Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

Summer flounderPeak season

Bay · Maryland

Prospect Bay

38.94°N · 76.24°W · Bay · Eastern Bay

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 7 PM · Summer flounder

84/100Great
Now
5211 PM EDT
Best window
11 PM-12 AMHigh slack
Tide now
High2.0 ft

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

Notify me when Prospect Bay scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

24-hour conditions

Wednesday, Sep 30 · 5 PM

Time5P
Score74Great
Tide1.2 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood1.0 kn · toward N
Wind2 kn NWgusts 17 · building
Air temp76°Warm
WeatherOvercast92% cloud
Water74°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Summer flounder 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 Summer flounder is best here

Peak season for Summer flounder · 1 more week at peak

Summer flounder season by week of the year. Peak season for Summer flounder · 1 more week at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Summer flounder in Maryland

Spot profile

Prospect Bay

Depth
5-15 ftSlope
Structure
Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · slope
Season
Peak seasonSummer flounder

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 Prospect Bay

Prospect Bay is a bay in Eastern Bay, Maryland. Depth is 5-15 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

Summer flounder
Summer flounder lie half-buried on sand and shell bottom and ambush bait along channel edges, inlet bars and ocean reefs, from a few feet deep in back bays to about 100 feet offshore. Drift with the tide and bounce a bucktail tipped with a squid or fish strip along the bottom. The bigger fish move to ocean reefs and wrecks in late summer, so follow them out.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Cabin Creek

    Bay · 1.4 mi

    76
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 76
    • Red drum 68
    • Scup 66

    4 kt WL 6:26 AM · 1.1 ftH 11:01 AM · 1.4 ft

  • Narrow Point

    Cape · 1.3 mi

    71
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 71
    • Red drum 61
    • Atlantic croaker 60

    4 kt WL 6:26 AM · 1.1 ftH 11:01 AM · 1.4 ft

  • Brian Point

    Cape · 1.4 mi

    71
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 71
    • Red drum 61
    • Atlantic croaker 60

    4 kt WL 6:26 AM · 1.1 ftH 11:01 AM · 1.4 ft

  • Bluff Point

    Cape · 1.4 mi

    71
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 71
    • Red drum 61
    • Atlantic croaker 60

    4 kt WL 6:26 AM · 1.1 ftH 11:01 AM · 1.4 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.