TILGHMAN ISLAND, Md. - Anglers who fish annually for summer rockfish, which is the name given to striped bass in Maryland, in the Chesapeake Bay know that there is no such thing as too much of a good thing.
Yes, there are times when the catching takes longer than it does at others. However, the bottom line is that at the end of a charter trip clients return to the dock with their two-fish limit. What makes catching that limit so satisfying is that anglers catch their fish on medium spinning tackle, rather than by trolling with the heavy tackle that is needed to boat fish during the spring and fall trophy seasons.
During the summer season rockfish must have a minimum length of 18 inches and one of those may be longer than 25 inches. And while the 40-inch monsters that are caught during the early spring trophy season are long gone on their migration run off the New England coast, chances are good of catching a few rockfish in the 30-inch range.
Summer rockfish season is ideal for families and couples, said Capt. Buddy Harrison Jr., the third-generation manager of the Harrison House located minutes from the drawbridge on Maryland's famous and historic Eastern Shore that allows fishing boats. At the same time, many of the hard-core anglers who battle the elements and monsters found in the trophy season often return for charters during the summer.
"Our rockfish - I know, everywhere else they're striped bass - really thrive here in the Bay because this is where they spawn," Harrison said while visiting with some clients who were enjoying dinner in the Harrison House dinning room. "As a result, there is a certain percentage of these fish that never leave the Bay, which is why some large fish are caught in the summer.
"Rockfish grow approximately 6 inches a year, so a legal, 18-inch fish in the summer is going to be a 3-year-old fish. This year the cold winter had things behind schedule, but things have seemed to have settled down and our boats are catching their limit."
Charter boats out of the Harrison House marina offer the option of live lining or chumming for rockfish during the summer season. When live lining, Norfolk Spot are used as bait. When chumming, which is done with either ground bait fish or clams, the bait is determined by what is used as chum.
Live lining is usually productive through the end of August and chumming is productive through the end of October, or about the time trophy fish begin showing up before continuing their migration run off the coasts of Virginia and North Carolina. As all things are relative, no matter if live lining or chumming, catching a rockfish on the light spinning tackle can produce a fight that equals battling a trophy fish on heavy tackle.
Recently, a 10-angler party of 5 husband-and-wife teams took advantage of the "Buddy Plan" offered by the Harrison House. It begins with a full breakfast in the dinning room next to the docks that boast the largest private fleet on the Bay, and boats can accommodate from 6-40 anglers. After breakfast anglers are provided with box lunches and other snacks before departing on the Choptank River for the Bay and their rendezvous with the rockfish.
Capt. Shannon Pickens, who operates Working Girl Charters, a 38-foot Evans Charter Boat, was at the helm of one of the larger boats in Harrison's fleet to accommodate the 10 anglers. As the boat left the dock shortly after 7 a.m. he said some large schools that had been producing big fish would be the target and hoped to fill the 20-fish limit by 11 a.m.
Pickens was on fish within 45 minutes from the dock and each angler was provided a medium-action spinning rod with bait-runner reels loaded with 15-pound test line. No sooner had the first baits hit the water than hook-ups started, and the action continued at a brisk pace for the next 55 minutes.
During those action-packed minutes the anglers caught their 20-fish limit that included six rockfish that exceeded 28 inches, including one 35-inch, 14-pound monster. In addition, four throwbacks failing to meet the 18-inch minimum were caught and two others were caught and released as the limit was reached.
Once again a summer rockfish trip had produced as advertised, assuring that the four veteran and six novice anglers on board will be returning next year. That evening while relaxing at dinner, all agreed the morning trip had been as good as it gets. If you go
For information on fishing charters and lodging at Harrison House, contact Capt. Buddy Harrison Jr. by accessing the website at www.chesapeakehouse.com, call (410) 886-2121 or email budjr@chesapeakehouse.com.
For information on fishing trips with Working Girls Charters, contact Capt. Shannon Pickens by accessing the website at www.fishthechesapeakebay.com, call (410) 714-3173 or email pickensonthebay@gmail.com.
For information on crabbing trips with Miss Arielle Charters, contact Capt. Wade Murphy by accessing the website at www.watermenheritagetours.org/tours/captain-wade-murphy or call (410) 924-9975.
For information on vacation packages and tourist attractions in historic Talbot County on Maryland's Eastern Shore, access the website at www.tourtalbot.org.