SOUTHERN MARYLAND — The heat wave is over, and anglers are being rewarded with very good fishing and crabbing across Southern Maryland.
The white perch are beginning to act right. There were good catches of perch in Breton Bay off the Potomac River this week, where bottom fishermen caught plenty using bloodworms, Fish Bites, lugworms or peeler crab. Lure casters and anglers jigging with Perch Hounders or Beetle Spins also did well in the St. Mary’s River near Chancellors Point.
Mike Vass leads The Tackle Box big perch contest for July with this 12 1/2 incher. 
Joe Hering and Mark Frisco trolled up this keeper cobia Friday on the Middle Grounds. Big red surgical eel lure did the trick. 
Kyle fished lower Potomac Monday morning and found a variety of willing fish. Jigs cast to active schools of sighted fish under large bait. 
Kyle Collins and Friends found big blues breaking near Point Lookout. 
Taylor blues are in the Potomac near Piney Point. 
Trout! 
Sean cast lures from the beach at Hog Point on the Patuxent and caught rockfish and bluefish. 
White perch are finally hitting stride taking small spinner baits. 
Great catch of perch from Breton bay in the Potomac. 
Rockfish from St. Mary’s River this week. 
Sean cast lures from the beach at Hog Point on the Patuxent and caught rockfish and bluefish. 
Rock, blues, trout.
Croaker in the 8-to-10-inch range are plentiful in the Patuxent River near Hawk’s Nest. The croaker are mixed with spot, which are getting bigger each day. Tiny spot and croaker can be found just about everywhere.
Rockfish reappeared in the creeks and rivers this week as surfcasters using bait and lure casters found success during the early morning, early evening and nighttime hours. Midday fishing was much slower because of the bright sun and heat.
Striped bass and bluefish were mixed together in the Potomac River from St. George Island to Point Lookout. The fish were feeding beneath schools of large alewife with birds circling overhead. The best activity was reported along the Virginia side south of Ragged Point.
There are also some speckled trout in the Potomac River along with a decent red drum or two. This fishery continues rebuilding after a die-off caused by a brutal cold front in the fall of 2024 that caught the fish migration too far north. That event affected the East Coast from the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay to northern Georgia.
Blue crabs are hitting their peak. Waterfront homeowners using crab pots are catching plenty of big jimmies, while chicken-neck crabbers are doing well, too.
The weather is cooler this week, and the winds are reasonable. The August striped bass closure is coming fast, so anglers who want to catch rockfish should get out on the water before the season closes until September.
Let’s go fishing!
Tackle Box is located at 22035 Three Notch Road, Lexington Park, Maryland 20653.
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