Article by Capt. BJ Pietryak
Current weather conditions have ushered in scorching temperatures in the mid-90s, enveloping even the waters in a sweltering heat offering no relief to anglers. Nevertheless, amidst the challenging climate, fishing activities in both nearshore and back bay areas have proven to be remarkably fruitful, especially for flounder. Additionally, the nearshore reefs near the Bass Grounds are teeming with spanish mackerel, ribbon fish, and a few sheepshead, drawing attention from anglers up and down the [email protected].
Nearshore Reefs
The nearshore reefs have been very productive with flounder and ribbon fish being the top prize. The deeper areas near the Great Eastern reef are still holding keeper sea bass, however due to the excessive heat most fish are throwbacks. Recent fishing reports from the Jack Spot are worth mentioning, as they highlight significant catches of large king fish, elevating the excitement among the angling community. Trent Mullennex from Harman, WV and Ted Proseus of Millsboro, DE were out on Brad Stauch’s “Reel Strong” and caught a variety of fish including a 48 inch king mackerel. The crew on the “Scales And Whitetails” had to run out around 20 miles to find deeper and cooler water and landed a limit of sea bass before 11 AM. Nick Gunther was out Thursday just southeast of the Jack Spot and found sea water temperatures up to 82 degrees just 35 miles out. After trying for several hours to find some tuna with no luck, they decided to bring home some big knothead bass for dinner. Nick reports a thermocline about 40 ft. down, however, on the surface there was no life other than a few bluefish. The hope now lies in the potential clearing of the current green hue in the water, as it may herald the arrival of mahi and tuna closer to shore. Nevertheless, sporadic reports of dolphin sightings on the inshore bass pots have been received, offering a glimmer of optimism.
Inshore fishing has been both rewarding and challenging for the “Angler” crew during their recent trips. Despite the effort required, they were ultimately rewarded with excellent catches, boasting several substantial flounder among their haul. Moreover, keeper sea bass, including some unusually large knothead specimens for this time of year, made their presence known, with Michael Hackney of Bowie, MD landing an impressive 20-inch, 2-pound bass in late July. That my friends is a big bass for the end of July! The “J-Crew” with anglers Joe, Jason, and John Monar from Salisbury, MD on board last week. The crew threw metal jigs, swimming mullet, and Gulp over ocean structure and returned to the docks with a plethora of fish which included sea bass, mahi and flounder. Mike Alagana and Rob Moroney went to the Sue Foster Reef and pulled in two beautiful 19 and 23 inch flounder. They also got tied up with several ribbon fish. Many people think of ribbon fish as junk fish, however if filleted properly they are said to be great for fish tacos. The “2Far Out” had Emmerson Torres and Mario Castaneda on an offshore wreck and pulled in some trophy size sea bass. As I mentioned, we don’t see many bass this time of the year but those anglers targeting these tasty fish have been headed to deep water such as the Rockpile and other deep structures. The fish they are catching this year appear to be bigger then in the past.
Captains on the headboat “Judith M” based at the Bahia Marina shared that before the winds and seas kept them tied to the dock, fishing nearshore was very good. Spadefish, which are usually seen around the boat but typically have lockjaw, really hit. They figured the coming blow must have put them into a feeding frenzy with several big fish coming over the rail to everyone’s delight. They also reported that sea bass is in its normal summer mode close to shore; however keepers are still being found despite the warm water. Flounder are also showing up on many of their trips, being found just down current of the structure. Matt Moran reports the “Ocean Princess” has had its ups and down with the weather lately, but is still catching bass and fluke. Typical July is producing lots of shorts with some decent keepers thrown in. Captain DJ Churchill of “Double Trouble Charters” reports the inshore fishing remains great for trolling for macks and jigging for flounder and bass. Jim Welch of the “Klacker Club” picked up his rigs on Friday night and nailed a boatload of flatfish. Great job Jim! Eddie Hearn also got in on the Klacker mania and pulled in his personal best with a fish that measured 26.5 inches.
Back Bays & Inlet
The back bay water is really heating up and yet the fishing remains strong. The area behind Assateague Island is the hotspot for this week with the deeper holes producing some citation flounder. Rockfish, reds, and bluefish are still around at night however they are becoming harder to find. A few speckled trout are around and can be found like the one that Sam Butler got on his first cast off of Stinky Beach near the bridge. He was using his brand new rod with a strike king jig and pearl Gulp swimming mullet. The trout can be found in the inlet area or near Martha’s Landing on a flood tide and is usually better at night or very early in the morning. Bucktails, Gotcha plugs, small metal spoons and swim baits are a great way to try for some of these fine eating and fighting fish. The area north of the Route 50 Bridge has also been productive for some big flounder, however use caution in this area as summer boat traffic has been very heavy. “Get Sum Charters” was at it again this past week with Captain Nick putting his clients on some big flat fish. Nick, having grown up on these waters, always seems to be able to find the right locations on the right days. On Assateague Island, Drew Ball along with his son and company managed two hog redfish and a few bluefish from the surf using steel leader and a 16/0 hook late Monday night. Good to see there are still some big redfish around at night. With all this fantastic fishing happening right now my only question is why are you not out on the water?
Till next week…
Tight lines and fins up §
