If you angle regularly in the Chesapeake Bay region, then it’s no surprise that for two weeks every summer, Maryland Department of Natural Resources closes the prized striped bass fishery. The mini-moratorium gives the species a break, so to speak, from recreational and commercial angling during what is usually the hottest period of the season (both air and water temperatures), when catch-and-release mortality also peaks.
This summer’s mandated break is July 16th through the 31st. (Yes, you can fish for bass on July 15th up until 11:59 p.m.; and yes, you may resume fishing for them on August 1st, beginning at midnight.)
So, what’s an angler to do? Here are a few target species and general locations in the middle Chesapeake region worth trying during striper shutdown.
White Perch
Perhaps the most obvious and abundant species option, white perch offer anglers plenty of action during the dog days of summer and excellent tablefare. You can target them in the very same waters that you’d normally fish for stripers, so those longing to get on the boat and fish the Chesapeake Bay’s many tributaries can still scratch that itch. They are also easily caught from shore at many locations.
White perch have moved up the Bay and into the many middle western and eastern shore rivers. During low-light hours, perch will be activily feeding on minnows and grass shrimp near shoreline. As the sun inches high above, they’ll congregrate in shaded areas, especially adjacent to deeper water. Docks are excellent targets at all hours of the day. Oyster reefs are also excellent. Maryland DNR’s shellfish harvesting and closure mapping tool displays the Bay’s many reefs.
Light, spinning rods and 1000 class reels will get you by quite fine. Sabiki rigs tipped with bloodworms, Fishbites (bloodworm flavor), or grass shrimp are excellent at catching perch, especially when vertically fishing them over structure, such as reefs, or from shoreline. Artificial lures worth trying include micro spinnerbaits, 2″ soft plastics on a 1/16 to 1/8oz jighead, 1/8 to 1/4oz Acme Kastmaster, and even small crankbaits or jerkbaits in the 2–3″ range (try a sinking Rapala Countdown minnow!). Most of the fish you catch will be between 7 and 10 inches, but can grow upwards of 13–14″. Anything above 9″ is a good eating size fish. There is no creel limit.
Shore locations: Jonas & Anne Catherine Green Park (Annapolis); Thomas Point Park (Annapolis); Sandy Point State Park (Annapolis); Matapeake Park (Stevensville); Fort Smallwood Park (Pasadena); Downs Park (Pasadena); Hillsboro Access (Denton); Federalsburg Recreation Park (Federalsburg).
Boat locations: Chesapeake Bay Bridge pilings (Annapolis to Stevensville); Sandy Point Lighthouse area (Annapolis); old Severn River Bridge ruins (Annapolis); Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse (Annapolis); Hacketts Bar (Annapolis); Love Point (Stevensville); and any shoreline that features sharp dropoffs into deeper water, especially areas with either riprap, deep water docks, or both!
Bluefish & Spanish Mackerel
This is about the time of year that both bluefish and Spanish mackerel begin to migrate into the main stem of the lower and middle Chesapeake Bay. During the striper moratorium is when we start to see boats zigzagging the Bay at a speed of 6 to 8mph, with trolling rigs equipped with flashy spoons trying to entice the fiesty, toothy species to strike. Occassionally, you might spy a flock of birds working bait balls and jumping streaks of silver bars cutting through the frenzy at the water’s surface. Speed is the name of the game when fishing for either species. Casting into such a fray and retrieving the lure with ferocity is the play in such a situation. Bluefish must be a minimum of 8 inches to keep, and an angler may keep 3 per day if fishing by shore or boat. Spanish mackerel creel minimum size is 14″ and anglers are allowed 15 per day.
When trolling by boat, we like bunker style flutter spoons: Tony, Clark, Alligator, Acme, Luhr Jenson…these a just a few brands worth considering. There are many. You’ll want to make your trolling rig with an inline planer (size 1 or 2) to get the lure down a few feet under surface. Anglers Sports Center has a fantastic video explaining how to build your trolling rig for these species. For casting spoons, I love large Kastmasters or Alligators. Your striper outfits will handle these fish quite fine, but a longer rod of 7’6″ to 8′ will help you sling lures further—helpful when hunting visible packs of feeding fish.
Shore locations: Generally, it’s difficult to land either species from shore in the Bay region, but a couple spots worth trying include: Thomas Point Park (Annapolis); Matapeake Park (Stevensville); Black Walnut Point Fishing Area (Tilghman); and Point Lookout State Park (Scotland).
