Waterlands

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BluefishShoulder season

Cape · Maryland

Booby Point

39.29°N · 76.38°W · Cape · Chesapeake Bay from Pooles Island to Sandy Point MD

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Best score today · 8 AM · Bluefish

74/100Great
Now
539 PM EDT
Best window
10 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Low0.8 ft

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 9 PM · now

Time9PNOW
Score53Good
Tide0.8 ftLow
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind10 kn Egusts 20 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.9 ft · 2 s
Air temp70°Warm
WeatherOvercast65% chance of rain
Water76°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Bluefish is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with Maryland DNR before you keep a fish.

Source: Maryland DNR · synced today

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Bluefish is best here

Shoulder season for Bluefish · 1 more week at shoulder

Bluefish season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Bluefish · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Bluefish in Maryland

Spot profile

Booby Point

Depth
1-8 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonBluefish

NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.

About this spot

Fishing Booby Point

Booby Point is a cape in Chesapeake Bay from Pooles Island to Sandy Point MD, Maryland. Depth is 1-8 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are little tunny, spot and scup. It is peak season now for little tunny, spot, scup and red drum, and shoulder season for bluefish, Atlantic croaker, spotted seatrout and striped bass. Little tunny peak from September through October. Spot peak from August through October. Scup peak from June through October.

Tackle & technique

Bluefish
Bluefish travel in size-sorted schools and feed where tide pushes bait past structure: inlet mouths, rips, shoal edges and the surf line, mostly in water shallower than 60 feet. Look for birds and breaking bait and cast metal or poppers into it, or soak cut bunker or mullet on the bottom from the beach. Use a short wire or heavy leader because their teeth cut light line.
Little tunny
Little tunny travel fast in schools that pin bait against inlets, points, jetties and tide rips, usually within a few miles of shore and often in less than 60 feet. Stay off the school's path, wait for it to surface within range, and cast small metal or epoxy jigs with a fast retrieve. When fish stay down, troll small feathers along bait edges and color changes to find them.
Spot
Spot school over mud and sand in bays, tidal creeks and channels and around piers and bridges, generally in less than 25 feet of water. Fish a two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and bits of bloodworm or shrimp, and move until you find a school. In fall the biggest fish run out of the sounds past piers and inlets, and the bite can go all day.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Hawthorn Cove

    Bay · 2.6 mi

    74
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 74
    • Red drum 67
    • Sheepshead 67

    10 kt EL 11:18 PM · 0.5 ftH 5:44 AM · 1.6 ft

  • Hawk Cove

    Bay · 2.0 mi

    65
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 65
    • Scup 61
    • Red drum 58

    10 kt EH 4:25 AM · 1.7 ftL 11:23 AM · 0.9 ft

  • Balliston Point

    Cape · 1.3 mi

    60
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 60
    • Little tunny 59
    • Scup 56

    10 kt EH 4:25 AM · 1.7 ftL 11:23 AM · 0.9 ft

  • Wells Point

    Cape · 0.6 mi

    59
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 59
    • Spot 59
    • Scup 55

    10 kt EH 4:25 AM · 1.7 ftL 11:23 AM · 0.9 ft

Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with Maryland DNR before you keep a fish.