Next Update: October 28, 2009 (By 5pm)

It is said that no fishermen likes to fish in the rain; but some fishermen feel that “when you gotta go, you gotta go”. Despite the rough Northeaster that had a tight hold on most of Maryland over the weekend some fishermen had had enough by Sunday and ventured out to the leeward side of lakes, tidal rivers and the Chesapeake Bay. Oceanside fishermen of course found themselves on the windward but still managed to enjoy some good fishing in and around the Ocean City Inlet from shore. This Northeaster was colder than our last one that occurred in September and spotty light frost was seen for the first time yesterday on the eastern shore. Fishermen that could adjust their schedules have been out enjoying the warmer weather this week and good fishing. The clothing has changed from T-shirts to duck hunting clothes and foot wear from sneakers to knee boots; welcome to fall.

The annual striped bass young of the year survey data has been compiled and this year’s reproduction index is a 7.9; a bit under the average of 11.7. So far this week fishermen have been finding plenty of striped bass action in all three regions of the Chesapeake. Jigging under breaking or suspended fish, trolling, chumming or live lining spot are all good ways to catch them. The bluefish used the almost 10-degree drop in water temperature as a notice to think about heading south to warmer waters; so except for some bluefish with anti-freeze for blood most have headed south. Mary Mahoney of Oxford decided to take part of a beautiful Tuesday afternoon off to go fishing with her husband on the Choptank River and it did not take long for them to find quality fish like this beauty.

Freshwater fishermen will be looking forward to warmer weather this week and the warming effect it will have on freshwater impoundments and tidal waters. Largemouth bass should become more active with this warming trend and baits that imitate crawfish will be the number one choice for fishermen... Colder water means improving fishing for smallmouth bass and walleye in the upper Potomac and lower Susquehanna. Several reservoirs such as Deep Creek Lake, Liberty and Prettyboy also offer good to excellent fishing.

The fall trout stocking program continues this week with many trout stocked waters in the central, southern and eastern regions slated for stocking this week. The trout stocking website is the best place to access recent updates in the stocking program. www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries/stocking/springtroutstock.html The stocking program also includes a number of golden rainbow trout to be stocked along with brown and rainbow trout and really standout.

Oceanside anglers are catching a mix of tautog, bluefish and striped bass in and around the Ocean City Inlet. Calmer sea conditions will encourage boats to head out to the wreck sites in search of tautog and the offshore canyon regions to explore for fishing opportunities.

Don't hesitate to e-mail your recent fishing/crabbing photos and trip information. Send your photos via E-mail by the following Monday in order to be included in the next update. The file should be in .jpg format with the longest side sized at 600 pixels. Please try to keep the file size small, under one megabyte. The photo should clearly depict the angler(s), fish, and ethical handling practices. For information on ethical angling practices please reference the Catch and Release information located at URL: http://www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries/articles/catch_release.html
Include the following information:

• Date
• Angler(s)
• Hometown(s)
• Photo credit

• Location

• Weight/length of catch

• Bait/lure

Important Note: If anyone in your picture is under 18 years of age, we must have a photo release signed by that person and a parent/guardian before we can post your picture. By sending any photos or art to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources you are giving DNR permission to use the image(s) online and in print. You are also giving DNR permission to distribute the photo for non-commercial purposes to other media, print, digital and television for their use. You are not giving up your copyright, but are allowing the photo(s) to be used for educational and news purposes.

Send your photos and information to Keith Lockwood

Until next week,

Tight Lines,

Keith Lockwood
MD DNR Fisheries Service

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