Article by Capt. BJ Pietryak
The traditional tourist summer is over and the beginning of local summer is here! Either way you say it, this means the best fishing near shore is coming. The schools of bunker have already arrived and the predator fish that feed on them such as big bluefish, rockfish, and trout will be feeding under these schools of bait. Sea bass fishing, which has been great all summer, should get even better with many more fish being keepers.
Sea Bass
This season has been nothing short of fantastic for sea bass. Many big knotheads have been caught all summer. As the water cools, the bigger fish will head inshore onto the wrecks. The big fish we have been catching all summer should only get better as the fall weather comes. The best baits for these big fish remains salted clam followed by squid, however the fall also gives us a chance to catch these big fish on diamond as well as butterfly jigs. Many anglers don't have a lot of experience fishing artificial lures for sea bass and this is the time to learn. Using a butterfly jig like those made by Shimano in the 6-8 oz size is a great way to learn these techniques. Most of the strikes will come on the fall down into the water, so pay attention to your line on the way down. Any stoppage of line or change in direction can indicate that a fish has your lure. When retrieving the lure, small soft jerks up and allowing the lure to fall uninhibited will cause the most strikes. The nice thing about these jigs are that they target bigger fish. The bass grounds were the hot spot this week for overall catches and The Great Eastern Reef was the hot spot for big fish.
Flounder
The inshore water is still very warm. In the back bays, plenty of fish can still be found but most are small. Keeper ratios are about 12-1 right now. Some nice size fish have come from the inlet area as well as near the Verrazano Bridge leading to Assateague Island. Squid with shiners are the best baits for the back bay. On the near shore, the front of the Coral Grounds near the Lightship was on fire this week with several fish being reported up to 7 lbs. in the areas of deeper wrecks. Using big Gulp baits on a bucktail seems to be the ticket for catching that fish of a lifetime. On the near shore wrecks, the flounder have been good but not as many big fish coming in as in past weeks. Targeting wrecks on the down current side is reported to be the best option in these areas.
Cobia/Rockfish/Bluefish
The mullet are here and that means the big predator fish will be close behind. Many schools of breaking bunker can be found in the near shore area. Using a live wounded bunker as bait, sent down below these schools can bring up some really big fish. Reports of nice bluefish from the Ocean City fishing piers have come in all week. Many of these fish are being caught on cut bunker as well as bluefish strips and flounder bellies. A few reports from the Rt .50 Bridge highlighted that at night, nice big slammer blues could be found and caught on finger mullet and cut bait. Most fish are right on the bottom so using a heavy sinker will keep your bait on the strike zone longer. A few reports of stripers have come from the bridge as well, however most of these fish are below keeper size. Targeting the bigger keeper fish requires you drop your baits directly in front of the bridge pilings and letting the bait get caught in the eddie of stopped water created by the bridge structure. You will lose a few rigs doing this but the reward is a keeper rockfish or slammer blue.
Surf Fishing
Many of our beaches were a lot less crowded this week. This lack of people in the surf has sparked the fish to come in closer. Now is the start of our fall surf fishing season which is always noted for big fish,and lots of them. Several surf fishing tournaments are usually over the fall, fewer this year due to the pandemic. The 23rd Annual Delaware Seashore Fall Surf Fishing Classic organized by Old Inlet Bait & Tackle is on for September 26 and 27th, check their website for details and registration. Using big cut baits for rockfish and blues is a great way to target these huge fish. Don't forgo the finger mullet rigs as they catch a ton of big fish every year. Casting to the cuts and eddies along the beach will produce your best chances at a large fish. An insider's tip is to survey the beach at low tide to find these ditches and other fishing hot spots.
Clams and Crab
Clamming remains great as always on the beaches of the Assateague Bay. Crabbing in Maryland is great with lots of big males being caught. Many are calling this the best year for crabs they have ever had.
So tight lines and fins up! ยง
