Image: Left: Junior reports an improving bite at Sandy Point State Park using bloodworms! Right: Anglers Pro-staff employee Ethan caught numerous white perch in the upper Choptank, keeping a few nice ones for dinner!
Rockfish: Rockfish season closes on April 1st, but there is still time to catch and release some nice fish this weekend! Trolling the channel edges or even in the main channel in deeper water has been the ticket. The most popular lure has been Hard Head Custom Bait’s 9 inch tandems! Consider swapping out the plastic for a blue one though, because that has been the hot color! Troll from the Bay Bridge down to Bloody Point, or further south around Cove Point or the mouth of the Choptank.
Fortunately there are a lot of species to fish for other than rockfish during the closure!
Perch: The Yellow Perch run is pretty much over, especially with the rain that we had this week, but, the white perch run is on!! Even with flooded conditions, white perch fishing in the upper Choptank has been extremely effective. You can find them in the upper parts of our western shore rivers too. Check out our Run to the Perch Run video series for more details on where to fish for them! Use grass shrimp under a bobber or on a shad dart tandem. If you can’t stop in for live grass shrimp on your way, stock up on Bust ’em baits stingers ahead of time, they are the next best thing!
Shad: The Hickory and American Shad run has started in the Potomac! Fish Fletchers or other tidal creeks. Use kastmaster spoons or nungesser spoons rigged in tandem. Bust ’em baits stingers on a small jig head work well for shad too!
Snakehead: The snakehead bite is starting to heat up! Blackwater Refuge and the surrounding area is typically the first place that the bite picks up because the shallow water mudflats warm up quickly! While live minnows are always productive, you can also use swim baits on weighted hooks or spinners like our favorites from Addiction Baits. White is our favorite color to use for snakehead!
Catfish: Catfish are all over the bay, and are an especially fun fish to catch from shore this time of year. Use bloodworms on a bottom rig or alewife on a fish finder rig.