and mail ordering terminal tackle supplies...replacing rusty split rings, in line single hooks, cleaning lures with warm soapy water and let them dry before putting them in waterproof 3200 boxes...Replacing old braid on reels, lubing reels...

Mid April cold snap may bring the water temps back to the high fifties, but a day or two of warm sunny weather will quickly get it back above sixty...especially on the flats...looking forward to a big mess of cajun fried white perch, home-made cole slaw, hush puppies and fries...tight lines, be safe!

[Mark]

That's the magic degree reading for largemouth bass to spawn. That and dogwoods blooming, so says bass fishing lore.

My dogwood is doing its part:

dogwood (2).jpg

I hope the bass are doing their part so that when this health crisis ends, and for years to come, we'll have plenty of them to catch.

[J.A. Veil]

That's the magic degree reading for largemouth bass to spawn. That and dogwoods blooming, so says bass fishing lore.

My dogwood is doing its part:

[ATTACH=CONFIG]26152[/ATTACH]

I hope the bass are doing their part so that when this health crisis ends, and for years to come, we'll have plenty of them to catch.

You mentioned blooming dogwoods. Another fishing phenomenon associated with the dogwood blooming is shad runs. I am disappointed that I will not be able to target shad this year.

[rugbyfish]

I’m with you John, Shad are one of my favorite species to target. American Shad sometimes stuck around into June, so there may still be an opportunity depending on how things go the next month or two.