Boat locations: You’ll be trolling or searching large swaths of water. Target regions to try: Bloody Point to Poplar Island; Thomas Point Shoal; Herring Bay; Chesapeake Beach; Chesapeake buoys 83 and south; Choptank River mouth; and Cove Point.
Northern Snakehead (aka Chesapeake Channa)
An absolute thrill to catch, northern snakehead has developed into one of the most targeted species of the past decade, especially among kayak anglers. They thrive in fresh and brackish waters, and in habitat similar to largemouth bass, pickerel, and panfish—think lily pads, thick vegetation, tree laydowns, and shaded structure. The population has exploded in the middle Chesapeake tributaries, making them quite accessible from shore or boat. Bonus: snakehead filets are a white, flaky, and delicious meat, and with no creel limit (invasive species), it’s a no-brainer to harvest a few for the table.
Though several popular locations to find snakehead are listed below, have fun doing your own research on where exactly to target these fish. There are hundreds of potential sites. Cross reference the USGS Map of Northern Snakehead populations with Maryland’s Public Angler Access Map.
If you have largemouth bass rigs and the lures to match in your tacklebox, you should be good to go. Some of the juiciest snakehead hangouts are in the thickest vegetation, however, so you’ll want a beefy rig when fishing those areas (baitcasting with 30-pound test braid is a common preference). This time of year, the fish will mostly be post-spawn, with mama and papa protecting their fry balls. Visually targeting fry balls could be the play of the day—all day. Throwing topwater frogs, buzzbaits, chatterbaits, spinnerbaits, and flukes on weedless swimjigs into and around fry balls will hopefully anger the the parents into striking. You’ll also find rogue fish moving between shaded cover or hunkered down within it. If a spot looks good…make a cast!
Shore locations: Patuxent River accesses (Wayson’s Corner, Wooton’s Landing, Queen Anne’s Bridge); Riverfront Park (Laurel); Oxbow Lake (Laurel); Mason Springs (Pisgah); Wilson Point Park (Middle River); Bladensburg Waterfront Park/Anacostia Riverwalk Trail (near D.C.); Key Wallace Bridge (Blackwater Refuge).
Boat locations: Small, stealthy vessels suited to ply shallow water are best for this operation. Soft launches and small boat ramps are plentiful throughout the state at waters where snakeheads thrive. Some of the better known watersheds to try include: Mattawoman Creek, Anacostia River, Patuxent River at Jug Bay, Middle River, Bush River, Gunpowder River/Days Cove, Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, Transquaking River, and the Nanticoke River.
Largemouth Bass
Arguably the most popular gamefish in America, the largemouth bass is abundant in many Maryland waters. Good size fish in the 5-pound range and above are considered special among local anglers. Most of the state’s populations of largies hover in the 2-pound range. During the dog-days of summer, the topwater bite at dawn and dusk is likely the best fishing of the day. But, during high sun you still have a shot at catching fish that are staged in the deeper, cooler water of the body you’re fishing in, or under the shade and cover it provides.
Medium-rated gear in the 6–12-pound class will handle all the bass you can catch. For topwater lures, try Rebel Pop-R poppers (and similar styles), buzzbaits, Heddon spook walkers, Chug Bugs (my favorite), and River2Sea’s Whopper Ploppers. When going deeper on the outside edges of cover and dropoffs, try spinnerbaits and 2–3″ crankbaits. And if you’re fishing heavy cover, Tex-rigged soft plastics (worms, crawdads, creature baits) with or without pegged weight (depending on depths your covering) should get the trick done. If all else fails, there’s the beloved and bemoaned Ned rig.
Shore locations: There are hundreds/thousands even…but some popular fishing spots include Governor Bridge Natural Area (Bowie); Allen Pond Park (Bowie); Annapolis Waterworks Park; Lake Elkhorn (Columbia); Lake Centennial (Ellicott City); Wye Mills Lake; Unicorn Lake (Millington); Tuckahoe Lake (Queen Anne); and any freshwater pond you can find on a map that offers some angler access.
Boat locations: Popular rivers, creeks, and systems to try include the Potomac River and its mid-river creeks (Mattawoman, Pomonkey, Piscataway); the “Baltimore Rivers” of Patapsco, Back, Middle, Gunpowder, and Bush; St. Mary’s Lake (Leonardtown); Choptank River; Tuckahoe Creek; Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge; and the Nanticoke/Marshyhope watershed. The large reservoirs in the region are also popular, especially among kayakers: Liberty, Prettyboy, Loch Raven, Triadelphia, and Rocky Gorge.
