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SheepsheadPeak seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 1 AM · Sheepshead
- Now
- 571 PM EDT
- Best window
- 1-4 PMHigh slack
- Tide now
- Flooding1.2 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Eastern Bay scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions
Wednesday, Sep 23 · 11 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
100Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.3 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
65Wind: 13 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
79Water temp: 73°F, primeLight: NightSolunar: Major periodSeas: 2.0 ftSeason & habitat · Sheepshead
Species seasonality
80Season: PeakHabitat: Structure unmappedDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Sheepshead 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 Sheepshead is best here
Peak season for Sheepshead · 1 more week at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Eastern Bay
- Depth
- 40-50 ftSlope
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · slope
- Season
- Peak seasonSheepshead
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 Eastern Bay
Eastern Bay is a bay in Eastern Bay, Maryland. Depth is 40-50 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are scup, spot and Spanish mackerel. It is peak season now for scup, spot, Spanish mackerel and sheepshead, and shoulder season for Atlantic croaker, bluefish, weakfish and black sea bass. Scup peak from June through October. Spot peak from August through October. Spanish mackerel peak from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- Sheepshead
- Sheepshead graze barnacles and crabs off pilings, jetty rocks, bridge supports, oyster bars and nearshore reefs, from a few feet deep out to about 50 feet. Drop a fiddler crab, sand flea or piece of shrimp on a small, strong hook straight down next to the structure with just enough weight to hold bottom. The bite is a light tap, so keep the line tight and set the hook fast.
- 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
- Wells Cove71
Bay · 3.4 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 71
- Spot 69
- Atlantic croaker 59
14 kt NEH 1:57 PM · 1.3 ftL 7:52 PM · 0.8 ft
- Harbor Cove71
Bay · 4.5 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 71
- Spot 70
- Spanish mackerel 62
14 kt NEH 1:50 PM · 1.3 ftL 7:38 PM · 0.7 ft
- Wades Point66
Cape · 1.8 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 66
- Spot 65
- Little tunny 60
14 kt NEH 1:57 PM · 1.3 ftL 7:52 PM · 0.8 ft
- Seth Point66
Cape · 3.5 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 66
- Spot 65
- Little tunny 61
14 kt NEH 1:57 PM · 1.3 ftL 7:52 PM · 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.