Fishing Report
Chesapeake Bay (upper), VA
Summary: 5/22/25 - Anglers trying to fish at the Conowingo Dam pool and lower Susquehanna River this past weekend found high flow conditions due to large water releases from the dam. Heavy rains from the upper Susquehanna River watershed reached the dam on Friday and are only beginning to moderate this week. Given a few more days, water releases should return to a more normal volume and schedule. White perch fishing is good this week in the lower Susquehanna, all the way up to the dam pool. Casting tandem-rigged shad darts or fishing with bottom rigs baited with grass shrimp or pieces of bloodworm. Some anglers are having good results using artificial bloodworm baits on bottom rigs and it doesn’t hurt to put a little more enticement on those shad darts. Although blue catfish are beginning to spawn, there are still some out there willing to take baits. The lower Susquehanna River and nearby tidal rivers in the upper Bay all have populations of blue catfish. The lower Susquehanna and the Chester River tend to have the greatest numbers. Gizzard shad, white perch, menhaden and scented baits all work well on a fish finder type rig with a 5/0 -7/0 circle hook. Anglers have been probing the backwaters of the upper Bay’s tidal rivers and fishing for Chesapeake Channa, also known as northern snakeheads. Grass beds are filling out and this is where anglers are finding the fish. Casting a mix of soft bodied frogs, chatterbaits, buzzbaits, and paddletails near the grass beds has been the ticket to success. Check the Maryland DNR calendar for Snakes on the Dundee, a Chesapeake Channa fishing tournament scheduled June 7 at Gunpowder Falls State Park. Tournaments like these can provide fun fishing opportunities and educational information for anglers. The 2025 striped bass season got underway last Friday, May 16 and many anglers were out pursuing striped bass. The Chesapeake Bay striped bass season opened downstream from a line drawn from the south corner of Hart-Miller Island Dike to the end of MD Route 21 at Tolchester and south to the MD/VA line, excluding all bays, sounds, tributaries, creeks and rivers. The Chester River and its tributaries downstream of a line drawn from Hail Point to Long Point to Ferry Point is open to fishing for striped bass. An unfortunate northwest wind blew for three days at the season’s outset, but many anglers were able to find a lee on the western side of the Bay. Most reported the best success jigging and casting close to shore in shallower waters, others trolled along drop-offs and channel edges with good luck. Fortunately, the winds calmed down on Monday and calmer conditions are forecast for the rest of the week. Striped bass anglers are urged to report their catches and fish they release on the DNR Volunteer Angler Survey. The information from anglers is very important to striped bass program biologists. Some anglers may be interviewed dockside by fisheries personnel about their day of fishing; and a new pilot catch card project is underway. Catch cards will be distributed to anglers this year as part of the program. See more about the catch card project on this DNR notice.