Smallmouth Bass
What could be cooler—literally—than wading or kayaking shallow, shaded cold-water during mid-summer? And you get to catch a few smallmouth bass (and likely sunfish). Thankfully, there are a few, great locations in the middle and upper Bay region to give smallmouth fishing a try. You can even try your hand at catching them on the fly, which is great relief for the stressed out fly angler unable to target vulnerable trout at this time of year.
Light- to medium-rated gear (1000 to 2500 spinning or 5wt fly) is the name of the game, paired with small lures or flies. White, red/pink, olive, and black plastic grubs or stingers tipped onto light jigheads (1/32 to 1/16oz) are effective when pitched into deeper cuts and holes of a stream or creek—heavier jigheads, up to a 1/4oz if kayaking a river and targeting water upwards of 10′ deep. Small ned rigs are also popular, as are 2–3″ jerkbaits, weedless rigged flukes, and football head jigs with soft plastic crawfish imitators. For flies, small streamers and woolly buggers are a good choice. If wade fishing, make sure you wear water-sandals or shoes. A wading staff is also a good idea when navigating tricky rocks, small boulders, or soft sand.
Shore locations: Little Patuxent River (Savage Mill area); Middle Patuxent River (Clarksville); Pataspco Valley State Park (Avalon and Hollofield Areas).
Boat locations: Susquehanna State Park/River (Lapidum ramp at Havre de Grace); Potomac River north of Great Falls (various launch sites).
Red Drum
The Chesapeake Bay has an ever-improving red drum fishery that’s expanded from the lower portion of the Bay upward to the middle rivers. Though the bull reds are primarily in the lower Bay (try the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel area up to Tangier Sound), puppy and slot size drum are being caught as far north as the Severn River. If last summer is any indication, then you’ll be able to hook into decent size pups starting now through late-fall.
Their abundance isn’t alarming or reason to jump out of bed at 5 a.m. to hit the dawn bite, but they are present in several tributaries and can be targeted with the same gear and style of lures used for schoolie striped bass. Small paddletails in the 3–4″ range on 1/4 to 3/8oz jigheads are likely your best bet (try Zman DieZel minnowZ or Saltwater Assassin Sea Shads). Another good lure to try is a small, undressed bucktail jig (same weights). This is primarily a fishing by boat or kayak game, as you’ll want to target shallow shorelines with docks, grassbeds, and riprap—much of which is along private property, which makes bankfishing limited (unless you’re the property owner!). There are a few options from shore, though.
Shore locations: Sandy Point State Park (Annapolis); Thomas Point Park (Annapolis); Quiet Waters Park (Annapolis); Matapeake Park (Stevensville); Black Walnut Point Fishing Area (Tilghman); Point Lookout State Park (Scotland).
Boat locations: Rivers worth trying include Severn (Round Bay vicinity), South, West/Rhode, and lower Choptank. Eastern Bay may see some pups move in; Poplar Island; Little Choptank sanctuary; and lower/mouth of the Patuxent.
Even More Species…
Much can be written about the many, many fish that live in Chesapeake waters—there are dozens more species worth pursuing. Blue catfish are increasingly targeted for removal (they’re invasive) and tablefare. You can read all about Blue Catfish here. Speckled trout are also fun to target with similar techniques as stripers and drum, however, their range is further south in the Bay than this article primarily targets—same for cobia, which are moving into their summer patterns right now in Virginia waters.
Sunfish of all sorts can make for a fun outing, especially with the family. A simple, light spinning or casting rod with a bobber and small hook dangling a foot or so below it, tipped with a piece of earthworm, will catch a lot of fish—bluegills, pumpkinseeds (perhaps, the most beautiful of all fish in our region), red breasts, greens, etc. All are abundant in many of the freshwater ponds, lakes, and streams that dot the region.
Pickerel will likely be encountered when fishing for most of the above listed species, although in mid-summer they tend to be less active. Spot and croaker, on the other hand, are very active and can be caught on sabiki rigs in the same areas as white perch.
Of course, during the striped bass closure you could take a break from fishing altogether…and try your hand at crabbing! That’s an entirely different subject—almost every detail of which I’ve written about in this article.
