Waterlands

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Spotted seatroutShoulder season

Bay · Maryland

Moss Pond

39.00°N · 76.41°W · Bay · Chesapeake Bay from Sandy Point to North Beach MD

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Best score today · 1 AM · Spotted seatrout

74/100Great
Now
479 PM EDT
Best window
10 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding0.6 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions

Saturday, Oct 3 · 7 PM

Time7P
Score77Great
Tide0.6 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind5 kn SSEgusts 12 · steady
Air temp69°Warm
WeatherClear15% cloud
Water70°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Spotted seatrout 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 Spotted seatrout is best here

Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 1 more week at shoulder

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

Spotted seatrout in Maryland

Spot profile

Moss Pond

Depth
Up to 3 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonSpotted seatrout

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 Moss Pond

Moss Pond is a bay in Chesapeake Bay from Sandy Point to North Beach MD, Maryland. Depth is up to 3 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are scup, spot and red drum. It is peak season now for scup, spot, red drum and summer flounder, and shoulder season for weakfish, bluefish, spotted seatrout and Atlantic croaker. Scup peak from June through October. Spot peak from August through October. Red drum peak in May and from September through October.

Tackle & technique

Spotted seatrout
Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
Scup
Scup school over hard and mixed bottom, rock piles, mussel beds, piers and jetties, usually in 10 to 60 feet of water. Fish a high-low rig with small hooks and squid or clam strips on the bottom, and chum with clam to hold a school under the boat. If nothing bites within 15 minutes, move to the next piece of structure.
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

  • Sandy Point

    Cape · 1.2 mi

    65
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 65
    • Bluefish 57
    • Red drum 56

    15 kt ENEL 10:16 PM · 0.5 ftH 4:51 AM · 1.3 ft

  • Meredith Creek

    Bay · 0.7 mi

    60
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 60
    • Red drum 58
    • Spot 58

    15 kt ENEH 3:24 AM · 1.6 ftL 9:54 AM · 0.8 ft

  • Goose Pond

    Bay · 0.8 mi

    60
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 60
    • Spot 58
    • Red drum 55

    15 kt ENEH 3:24 AM · 1.6 ftL 9:54 AM · 0.8 ft

  • Sharps Point

    Cape · 1.1 mi

    56
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 56
    • Scup 55
    • Spot 53

    15 kt ENEH 3:24 AM · 1.6 ftL 9:54 AM · 0.8 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.