Waterlands

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ScupPeak season

Bay · Maryland

Lecompte Bay

38.60°N · 76.16°W · Bay · Choptank River to Cambridge MD and the Little Choptank River

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Best score today · 12 AM · Scup

77/100Great
Now
574 PM EDT
Best window
9 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.3 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 4 PM · now

Time4PNOW
Score57Good
Tide1.3 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind15 kn ENEgusts 25 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.2 ft · 3 s
Air temp68°Mild
WeatherOvercast74% chance of rain
Water74°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Scup 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 Scup is best here

Peak season for Scup · 5 more weeks at peak

Scup season by week of the year. Peak season for Scup · 5 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Scup in Maryland

Spot profile

Lecompte Bay

Depth
8-10 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonScup

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 Lecompte Bay

Lecompte Bay is a bay in Choptank River to Cambridge MD and the Little Choptank River, Maryland. Depth is 8-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are spot, little tunny and sheepshead. It is peak season now for spot, little tunny, sheepshead and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for bluefish, black sea bass, weakfish and Atlantic croaker. Spot peak from August through October. Little tunny peak from September through October. Sheepshead peak from July through September.

Tackle & technique

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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Dickinson Bay

    Bay · 3.6 mi

    69
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 69
    • Little tunny 66
    • Sheepshead 66

    12 kt ENEL 7:49 PM · 0.6 ftH 2:15 AM · 2.2 ft

  • Hambrooke Point

    Cape · 3.8 mi

    69
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 69
    • Spot 63
    • Sheepshead 61

    12 kt ENEL 7:49 PM · 0.6 ftH 2:15 AM · 2.2 ft

  • Chapel Creek

    Bay · 3.0 mi

    63
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 63
    • Red drum 61
    • Summer flounder 58

    15 kt ENEL 7:23 PM · 0.9 ftH 1:48 AM · 2.1 ft

  • Todds Bay

    Bay · 3.6 mi

    63
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 63
    • Little tunny 62
    • Sheepshead 61

    15 kt ENEL 7:23 PM · 0.9 ftH 1:48 AM · 2.1 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.