Article by Larry Jock
It was a great year for fishing on Delmarva. Following is a summary of each week’s issue.
May 2, 2012 - An exceptionally warm winter and spring caused striper fishing to extend into February... The year started off great, when on January 11th, Charlie Donohue caught a new MD state record tautog (23 lbs.) while fishing on the headboat, “Morning Star”... The first bluefin of the year was caught by Mike Sears in the Washington Canyon... Bluefins were also seen in the Baltimore Canyon... Tautog fishing in the bay was better than expected, even with the minimum size increase to 16-inches... Minimum size for flounder was decreased to 17-inches and the opening of the season on April 17th saw good fishing in the Thorofare from anglers using Gulp! artificial baits. In Delaware, thresher sharks were spotted just south of the Indian River Inlet... Flounder fishing was good in the Lewes Canal... A repeat of the epic striper bite in 2011 the Indian River Inlet didn’t happen this year, although the bite was good at night... A few black drum were caught from the beach around 3R’s Road.
May 9, 2012 - Foggy and windy weather plagued fishing this week... Striper fishing was excellent from off the beach on Assateague Island and exceptionally good from the beaches in North Ocean City and around the South Jetty... Unusually high amounts of slur slowed bay flounder fishing... Tautog fishing was hit or miss on ocean wrecks and reefs.. Sherry Stewart landed a 19 lb. 3 oz. tautog on an ocean wreck... Bluefin were caught in the Baltimore Canyon, at the Rockpile and near the 461 Lump... Dolphin were caught in the Washington Canyon in 75-77 degree water... A 197 lb. mako was caught at the Marine Electric... In Delaware, the striper bite at night in the Indian River Inlet was very good and the bite from the beach from Fenwick to Indian River was the best it has been in years... Coral beds produced good black drum action... Flounder fishing was sporadic... Tautog action was good along the Walls and at the Ice Breakers... Thresher sharks were caught around “B” Buoy... First bluefin out of Delaware was caught in the Baltimore Canyon.
May 16, 2012 - Yellowfin tuna, averaging 35-45 lbs., were caught in warm water from the Baltimore Canyon down to the Washington Canyon... A 151 lb. swordfish was caught during an overnight trip to the Baltimore Canyon... Mako sharks were caught around the Sausages... Blue sharks were plentiful in the Baltimore Canyon... Flounder fishing was slow due to dirty water with the best bite in the East Channel, south of the Rt. 50 Bridge... Snapper bluefish were stacked around the Rt. 50 Bridge with the best bite coming during the outgoing tide... Tautog fishing was good around the South Jetty... Small stripers were caught around the North Jetty and the Rt. 50 Bridge... Striper fishing off Assateague continued to be excellent but had to battle through sharks and skates to catch their linesider... Several fish over 40-inches were caught... Good sea bass bite at the Great Eastern Reef and around the Bass Grounds... In Delaware, the striper bite slowed in the Indian River Inlet but was on fire between Gordon’s Pond and the Naval Crossing... Bluefish between 15 and 18-inches were caught in the Indian River Inlet... The best flounder bite was in Massey’s Ditch and Baker’s Channel... Tautog season is closed... Broadkill Beach produced excellent catches of weakfish... Good catches of black drum came from the Coral Beds.
May 23, 2012 - Never ending wind and dirty water killed flounder fishing this week... Tautog were caught off the 4th St. Bulkhead... Sea bass season opened 3 days earlier than expected with good catches coming from the Great Eastern Reef and at the Jackspot... Striped bass and black drum were caught by surfcasters off Assateague... Bad weather kept offshore boats at the dock... In Delaware, the Lewes Canal flounder tournament had 360 anglers participating with a 6 pounder taking 1st place... Striper action was good between Gordon’s Pond and Cape Henlopen and in the Indian River Inlet at night... Larger bluefish were caught off the beach in Fenwick... Leading into the full moon, black drum fishing was good at the Coral Beds... Colby Hastings on the “Lil’ Angler II” released a 48.8-inch black drum to set an I.G.F.A. All Tackle Length Live Release Record... Weakfish were plentiful off Broadkill Beach.
