Waterlands

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Black sea bassShoulder season

Bar · Maryland

Fishing Point Shoal

39.22°N · 76.56°W · Bar · Patapsco River including Baltimore Harbor

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Best score today · 9 AM · Black sea bass

70/100Great
Now
577 AM EDT
Best window
7 AM-12 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.6 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 7 AM · now

Time7ANOW
Score57Good
Tide1.6 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentSlack0.0 kn
Wind12 kn NNEgusts 23 · steady
Air temp57°Mild
WeatherOvercast36% chance of rain
Water72°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Black sea bass 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 yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Black sea bass is best here

Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder

Black sea bass season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Black sea bass in Maryland

Spot profile

Fishing Point Shoal

Depth
10-40 ftSlope
Structure
Shoal · Inner · Semi-exposedShoal · slope
Season
Shoulder seasonBlack sea bass

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 Fishing Point Shoal

Fishing Point Shoal is a bar in Patapsco River including Baltimore Harbor, Maryland. Depth is 10-40 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads shoal, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

Black sea bass
Black sea bass hold tight to wrecks, reefs, rock piles and jetties, from 15 feet inshore in late spring to well over 100 feet on offshore wrecks in late fall. Anchor or drift right over the structure and fish a two-hook high-low rig with squid or clam, or bounce a small jig on the bottom. The biggest males sit on the highest relief.
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.
Spanish mackerel
Spanish mackerel school along beaches and around inlets, jetties, piers and bridge-tunnel structures, and along tide rips in 5 to 40 feet of water once the water climbs above about 68 degrees F. Troll small spoons or cast metal jigs and retrieve fast, or look for birds diving on bait and cast into the school. FWC calls for a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader because their teeth cut light line.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Curtis Bay Channel

    Channel · 0.6 mi

    71
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 71
    • Sheepshead 66
    • Red drum 65

    12 kt NNEL 11:57 AM · 0.7 ftH 5:11 PM · 1.5 ft

  • Curtis Bay

    Bay · 0.3 mi

    70
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 70
    • Little tunny 67
    • Scup 65

    12 kt NNEL 11:57 AM · 0.7 ftH 5:11 PM · 1.5 ft

  • Wagners Point

    Cape · 0.6 mi

    70
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 70
    • Spot 65
    • Bluefish 61

    12 kt NNEL 11:57 AM · 0.7 ftH 5:11 PM · 1.5 ft

  • Leading Point

    Cape · 0.7 mi

    70
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 70
    • Spot 65
    • Bluefish 61

    12 kt NNEL 11:57 AM · 0.7 ftH 5:11 PM · 1.5 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.