Article by Capt. BJ Pietryak
Warm days and low winds was the story for this week in Ocean City. Tons of boat traffic and heavy fishing pressure has slowed the catches in the back bays as well as the near shore wrecks and reefs. Good fish can still be found if you fish during the week and put in the effort. Flounder remains the mainstay for inshore and bay fishing but croaker is coming in at a close second.
Flounder, croaker and bay fish flounder in the back bays remain pretty strong. The back bays are full of boats with the summer in prime tourist season. This traffic pushes the fish down and makes catches harder to find. Targeting areas that are not heavily fished are your best option but not easy to find. Spending a day riding around and exploring new areas of the bay is a fun way to learn new locations and also a great way to see the wildlife of the Ocean City back bays. These bays offer many diverse wildlife that many people have never experienced. The wild ponies of Assateague Island are more than happy to make an appearance in various areas. The bays are also home to many birds such as osprey which can be found nesting on many of the channel markers and poles in the bay. Flounder are in most of the main channel areas. The area behind Assateague Island is one of the best producing areas this week. The deeper holes near the airport are always a great spot for some big flounder. Drifting squid strips tipped with a live minnow are your best bait. The main entrance to the inlet is also a good spot and during slack tides is one of the few spots that almost always has moving water. Drifting along the rock is the main area to target flounder however many times the middle of the inlet can be very productive. The Bay Bee reports that their trips have been very good lately with anglers bringing home keeper fish on most trips. The Tortuga bay boat reports a banner season with many anglers bringing home some nice flounder. Mike reports the boat has been so crowded that you should book in advance to make sure you can get your family out on the trip you want. Kevin Twilley reports his clients have gotten some quality flounder as long as they fish hard through the slack tides. John Forman reported a 28.5” flounder on Thursday this week. That is a big fish and will make a great dinner. The nearshore wrecks are also holding some great fish. This week was a very slow drift so jigging the down current side of the wrecks was the best option to catch these fish. A bucktail tipped with squid or a Gulp type bait is the best option. The wrecks at the African Queen have been giving up some real nice flounder. The wrecks at the bass grounds were a little slow this week but I believe the lack of drift had a lot to do with the lack of catches. Croaker, both in the bay as well as the near shore areas, is also heating up with large groups of fish being found. Small pieces of squid and bloodworms are the best baits. The bay area above the Rt. 50 Bridge on the east side is beginning to show some big schools of croaker which make for a fun day with small children.
Croaker are very happy to bite just about any bait put in front of them. At the inlet and near the fishing piers, sea trout are biting both swim and floated baits. Evening hours and early morning are the best times for these fish. Spadefish have also been caught along the rocks and sheepshead in the deep hole at the end of the south side jetty rocks. Small hooks tipped with crab and sand fleas are the baits following these fish into biting. This area gets very heavy traffic in the summertime and caution should be used when fishing. The hole is also well known and many anglers will jockey for the best position making it near impossible to get close enough to effectively fish it. Getting here very early or late in the afternoon would be a smart choice if you want to try your luck. Weakfish are also in the inlet and along several bulkheads. Spec rigs as well as paddletails are the best way to target these fish. The high tide after dark usually produces the largest number of these fish in the heaviest feeding frenzies. Along the surf in Assateague Island the fishing was very good this week. Several large black drum were caught using cut and peeler crab. Glen Evens caught 5 large redfish this week with the biggest one at 47”. The others came close to that being between 45 and 46”. As we get into the later season the surf will really begin to heat up with both red and black drum. Be aware that at this time of year the drive on beaches are very crowded and become a one on, one off after the capacity is reached. Getting there early in the day or late in the afternoon is your best chance at gaining access.
Until next week...
Tight lines and fins up