May 30, 2012 - Yellowfins were abundant in 50 to 75 fathoms between the Baltimore and Poor Man’s Canyons... Charter boat, “Reel Chaos” had 14 YFT on Saturday and 24 on Sunday... The 1st white marlin was released by Grant Clubb in 65 fathoms between the Baltimore and Poor Man’s Canyons... Shark fishing was good in 20-25 fathoms around the Fingers... A 256 lb. mako was caught in 100 fathoms on the southern end of the Baltimore Canyon... The 1st wahoo of the season was caught in 75-degree water in the Baltimore Canyon... Good tilefishing was found deep in the Washington Canyon... Flounder fishing was horrible, with more being caught on ocean wrecks and reefs than in the bay... The Thorofare was the best spot in the bay for flatties... Sea bass fishing was steady at the Bass Grounds and African Queen... A lot of bluefish were caught around the Rt. 50 Bridge... The 1st sheepshead of the season was caught at the African Queen... Surfcasters got into black drum off Assateague... South Jetty produced good catches of stripers... In Delaware, headboats reported improved catches of sea bass... Black drum bite was sporadic... Anglers at Broadkill Beach and Roosevelt Inlet had good catches of weakfish... Flounder bite improved in the Lewes Canal but wasn’t very good in the Indian River Inlet and back bays... Plenty of flounder were caught around “B” Buoy... Indian River Inlet had good bluefish action... Makos, tigers and blue sharks showed up around the Hot Dog.
June 6, 2012 - The 20 fathom line produced good catches of sharks... A 576.5 lb. thresher was caught at the Fingers... A 280 lb. mako was caught at the Sausages... Yellowfin tuna were caught in good numbers in 66-degree water in the Poor Man’s Canyon... White marlin were caught in the Baltimore... Good sea bass fishing on ocean reefs and wrecks... An 18 lb. tautog was caught on an ocean wreck... Small stripers were caught around the South Jetty with larger fish found around the Rt. 50 Bridge... The OC Inlet produced good catches of flounder... Chopper bluefish were caught at the Fingers and Jackspot... In Delaware, the striper bite was good at night in the Indian River Inlet and along the Outer Wall in the Delaware Bay... Flounder fishing improved dramatically in the Indian River Inlet for anglers using spot for bait... The Old Grounds started to see more flounder... Weakfish continued to be caught off Broadkill Beach... Bluefish bite was off the hook in the Indian River Inlet...
June 13, 2012 - Double digit catches of yellowfin tuna came from the Poor Man’s and Washington Canyons during the week and moved to the Baltimore Canyon over the weekend... The 1st bigeye tuna of the season was caught in the Wilmington Canyon... No bluefins showed up at the dock... A few mako sharks were released in the Washington and keepers were found around the Hambone and Sausages... No threshers were caught this week... A good batch of flounder moved into the bay this week with a good bite coming from the South Jetty... Bay was loaded with 2-inch spot... “Get Sum” had 17 keeper flounder in 2 trips around the South Jetty and in the East Channel... Jetties also produced a few sheepshead and good catches of striped bass... Sea bass fishing on wrecks was very good, but keeper ratio remained high... In Delaware, shark fishing was excellent for anglers at the Hambone, Sausages and Triple Wrecks... Massey’s Ditch, the Old Grounds and Reef Sites 5, 6, 7 & 8 gave up some nice catches of flounder as did the Indian River Inlet... Morning hours in the Indian River Inlet produced numerous stripers, black drum and sheepshead... The 1st croaker of the season was caught in the Delaware Bay... Surf fishermen battled sharks, rays, skates, bluefish and kingfish.
