Fish Lines

CHESAPEAKE BEACH AREA -- Local charter captains have been elated to find lots of big stripers in the bay's confines this time of year. Most captains returned to the docks with limit catches of rockfish ranging up to 36 inches in length, plus a few mid-size bluefish. Headboat anglers fishing at night caught limits of croaker measuring 12 to 18 inches, while during the day catches consisted of a mix of spot and white perch.

PATUXENT RIVER AREA -- Rockfish are breaking during the early morning at Cedar Point, south of The Targets, and across the bay at Hooper's Island Light. While most are small, ranging 13 to 15 inches, below them are much larger fish measuring 18 to 25 inches. They can be readily taken while working jigging spoons tight against the bottom, and there have been some hefty croaker mixed with the larger stripers. Trollers using bucktails and spoons (Tony Acetta No. 15 chrome and white) caught limits of keeper rockfish while fishing between Buoy 77 and the Gas Docks. Most of these fish were taken early in the day. A few stripers to 30 inches were also caught while trolling in the bay's eastern channel edge near Punch Island. These rockfish are near the surface in the 80- to 90-foot depths, where spoons, bucktails, umbrella rigs with small teasers, and tandem rigs proved productive. Croaker fishing is very good, both in the bay and mouth of the Patuxent River. Most were caught at the Chinese Muds and at Point No Point Light on bottom-fished squid strips and bloodworm imitations.

HONGA RIVER AREA -- The river's mouth continues to provide fair catches of small stripers for light tackle and fly anglers, with most fish measuring 12 to 20 inches. Just outside the river's mouth larger schools of breaking rockfish and bluefish slammed tiny jigging spoons. At night, bottom-fished bait shrimp and squid strips lured croaker to 20 inches from the bay's eastern channel edge, and there were a few small weakfish mixed with them.

TANGIER SOUND AREA -- Croaker from 12 to 14 inches were caught by headboat and charter boat anglers bottom fishing near Puppy Hole Buoy, Old #9, Kedges Straits and Fox Island Buoy, locations where bottom-fished squid strips and chunks of peeler crab proved effective, especially at night. Bloodworms fished at the same locations lured spot to 10 inches, a few keeper-size weakfish and even a few keeper flounder.

POINT LOOKOUT AREA -- Chummers loaded their coolers with big stripers while chumming near the Potomac River's mouth, and along the bay's eastern channel edge at the Southwest Middle Grounds, locations that yielded stripers to 35 inches during the past weekend. The same locations also produced limit catches of croaker to 17 inches for nighttime anglers bottom fishing with squid strips and bloodworms. The croaker often did not begin to bite until nearly midnight, but from that point until slack tide, the action was reportedly fast and furious. A few big weakfish were found lurking near the wreck American Mariner, where small bucktails trimmed with a chunk of peeler crab lured trout to six pounds.

CAPE CHARLES AREA -- There are lots of croaker, and sizes vary substantially between those caught during the day and those taken at night. Daytime fish ranged from eight to 12 inches and were found in depths of 25 to 45 feet along both sides of the bay's main channel. The same locations at night provided anglers with croaker to 18 inches, plus keeper-size flounder and weakfish. Flounder to nine pounds were caught from among the submerged boulders of the Chesapeake Bay and Bridge-Tunnel's Forth Island and The Cell, mainly while working bucktails trimmed with live minnows close to both structures. Spadefish to eight pounds were taken from the same locations by anglers floating small pieces of fresh clam in a slick of ground clam mixed with lots of clam juice.

Atlantic Coast

CAPE HENLOPEN/INDIAN RIVER -- Indian River Inlet continues to provide anglers with good catches of big striped bass on a daily basis. Most were taken by anglers casting live eels from the jetty boulders during the last few hours of ebb tide, when fish to 22 pounds were feeding actively. Flounder and sea bass fishing between DA and DB buoys, a short distance offshore, has been hit-or-miss. However, on days when the weather has been calm, flatfish to five pounds have been caught using squid strips and bucktail combinations. Cape Henlopen Pier provided weekend anglers with a mixed bag of flounder, striped bass and croaker, but the largest stripers were found lurking a short distance from the beach at the Outer Wall, weighing up to 30 pounds and smacking live eels.

OCEAN CITY -- Offshore, yellowfin tuna action at Washington Canyon was great, with yellowfins to 45 pounds slamming Green Machines and Cedar Plugs. Closer to the beach at the Jack Spot, small bluefin tuna to 40 pounds hit the same lures. To the south at the Lumpy Bottom, larger bluefin tuna to 120 pounds were taken while trolling and chunking. Headboat anglers enjoyed good catches of sea bass to four pounds, and while only a few 25-fish limits were reported, most anglers caught numbers in the high teens. Shorebound anglers fishing the beaches of Assateague State Park caught a mix of spot, croaker, kingfish and snapper bluefish using bloodworm imitations.

CHINCOTEAGUE & WACHAPREAGUE -- Offshore action was excellent for both bluefin and yellowfin tuna. Most of the bigger bluefins were found at the Parking Lot, Lumpy Bottom and Ammo Wreck, locations where both chumming and trolling lured tuna to 140 pounds.

OUTER BANKS -- Small bluefish, mid-size croaker and some sea mullet were cooperative in the surf near Corolla. Spot, small croakers and scattered small bluefish were caught from Corolla to Oregon Inlet, but fishing was generally slow. The same mix was reported from Oregon Inlet down to Salvo, but the mix was spiced with the addition of pompano to two pounds in the Rodanthe-Salvo area. While there has not been many pompano caught this summer, most of the fish that have been reported were relatively large.