Cover Image: On a trip with Griffin’s Guide Service this morning, Aaron Beger caught this 45″ bull red using a 1.5 oz HD G-Eye Jigs jig head and a 7″ Z-man Diezel Minnow, and Chris Beger caught Spanish Mackerel and Bluefish using a pink 1 oz G-Eye Jigs Rain Minnow!
Remember that Rockfish season is closed until Monday August 1st!
White Perch: Our White Perch Open is coming up in just two weeks, and white perch fishing has been outstanding! There are many different tactics that you can use to target white perch. Bait fishing in deeper water with fish bites or small pieces of soft crab, peeler crab or razor clams on bottom rigs or Chesapeake Sabiki rigs works very well, as does jigging with small metal jigs. Jigging will produce fewer fish, but they’ll be larger is size which is what you want if you’re fishing the White Perch Open! The bay bridge pilings and Podickory Point in about 20 feet of water are both great places to jig or baitfish, but you can really fish any point or any hard bottom in the main bay or in the deeper parts of the rivers! Casting for white perch in shallow water in the rivers and creek is also very productive. Use perch pounders, mepps, rooster tails or any other small spinners, and cast towards trees, docks and any shaded areas!
Spanish Mackerel and Bluefish: We are so excited that Spanish Mackerel and Bluefish have made their way up as far north as Poplar Island! You can troll for them using small spoons on #1 or #2 planers at 6-9 knots. If you are catching small rockfish you are trolling to slow! Or, you can cast to them using metal jigs. Look for breaking fish and birds, and when casting those metals really speed up your retrieve to avoid the small rockfish.
Redfish: More and more exciting reports of big bull reds being caught in the middle bay, as far north as Chesapeake Beach, keep coming in! Look for them breaking on the surface and sight cast to them with 1/2 oz jig heads. A popping cork works really well when you see them breaking! Or look for them on your side scan and use 1.5 oz jig heads. Another good strategy is to fish a 1.5 oz jig head under a school of small bluefish. Pair the jig heads with a 7 or 8 inch plastic like Z-man Diezel Minnowz or Bust ‘Em Bait Fat Boys. Check out our video for more strategies for targeting bull reds!
Cobia: Cobia are still being caught in the point lookout area with by sight casting, trolling surgical tubes or chumming! Try points or the area around the Target Ship, down into Virginia waters!
Snakehead: Snakehead fishing in shallow water can be very tough in this hot weather! Consider trying rivers or creeks that have moving water, making them cooler than stagnant shallow areas. If you are fishing in shallow water such as around Blackwater, try to get there for first light and fish topwater or chatterbaits.