June 20, 2012 - Windy weather put a damper on fishing this week and severely affected the O.C. Shark Tournament with only 11 boats entered not a single shark weighed... Tilefishing was very good in the Baltimore Canyon... A few flounder were caught in the East Channel... In Delaware, good flounder fishing was found in the Indian River Inlet and at Massey’s Landing... Nighttime fishing for stripers tapered off... Bluefishing was good during the incoming tide in the Indian River Inlet.
June 27, 2012 - Bob Gummer caught a 12 lb. 6 oz. flounder while fishing off the bulkhead on 1st Street... Flounder fishing was tough, but 1 boat ended up with 7 keepers in the West Channel... Hugh Thomas Cropper caught a 15.4 lb. bluefish at the Tea Cup... Large bluefish were also caught around the Rt. 50 Bridge... Sea bass fishing improved at ocean reefs and wrecks... Yellowfin tuna continued to bite in 50 to 75 fathoms in the Baltimore and Wilmington Canyons with boats averaging between 6 and 12 fish per trip... A few bluefins showed up in 20 to 40 fathoms near the Dump Site, Chicken Bone and in Massey’s Canyon... Pat Hurley landed a 227 lb. bigeye tuna in the Wilmington Canyon... “Lady Luck” had 3 bigeyes in the Washington... Wahoo showed up around the Hot Dog and in the Baltimore and Wilmington Canyons... White and blue marlin were released in the Baltimore and Wilmington Canyons... In Delaware, the Indian River Inlet saw some great flounder fishing with several fish over 5 lbs. being caught... Striper fishing in the Indian River Inlet got back on track... Small weakfish were caught at Reef Sites 5, 6, 7 & 8 in the Delaware Bay and from the surf off Fenwick Island... A few sharks were caught around the Fingers... Inshore sea bass fishing was fantastic, but the keeper ratio remains very low... “DA” Buoy provided the best knothead fishing.
July 4, 2012 - Nine bigeye tuna were caught in the Canyon Kick-Off, with most coming
from the Washington Canyon... Yellowfins were scattered in 50 to 75 fathoms in the Baltimore and Wilmington Canyons... Large bluefins showed up from the Crotch to the Tea Cup, but centered on the Hot Dog and Baltimore Canyon... Good numbers of white marlin releases from the Wilmington Canyon down to the Washington... Gregory Benn landed a 50 lb. snowy grouper in the Norfolk Canyon... East and West Channels were the hot spots... Anglers off the Oceanic Pier also got into good numbers of flounder... Sea bass keeper ratio improved... Striper bite at night around the Rt. 50 Bridge was very good... In Delaware, flounder fishing was excellent around “DA” and “DB” Buoys... Triggerfish and sheepshead were caught at the Outer Walls... Summer slot season opened for striped bass and good catches were made in the Lewes Canal and Broadkill River... Fenwick Shoal produced numerous weakfish.
July 11, 2012 - Joe Costello caught an 82 lb. cobia at Russell’s Reef, which would have set a Delaware State record had Delaware had a classification for cobia... Flounder fishing continues to be the best we have seen in a decade, with the East and West Channels producing the best catches... Several boats recorded double-digit catches of flatties, unheard of in past years... Inshore spots like the Bass Grounds and the Old Grounds are also seeing good numbers of flatties... Several bigeye tuna came in from the Washington Canyon... “Reel Chaos” landed an incredible 9 bigeyes in a single week... Susan McCart boated a 230 pounder and the “Reel Chaos” boated 4 eyeballs... Yellowfins were hooked in the Baltimore Canyon... Bluefins were caught on the chunk at the Hot Dog... Good numbers of white marlin were released in the Baltimore and Poor Man’s Canyons... At least a half dozen blue marlin were released in the Poor Man’s... In Delaware, big bluefish up to 10 lbs. were caught in the Indian River Inlet and on Fenwick Shoal... Weakfish and triggerfish were also hooked on Fenwick Shoal... Kingfish and snapper bluefish were caught in the surf... Slot stripers got landed in the Lewes Canal... The keeper ratio for sea bass is back to reasonable levels with “DB” Buoy producing some good catches... Croaker showed up at Sites 5 & 6... Flounder fishing was outstanding in the Indian River Inlet and at the Old Grounds.
