Striped bass are now making their spawning move up into the Chesapeake Bay. Some will head up the tidal rivers, like the James, while others push up into Mayland waters. Some catch and release action can be found in shallow waters, but the bite is inconsistent as the stripers have other things on their minds.
It’s still cold in the bay. 60 degrees is when it usually happens and we are just getting there. This week’s warm snap should hurry up the bite for flounder, black drum, and sea mullet.
Specks and pups are becoming more active in the lower bay and along the shallows of the Eastern Shore where black drum are starting to show up in the surf. The big reds should be right behind them.
OBX
On the OBX, most of the early action is coming from the Hatteras area where the water is warmer. There were good reports from Ocracoke of slot puppy drum being caught as well as a number of larger fish in the 30-36” bracket.
On the northern beaches it’s still slow with an occasional striper, plus skates and dogfish. A few croakers were starting to bite and that’s a good sign.
Freshwater
In freshwater, it’s shad time, big time. Huge schools of white perch schools are swimming alongside the shad. The crappie bite is on fire in all the major and mid-sized lakes. Bass action continues to be good at Smith Mountain, Buggs and Lake Anna. There is a ton of bait now in the rivers and the big catfish are taking advantage.
