Fishing Report
Chesapeake Bay (middle), VA
Summary: 3/5/26 - The Choptank River holds promise for anglers this week. Water temperatures are still quite cold. The Cambridge area’s recent water temperature was 38.5 degrees; Denton and Hillsboro waters are 41 degrees. Anglers will find yellow perch staging in some of the deeper waters, miles below the spawning areas. Blue catfish will be found in the channels from Cambridge to above Denton. The cold-water conditions do not present the most ideal conditions for blue catfish, but they will respond to bait. Yellow perch will be deep, and lip-hooked minnows or small soft plastic jigs worked slowly and close to the bottom will be a good option. Many of the upper sections of the western shore tidal rivers offer good fishing for chain pickerel. Targeting sunken wood along shoreline with paddletails or spinners is a good way to get in on the fun action. Single inline hooks will help save chain pickerel from excessive damage to the gills if fish are to be released.