July 18, 2012 - Bigeye tuna took the top spots in the O.C. Tuna Tournament... Bigeyes
were landed in the Washington Canyon... Yellowfins were caught in good numbers on the chunk at the Hot Dog... White marlin were released at the Hot Dog and in the Washington Canyon... Excellent blue marlin fishing was found in the Washington Canyon... Bay waters warmed considerably, so flounder were found in cooler, deeper water... Most bites came during the incoming tide... Inshore structure gave up good catches of sea bass... In Delaware, inshore spots such as “DA” and “DB” Buoys produced excellent catches of flounder... Bob Bryant caught a 31.5-incher that weighed 10 lbs. 15 oz... Indian River jetty jockeys picked at small stripers during early morning and evening hours... Lewes Canal produced slot stripers... Small bluefish in the Indian River Inlet... Kingfish, bluefish, stingrays and large sharks were caught in the surf.
July 25, 2012 - Anglers crushed yellowfin tuna at the Hot Dog... White marlin and blue marlin were released between the Baltimore and Washington Canyons... A couple of wahoo were captured in the Poor Man’s Canyon... Anglers ventured down to the Norfolk Canyon for some good tilefishing... Outstanding flounder fishing continued in the East and West Channels... Larger flatties were caught on ocean structure... Good sea bass fishing was found on ocean reefs and wrecks with several fish over 3 lbs. being caught... In Delaware, a mahi was actually caught in the Indian River Inlet... Anglers fishing from the shoreline in the Indian River Inlet and inshore at the Old Grounds saw good catches of flounder... Most of the stripers being caught have been during the incoming tide, at night in the Indian River Inlet... Slot stripers were also caught in the Lewes Canal around the Drawbridge... Warm water has put a damper on tautog fishing... Plenty of small croaker were caught in the Indian River Inlet on Fishbites.
August 1, 2012 - “Bill$ 4 Bills” brought back a 304 lb. bigeye tuna from the Washington Canyon... White and blue marlin were released in 1,000 fathoms outside the Washington and Poor Man’s Canyons... Yellowfin tuna fishing was red hot for chunkers at the Hot Dog during the week but petered out over the weekend... Trollers ended up doing as well as those chunking... A couple of wahoo were caught at the Hot Dog... A 93 lb. swordfish was caught during an overnight trip to the Baltimore Canyon... A 69 lb. cobia was landed at Great Gull?Shoal... Ocean structure was loaded with sea bass and flounder this week... The East Channel and along the rocks off Martha’s Landing was hot for flounder fishing... The Middle Channel also produced some nice catches of flatties... In Delaware, anglers had good luck with flounder at the Star Site Reef and in the ocean at Sites 10 and 11... Croakers showed up in the back bays behind Indian River... Bluefish were caught on the troll on Fenwick Shoal... Triggerfish were caught at the Outer Wall.
August 8, 2012 - Joe Walker, Jr. caught an 11 lb. 6 oz. flounder at Site 10... Yellowfin were caught on the chunk at the Sausages, but overall was not as good as it has been... Flounder fishing slowed due to bad weather but some good catches were made by anglers fishing off the 2nd Street Bulkhead... Ocean wrecks and reefs also produced some big flounder... Charter boat, “Lucky Break” caught 11 weakfish in the OC Inlet... Wahoo were caught in the Baltimore Canyon... Billfish showed up in big numbers for boats in 1,000 to 1,500 fathoms outside the Poor Man’s and Washington Canyons... In Delaware, anglers pecked away at flounder in the Indian River Inlet, but overall was inconsistent... Croaker were found at the Star Site Reef, and the Outer Wall... Stripers were caught on live eels by the Lewes Canal Drawbridge... Bluefish bite was good during the incoming tide in the Indian River Inlet... Tilefish were caught deep outside the Washington Canyon.
