May 5th, 2021 - Rockfish Season Opens
The stiped bass (rockfish) season opened Saturday in both the Potomac and Bay.
This is the trophy season; the minimum keeper size is 35 inches, and creel limit is one per day.
Saturday morning was a blowout with high winds and small craft warnings, but the bigger boats ventured out Saturday afternoon and had success with big fish. The water was, and continues to be, disturbed, with muddy, roiled up conditions from gales of the past few days, but the fish are there for hardy souls. Reports of fish right at 50 inches came from the Potomac and bay, but the trollers had to work hard for them.
Calmer days are ahead, and if tides get back to normal (the water has been very low all week), and the water clears, the fishing should be very good. The success on the first three days with difficult conditions, far exceeds the past few trophy season openings.
Kyle Clotweir landed this 49 inch, 49lb, 13 oz. striper in the Potomac.
Steve caught this 49 inch rockfish in the Potomac near Piney Point.
The traditional big lures of parachutes with 9 inch shad bodies on both tandems and umbrellas in white and chartreuse are doing the trick. The fish are taking the deep trolled lures with 20 or more ounces; the big mojos are favored.
There are plenty of catfish in the Potomac and the Patuxent rivers.
Crappie, bass and bluegill are eager to take lures in St. Mary's Lake.
Steve Helmrick caught speckled trout in the Honga last week.
Carley Norris won the monthly big perch contest for April with this 12 incher from Elms Beach on the bay near Spring Ridge, Md.