Lower Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report, September 5 Update:
September has arrived and just like that, we have fall fishing to look forward to. Contributor Eric Packard reports some slow bites in the PLO zone recently, with quality fish getting tougher to find at times. That said, he did catch a smattering of interesting creatures, including sea bass and puffer fish. Late this week, Packard fished with a friend on the Potomac River north of the 301 Bridge. Packard reports that the striped bass bite was good. The hot bait was shallow diving jerkbaits, and they caught over 30 fish, including several slot fish. A few white perch were in the mix too. There are several rock piles and other bottom structures scattered throughout the Potomac River where striped bass will be holding nearby. The section of the river from the 301 Bridge down to St. George’s Island has been a good zone to fish this year for stripers. The bite should continue to get better as the weather cools off, and fall is usually the best time to fish for stripers on the river. On the main stem of the Bay, trollers are catching Spanish mackerel and bluefish near the Target Ship and other historically productive areas such as Smith and Windmill Point.
Down on the Rappahannock, anglers are reporting a better bite for puppy drum around the mouth of the river. We had reports from two different kayak anglers who found slot reds fishing near marshy shorelines. There are a few marsh islands near the mouth of the river that are great places to search for puppy drum this time of year. Paddletails, spinners, and paddletails paired with an underspin are excellent artificial lures to keep in your arsenal. The speckled trout bite has not been great in the Lower Bay recently. We can hope that it improves with the cooler weather beginning to settle in as summer draws to a close. Grass beds in the shallows will still be one of the best locations to find speckled trout. Areas with grass beds and deep water nearby are good transition zones to target as well. In the shallows, small flounder are being caught, but there have been some reports of keeper sized fish as far north as Point Lookout. If anyone used to go out for flounder when there was a healthy population, it may be worth going to check some old spots.