Tidal Fishing in the Lower Bay?

[UnkleRob2020]

Good morning everyone,

I thought I posted this message yesterday, but I do not see it. If this is duplicative, I apologize.

My favorite fishing spots from June - September/October are all in the same general area - Jonas Green, Weems, Goodhands Creek, Jackson Landing, as well as the Patapsco and Magothy (when I can find a place to launch). Mostly, I am targeting white perch and stripers, although last year I was pleased to catch pickerel, and what I think may have been puppy drum in the Severn (my fishing partner even caught a flounder on a Kastmaster, which I thought was pretty cool). I did not catch any speckled trout or bluefish, but I think they were also in these areas last year. Last year, my two most productive lures were Bignose Spinners and Kastmasters. I am looking forward to adding soft plastics to my tidal fishing this year.

Do these species begin appearing earlier in the season in the lower bay? By "lower bay" I am thinking of closer to Point Lookout, but I am not sure if this is the right term. Please feel free to correct me. Also, it seemed from the fishing reports last year that fishing for some of these fish, such as speckled trout, puppy drum, bluefish and flounder was much better down by Point Lookout than it was near Annapolis. I would like to understand why this is the case?

I would like to expand my base this year to include some areas further down the Potomac and the bay (probably near Pt. Lookout). I am also open to fishing the bay from the Eastern Shore as well.

Any advice as to if/why fish seem to appear in the lower bay earlier, as well as some good places to launch from would be very welcome.

Thank you very much. Happy Fishing!

[J.A. Veil]

The tidal waters around southern Maryland (both the main Bay and the lower Potomac River) are usually saltier than those around Annapolis and the Bay Bridge. This makes it more likely that marine species like redfish, flounder, and speckled trout will be there. I suspect that fewer human residents and industries in those southern counties compared to Baltimore and Anne Arundel means cleaner water too. Last summer and fall, I made at least six long day trips to fish in southern Maryland waters. On most of those trips I did well, including catching a Southern Maryland Slam (striper, white perch, redfish, and speck) on my final two trips in October. With less Covid concerns this summer, I may do some overnighters and fish on back-to-back days.

Several of the guys who fish that area report here on a regular basis. Watch for reports by ronault, Big Mike, and a few others. They have been helpful to me and many other Snaggedline members about giving advice on where to launch and what species are likely to be around.

If you are prepared to drive 1.5 to 2 hours to get to a fishing spot, don't rule out the Eastern Shore side too. There are several good launch spots around Kent Island and Grasonville that I use frequently. Check out the Queen Anne's County launch locations on their website. You need to have a QA County launch sticker on your vehicle to use those spots. It costs $10 for one day or $35 for a whole year. Other spots in Talbot or Dorchester Counties put you in good fishing spots too. I fished with Capt Walleye Pete a few days ago in the waters off of Dorchester County. Our crew caught 5 specks and many stripers.

[Big Mike]

I was looking back and found that we started catching speckled trout on these days last year down here in the Slower Lower. Winds have made it difficult to access the early season spots we might find them in so our intel is limited right now. Last year was a stellar year for specks in size and quantity. Reds are realistically another month out, not that we might not catch one before then. Last year they weren’t hot and heavy and size wasn’t great. Flounder were elusive and we only found them at PLO last year. Hoping they return to some other spots we’ve found them in.

Your best source for launches is to look up St Mary’s boat ramps. We use Piney Point, Clark’s Landing, St Inigoes, and PLO a lot depending on winds and time of year. They’re free and all except Clark’s have clean port-a-potties (Gary’s main reason to fish here). Other locations we hold closer to the vest, some things are best left unsaid, especially when a spot can be a 35 yard square.

[Mark]

UnkleRob,

You've gotten good info from the previous posters.

It has always amazed me how a relatively short distance in the Chesapeake Bay can create such distinctive fisheries. It is only about 70 miles on the water from the Bay Bridge to Point Lookout. Yet, sometimes I think there is a giant net in the Bay between those landmarks that stops most of the specks and redfish from routinely visiting our waters in the Severn, Magothy and Patpasco. A few specks and reds slip through that "net" occasionally in summer to reach our waters but not in large numbers or large sizes. They make interesting catches but typically they are not predictable catches for us. Southern Bay species are definitely more varied and they activate sooner than ours do here in the Mid-Bay region.

I worked in for D.C several years, actually northern VA, while living here in Pasadena. I used the Metro for the final leg of that trip. I could sit in the train and observe my surroundings without watching automobile traffic intensely. I noticed that springtime foliage in D.C. bloomed a week to 10 days ahead of trees and shrubs here in Pasadena. And that's a distance of only 45 to 50 miles. I think a similar thing happens in the Chesapeake Bay. The southern waters heat up a little sooner and attract fish species that are more comfortable in that environment than we have here.

Maybe in time if the climate changes as predicted, our upper Bay waters will host warm water species more routinely. Perhaps by then the SMOG crew will be reporting common catches of tarpon.

I too am looking forward to more trips to the Southern Bay this year. I have two trips planned primarily to target specks on the fly with a guide and a third trip opportunity to camp on Janes Island in the fall that I hope I can attend.

Otherwise, if you really want to catch specks and reds, the Gulf Coasts of TX and FL are full of them. Specks in particular are as routine there as white perch are here. But certainly, a trip to SMOG territory is much closer and holds good promise to catch the same.