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Red drumPeak season

Cape · Maryland

Indian Queen Point

38.75°N · 77.03°W · Cape · Tidal Potomac from Key Bridge to Indian Head MD

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Best score today · 8 AM · Red drum

77/100Great
Now
565 PM EDT
Best window
6-9 PMEbb tide
Tide now
High2.5 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 5 PM · now

Time5PNOW
Score56Good
Tide2.5 ftHigh
CurrentSlack0.0 kn
Wind6 kn Wgusts 21 · steady
Air temp73°Warm
WeatherOvercast78% chance of rain
Water80°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Red drum 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 Red drum is best here

Peak season for Red drum · 4 more weeks at peak

Red drum season by week of the year. Peak season for Red drum · 4 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Red drum in Maryland

Spot profile

Indian Queen Point

Depth
3-7 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonRed drum

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 Indian Queen Point

Indian Queen Point is a cape in Tidal Potomac from Key Bridge to Indian Head MD, Maryland. Depth is 3-7 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

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

Tackle & technique

Red drum
Redfish feed on shallow grass flats, oyster bars and marsh edges, often in 1 to 4 feet of water, and drop into channels, deep holes and tidal creeks when the water turns very hot or cold. Work a live shrimp under a popping cork or a soft plastic along the grass line on a rising tide, then fish creek mouths and drains as the tide falls. Bull reds over 30 inches school in the surf, passes and jetties in late summer and fall, where cut mullet or a live crab on the bottom is the standard approach.
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

  • Stump Neck

    Cape · 18 mi

    70
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 70
    • Spot 68
    • Little tunny 66

    2 kt NNEL 8:27 PM · 0.6 ftH 3:42 AM · 1.5 ft

  • Chapmans Point

    Cape · 5.3 mi

    67
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 67
    • Red drum 61
    • Little tunny 58

    6 kt WL 9:36 PM · 0.9 ftH 4:44 AM · 2.4 ft

  • Sheridan Point

    Cape · 3.3 mi

    66
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 66
    • Red drum 60
    • Little tunny 57

    6 kt WL 9:36 PM · 0.9 ftH 4:44 AM · 2.4 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.