August 15, 2012 - Bill Woody won the White Marlin Open with a 72 lb. white marlin that earned him over $1,429,000... The tournament had 253 boats entered, up 16 versus the prior year... A total of 961 white marlin were hooked... No blue marlin were weighed during the tournament... Bigeye dominated the Tuna Division, with a 238 pounder taking 1st place... Susan McCart won Top Angler honors with 840 points... A 266.5 lb. scalloped hammerhead shark was caught to set a new Maryland state record... Flounder fishing cooled this week, with some catches in the East Channel... Croaker were snapping behind Bahia Marina... The South Jetty produced good catches of striped bass on spot and mullet... Yellowfin bite died... In Delaware, flounder fishing in the Indian River Inlet was scattered... Gulp! artificial baits continued to be the top producer... Flounder were snapping at Reef 8, the Star Site Reef, “DB” Buoy and Reef Sites 10 & 11... Slot stripers were caught in Canary Creek... Good numbers of croaker were landed in the Indian River Inlet... Snapper bluefish were found under birds at the Outer Wall.
August 22, 2012 - Yellowfin tuna were scattered in 40 to 70 fathoms inside the Poor Man’s Canyon... Bigeye tuna were hooked in 200 fathoms in the Washington... Blue marlin were released in the Poor Man’s and Washington Canyons... The rocks off Martha’s Landing produced good catches of flounder for those fishing with live spot and mullet... Anglers found larger flounder on inshore wrecks... Croaker and puppy drum were plentiful in the bay... A few stripers were caught at the Rt. 50 Bridge... In Delaware, most flounder fishermen had luck hitting inshore structure... Delaware Bay reefs gave up a few flatties, but much depended on the strength of the current... Larger stripers were caught in the Indian River Inlet, but action was dominated by bluefish... Big brown sharks and sand tigers were numerous in the lower Delaware Bay... Croaker were caught in the Indian River Inlet.
August 29, 2012 - Ocean City dominated the Mid-Atlantic $500,000 taking over 90% of the prize money... The “Reelentless” took top honors for their 79 lb. white marlin, worth over $667,000... “Why Not” weighed a 416 lb. blue marlin to win the Blue Marlin Division... 460 white marlin and 40 blue marlin were hooked during the tournament... “Fin-ness” released a white marlin, 2 blue marlin and a sailfish at the 800/800... Bigeye tuna were caught in the Wilmington Canyon... Yellowfin tuna were landed around the 461 Lump... Calm weather allowed fishermen to hit inshore wrecks, where they found excellent catches of flounder... Deep holes in the East Channel produced numerous flounder... Excellent striper bite at the South Jetty... Small red drum were caught and released in big numbers all over the bay behind OC... In Delaware, croaker showed up in good numbers in the Indian River Inlet... Larger hardheads were caught at the mouth of the DE Bay... Bluefish were found at the Outer Wall... Sea bass fishing improved greatly over ocean coral beds... Flounder fishing was sporadic, with the best coming from Delaware Bay reef sites.
September 5, 2012 - Big flounder were caught in the bay, led by a 31-incher caught in the East Channel... Better flounder action was on ocean wrecks and reefs, such as Russell’s Reef and the African Queen... South Jetty continued to produce good catches of striped bass... Sheepshead started showing up around the South Jetty... Croaker were caught all over the bay... An angler broke off a 6-foot hammerhead shark in the Thorofare... Tuna bite was pretty bad... Bluefins were released in the Poor Man’s Canyon... A lot of white and blue marlin were released in 80 to 100 fathoms in the Poor Man’s and Washington Canyons... In Delaware, croaker fishing was so good on the south side of the Indian River Inlet that anglers were getting tired catching them... Bluefish were caught at night in the Inlet on metal lures... Stripers were showing up in the Inlet at night... Red drum seemed to be more plentiful this year in the Lewes Canal... Croaker were caught at the Outer Wall... Flounder fishing was not good this week due to strong tidal currents... Surfcasters off Henlopen Point caught good numbers of snapper bluefish.
