UTERBlack sea bass fishing in Chesapeake Bay
In Chesapeake Bay, black sea bass peak May–September and are around April–October, according to Fish Scouter's month-by-month season calendar. May: Sea bass on the Bridge-Tunnel rubble and the lower-bay reefs; squid on a hi-lo.
No note for October — see the months around it.
Black sea bass in Chesapeake Bay, month by month
- JanuaryNot here
- FebruaryNot here
- MarchNot here
- AprilArriving
- MayPeakSea bass on the Bridge-Tunnel rubble and the lower-bay reefs; squid on a hi-lo.
- JunePeakCobia month at the mouth; stripers chunked up the bay. Sight-cast bucktails and eels to cobia on the lower-bay shoals and buoys; chum and chunk stripers on the middle-bay lumps; fluke on the Bridge-Tunnel.
- JulyPeak
- AugustPeak
- SeptemberPeakBigger fish out on the ocean wrecks off Virginia Beach.
- OctoberLeaving
- NovemberNot here
- DecemberNot here
Where to fish black sea bass near Annapolis, Kent Island, Solomons
The biggest estuary in the country: 200 miles of brackish bay fed by the Susquehanna, Potomac, Patuxent, Choptank, Nanticoke, Rappahannock and James, with oyster bars, channel edges and lumps in the main stem, marsh islands down Tangier Sound, and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel's pilings and islands at the mouth. Salinity climbs from fresh at the Flats to ocean at Cape Henry.
Fish Scouter charts 850 wreck, 42 artificial reef spots in the The Chesapeake map area — the kinds black sea bass hold on.
What to use for black sea bass
- SquidStrips on a bottom rig for snapper, grunts and porgies; whole on a deep-drop rig.
- Live shrimpUnder a popping cork or free-lined, hooked under the horn on a #1 to 2/0 circle hook; on a jig head for the bottom. The universal inshore bait.
- Leader30–60 lb fluorocarbon
- Hook2/0–7/0
- Braid30–65 lb
Feeds in 52–78°F water, best at 58–72°F.
Questions anglers ask
When is the best time to catch black sea bass in Chesapeake Bay?
Peak season is May–September. Black sea bass are in Chesapeake Bay April–October. May: Sea bass on the Bridge-Tunnel rubble and the lower-bay reefs; squid on a hi-lo.
Where do black sea bass hold in Chesapeake Bay?
Look on artificial reef, wreck — around Annapolis, Kent Island, Solomons, Tilghman Island, Crisfield, Deltaville.
What is the best bait for black sea bass in Chesapeake Bay?
Live bait: squid, live shrimp. Squid: Strips on a bottom rig for snapper, grunts and porgies; whole on a deep-drop rig. Tackle: leader 30–60 lb fluorocarbon, hook 2/0–7/0, braid 30–65 lb.
Fish it with the tide in your pocket
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