Upcoming Fishing Season

[Mark]

I "Zoomed" to a recent meeting of the MD Trout Unlimited Chapter. The guest speaker was from the MD DNR addressing the state of the Gunpowder River as a habitat for brown trout. During the presentation he mentioned that snakeheads are in the tidal portion of the Gunpowder and that they're also in Loch Raven.

I think reports of catching them in western shore rivers are only going to proliferate in the coming years as snakeheads spread and the novelty of their presence in those waters wears off. Some anglers are reluctant to reveal where they're being caught now.

[bunnielab]

There is video on YouTube about them being caught behind Savage Mill, in Laurel.

2-3 years ago I nearly soiled my britches while wading just above Savage Mill. A maybe 2'-ish snakehead got spooked and shot across the river right in front of me. I didn't recognize it at first and just knew that it was about twice the size of any fish I had seen in that stretch before.

[Nicole]

Welcome to the forum! I think you will find it very useful and all of the people here are extremely helpful. I live in SOMD, Calvert county but I agree that it’s still a bit cold for fishing in a kayak. Lots of blues and perch down here though.


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[captmikestarrett]

On a really rainy day you can hear snakehead swimming in the gutters of your house.

LOL

Capt Mike

[ronaultmtd]

For a supposedly overly aggressive fish, my experiences with them is just the opposite...sight casting to them in lily pads and spatterdock, I see them as shy and hesitant to take lures unless they are guarding a pod of their fry...

[Mark]

Indeed snakeheads can ignore a lure. I've seen that happen enough times. They'll folllow your offering and then turn off, like a pickerel, but I think snakeheads do that more often than picks. When they strike it's usually a savage hit. Then the trick for me is setting the hook and keeping them on it. I've lost many more than I have actually caught. They're a challenge. I think they're the hardest fish to catch of any I pursue in my kayak.

[Rudy]

Hello All,

I'm new to the forum. I currently have a 2020 Predator PDL that I'm in the process of switching over to a 2020 Pro Angler 12. I live in the AA County and was seeing where everyone is fishing. The last time I went out fishing was last September to the Chesapeake Bay bridge Tunnel but the water was pretty rough. I also went to Black Water to try the snake head fishing without any luck. Is anyone planning any upcoming trips in the next couple months???

Come down to the Tangier Sound and fish James Island. You can practice to fish this years Tangier Classic in September.


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[NewYakFisher]

[QUOTE=Rudy;171313]Come down to the Tangier Sound and fish James Island. You can practice to fish this years Tangier Classic in September.

I bet the fishing is pretty good down that way. I have wanted to try to fish the lower Bay.

[PudgyPrawn]

Mike,
Question for you Sir - what might be running on the beaches of St George island this weekend? March 12-14th? The wife and I are staying at Merryland Campground - we put our house on the market this Friday and decided to get away near bye.

Is it too early for flounder or Mackerel? I imagine catfish and maybe some others might be biting.
Thoughts?

Clint

[ronaultmtd]

In the deeper waters are white perch...use blade lures and deep jig for them...or bloodworms (fish bites) on double bottom rigs...

[Big Mike]

The beach off Camp Merryland is not good fishing, it’s pretty shallow with no defined features to attract bait or fish. Even 100 yards off the pier it’s still only 3-4’ deep. It’s also way too early for much besides perch in deeper waters and perhaps some rockfish. Trout and reds will show up in May sometime.

If you have a kayak you could launch from the beach and head towards the Potomac, the St George drop is very close at that portion of the Island. Might find some perch there.

[Mark]

As I mentioned earlier in this thread, snakeheads are definitely in the creeks of the Patapsco, Magothy and Severn.

My son and I were out last Sunday in the Magothy. We spotted a dead 30-inch snakehead in shallow water just north of the bridge on Magothy Bridge Road.

Folks I've chatted with on their docks in the uppper Magothy during nice weather days in recent weeks have told me that snakehead catches in that area of the river were fairly common last year. In fact, they usually start the snakehead conversation by asking me if I had caught any that day. One even shared his lure of choice for them was a silver Rat-L-Trap cast directly from his dock.

I fully expect snakehead reports from those three river systems to become more common this year as we move into spring and summer.

[48 Chevy]

What do people do with snakeheads, I don't think they are any good to eat. I thought I heard at one time that you are not supposed to throw them back but instead your supposed to kill them and dispose of them.

[dsaavedra]

What do people do with snakeheads, I don't think they are any good to eat. I thought I heard at one time that you are not supposed to throw them back but instead your supposed to kill them and dispose of them.

They are amazing to eat! Very firm white meat with no fishy taste at all. Because of this they go great in any number of dishes. You get a surprising amount of meat off a snakehead too, they are all muscle. In addition, snakehead grow very fast so there is a lot less of a concern of bioaccumulation when eating larger fish compared to other species.

I think in the height of the snakehead hysteria (circa early 2000's) it was highly recommended you kill and report any that you caught, but now the fish are so well established that it is very common to throw back what you don't plan to eat. It's crucial though, that you release them immediately right back into the water you caught them from. It is strictly illegal to posses live snakehead (if you plan to keep them to eat you need to kill them right away) and if one gets caught transplanting them from one body of water to another I would expect at minimum a very heft fine, maybe even jail time.

[Jigsup]

I’ve heard they are one of the best eating fish around. “Better than rock fish”, “Poor mans flounder” etc. Me personally if I’m ever blessed to bring one home my family and I will be eating it. Would like to smoke it or grill it. My wife would love for me to bring one home. I know people who aren’t really fish eaters say they tried it and was the best they’ve had.
That goes to say if someone brought up eating snakehead about let’s say...10 years ago I would have said eww. Or I don’t want nothing to do with it. While a interesting but beautiful looking fish I do target them from time to time. Definitely grown to like them. I use to think you had to kill and remove as soon as you caught also. But that’s not true. Far as I know Dnr would like for you to kill and remove for reasons very debatable to some, but that’s not law. It’s against the law to transfer a live snakehead. You can catch and release in the waters you caught it. But be sure if taking it home you cut gills or gut it out. I’ve heard a bruised head don’t count and can get you a fine.
To me killing just to kill anything is wrong. Whether it’s legal or not. I know there are people who fish for them for catch and release and will frown on you for taking a snakehead home to eat. Lol. But that’s a whole nother topic that’s probably not a good one to start. I say eat up if legal.
Some think trigger fish are “trash fish”. I believe that is far from the truth.