September 12, 2012 - The sheepshead bite exploded at the South Jetty... Flounder fishing suffered due to heavy rain and wind with some being caught around the South Jetty... Fishing with live bait was the key this week for catching keeper flounder... Stripers were found around the South Jetty and under the Rt. 50 Bridge... With most anglers fishing for flounder on ocean structure, not many sea bass showed up on the docks... Tilefish were caught in deep water in the Washington Canyon... White and blue marlin were released in good numbers in the Washington Canyon in 50 to 100 fathoms... “Game Over” released 3 white marlin, a blue marlin and a great white shark... Only a couple of yellowfins were caught around the Rockpile... In Delaware, undersized flounder dominated the action in the Indian River Inlet... Small red drum were also caught on clam flavored Fishbites... Ocean structure produced a lot of croaker... Reef Site 8 and the Star Site Reef saw puffers, triggerfish, spadefish, croaker, bluefish, spot and sea bass... Anglers fishing around the Inner and Outer Walls and in the Roosevelt Inlet caught a lot of weakfish... Red drum surprised anglers in the Roosevelt Inlet... Stripers were caught in the Lewes Canal, Broadkill River and Canary Creek.
September 19, 2012 - Poor weather hurt flounder fishing this week... Some were caught by anglers tossing rubber shads under the Rt. 50 Bridge... Better flounder action was on wrecks and reefs... Good numbers of croaker were caught in the Fishbowl... Sheepshead were thick around the South Jetty... A few tautog were also caught around the South Jetty... Marlin fishing was excellent with a few sailfish caught as well... Action centered in the Washington and Norfolk Canyons... Tuna bite was very weak... In Delaware, croaker, puppy drum, flounder, stripers and bluefish were all caught in the Indian River Inlet... Sharks, rays, skates and bluefish were caught from the surf... “DA” Buoy saw catches of sea bass and flounder... Fishing on the bottom around Reef 8 in the Delaware Bay produced kingfish, croaker, puffers, triggerfish, spadefish, porgies and weakfish...Some legal stripers were caught at the mouth of Canary Creek and near the Lewes Canal Drawbridge.
October to December, 2012 -
After the last issue of the Coastal Fisherman went to press, we really didn’t see a good flounder bite in either the bay or the ocean like we expected.
Sheepshead continued their incredible bite around the South Jetty well into October and anglers also tangled with numerous puppy drum in the Ocean City Inlet and behind Assateague Island.
Offshore, it was a horrible fall for weather, which kept boats at the dock on far too many days, and I’m not even talking about the time when Super Storm Sandy rolled by but luckily produced only some heavy winds.
When boats could get out, white marlin and blue marlin releases were plentiful in the Washington and Norfolk Canyons, and the Rockpile produced some great catches of wahoo. Unfortunately, tuna fishermen never got another shot at either yellowfins or bluefins.
Inshore, bluefish were about as common as a State Trooper doing the speed limit and striper fishing seemed to start even later than it did last year, not really heating up until around November 11th when water temperatures started to cool. Early in the season, stripers stayed mainly beyond the 3-mile line, gorging on sand eels on top of the shoals, but in early December, we starting seeing increased activity from gannetts diving on schools of bunker around Little Gull Shoal and the Sliver.
Surfcasters off the beach had a great fall, staying busy catching red and black drum early in the fall and big linesiders closer to Thanksgiving. The highlight was Ben Smith’s 52 lb. striper caught off 3R’s Road on December 8th to set a new Delaware state record.
Two other state records were set this past fall. Chris Wentz caught a 15.7 lb. sheepshead at the Outer Wall and Buddy Masten landed a 6.3 lb. grey triggerfish. Pretty work, guys!
Overall, it was a great year with numerous record catches, good marlin action, fantastic flounder fishing, an incredible run of red and black drum and some big striped bass hitting the scales.
Have a safe and happy offseason and we look forward to seeing everyone at the dock in 2013!
