Waterlands

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Spanish mackerelPeak season

Cape · Maryland

Wagners Point

39.23°N · 76.56°W · Cape · Patapsco River including Baltimore Harbor

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Best score today · 8 AM · Spanish mackerel

74/100Great
Now
679 AM EDT
Best window
9-10 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.0 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 9 AM · now

Time9ANOW
Score67Great
Tide1.0 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.4 kn · toward SE
Wind7 kn NNEgusts 17 · steady
Air temp67°Mild
WeatherPartly cloudy42% cloud
Water77°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Spanish mackerel 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 Spanish mackerel is best here

Peak season for Spanish mackerel · 1 more week at peak

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

Spanish mackerel in Maryland

Spot profile

Wagners Point

Depth
10-20 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · slope
Season
Peak seasonSpanish mackerel

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 Wagners Point

Wagners Point is a cape in Patapsco River including Baltimore Harbor, Maryland. Depth in the nearest water is 10-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are little tunny, spot and red drum. It is peak season now for little tunny, spot, red drum and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for bluefish, spotted seatrout, Atlantic croaker and black sea bass. Little tunny peak from September through October. Spot peak from August through October. Red drum peak in May and from September through October.

Tackle & technique

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.
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.
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

  • Fort McHenry Anchorage

    Channel · 0.6 mi

    76
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 76
    • Spanish mackerel 72
    • Red drum 71

    7 kt NNEL 10:38 AM · 0.8 ftH 3:21 PM · 1.2 ft

  • Curtis Bay

    Bay · 0.8 mi

    75
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 75
    • Red drum 71
    • Spanish mackerel 71

    7 kt NNEL 10:49 AM · 0.8 ftH 3:25 PM · 1.3 ft

  • Fort McHenry Channel

    Channel · 0.8 mi

    74
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 74
    • Red drum 72
    • Summer flounder 67

    7 kt NNEL 10:43 AM · 0.9 ftH 3:25 PM · 1.2 ft

  • Fishing Point Shoal

    Bar · 0.6 mi

    72
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 72
    • Little tunny 70
    • Spot 70

    7 kt NNEL 10:49 AM · 0.8 ftH 3:25 PM · 1.3 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.