Rockfish may be kept in the Bay and its tidal rivers only until December 5, and after that the Bay winter belongs to catfish and yellow perch in the tidal rivers, tautog off Ocean City and, on the ocean side, striped bass of 28 to 31 inches. Western Maryland's Delayed Harvest water is catch and release from October 1, the spring trout stocking starts in February in the milder counties, and Deep Creek Lake gives walleye through the ice in a cold year.
What to fish for in early November
The Bay empties of its migrants and the fishing contracts into deep water. The big striped bass feed their way down the channel edges into December, and after them the fish that matter are the ones that never leave: blue catfish in every tidal river, perch on the deep river edges and the reservoir largemouth, slow and deep. The ocean side keeps its tautog, the mountain lakes freeze in a cold winter, and the year turns over in late February, when the yellow perch start their run.
Striped Bass
Big fish feed hard on the channel edges and the lumps as the water cools early in the quarter, and the smaller ones settle into the deep holes for the winter once the migrants have gone.
Where. The channel edges of the middle and lower Bay and the mouths of the Choptank and the Patuxent early, then the deepest reaches of the rivers.
The striped bass waters we forecast Water Forecast Solomons Island Best Wed, Nov 11, A+Today's forecast Point Lookout Best Thu, Nov 12, A+Today's forecast Blue Catfish
Feeds through the coldest water of the year and has spread through the Bay's tidal rivers, so it keeps biting on days when little else does.
Where. The holes and bends of the Patuxent, the Choptank and the Nanticoke, and the deep channels of the upper Bay below Conowingo.
Yellow Perch
Holds in the deep water off the river mouths through the cold and pushes into the upper tidal reaches in late February, the first spawning run of the year.
Where. The Chester, the Choptank, the Patuxent, the Magothy and the Severn, up to where the water turns fresh.
Tautog
Feeds on hard bottom through the cold, moving off the inlet rocks to the deeper wrecks and reefs as the ocean chills.
Where. The Ocean City inlet jetties early, then the offshore wrecks and reef sites.
The tautog waters we forecast Water Forecast Ocean City Inlet Best Wed, Nov 11, A+Today's forecast Brown Trout
The Gunpowder's wild browns live in water drawn from deep in Prettyboy Reservoir, which keeps the river fishable through the cold, and small nymphs and midges in the deep runs take them on the mild days.
Where. The Gunpowder below Prettyboy Dam, and in the mountains the Savage and the North Branch of the Potomac, catch and release on the delayed-harvest water.
What changes soon
The next six weeks of this report's calendar for Maryland.
- Sat December 5Last day to keep a striped bass in Maryland's part of the Chesapeake and its tidal rivers until May.
In the last two weeks
- Mon November 2Last day to comment on Maryland's trout proposals: catch and return on the lower Savage River's trophy areas, fly fishing only with catch and return on upper Owens Creek, and two ponds added as put-and-take trout water.
- Sun November 1Delayed Harvest streams turn catch and release in Georgia, South Carolina and West Virginia, and on Big Soddy Creek in Tennessee; those in North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and Kentucky have been catch and release since October 1.
This week's fishing reports
This report covers the season. For what was caught this week, read the people who report on this water.
Maryland is covered every week all winter by FishTalk, a Maryland magazine with a page for each part of the Bay, which posted seventeen dated updates on each from November 7 to February 27, and by its Coastal and Freshwater pages. DNR's own weekly report stops in mid-December and comes back in March. Western Maryland's trout streams get only passing mention.
Where to fish in Maryland, area by area
Each water links to its live forecast. The engine outlook in these areas was generated November 3, 2026, for the 14 days from that date; good hours are the hours at or above a B+.
The upper Bay
Susquehanna Flats · Susquehanna River · Elk River · Northeast River · Patapsco River
The head of the Bay, from the Susquehanna and its flats below Conowingo Dam down past Baltimore and the Patapsco to the Bay Bridge, with the Elk, Northeast, Chester, Magothy and Severn. Fresh to brackish water and a spawning ground of the Bay's striped bass, with yellow and white perch and catfish.
Who reports here. FishTalk's Way North and Upper Bay pages each posted every week last winter, the Susquehanna, the Flats and the Elk on the first. DNR's own weekly report stopped after December 10 and came back on March 4.
Engine outlook
- Best: Wed, Nov 11, A+11 good hours64F measured Nov 3 at SUSQUEHANNA RIVER NEAR DARLINGTON, MDbest run 6h6530 cfsat SUSQUEHANNA RIVER AT CONOWINGO, MDon this water
The middle Bay
Eastern Bay · Kent Narrows · Choptank River · Patuxent River · Chesapeake Beach
The Bay from the Bridge south to the Patuxent and the Choptank, with Eastern Bay and Kent Narrows on the Eastern Shore and the Calvert Cliffs shore and Solomons on the west. Channel edges, oyster bars and the river mouths carry most of the fishing.
Who reports here. FishTalk's Middle Bay page posted every week all winter, while DNR's report took its break from mid-December to March.
Engine outlook
- Best: Wed, Nov 11, A+13 good hours64F measured Nov 3 at Solomons Island tide stationbest run 13h
The lower Bay in Maryland
Point Lookout · Potomac River mouth · Tangier Sound · Smith Island · Crisfield
Maryland's Bay south of the Patuxent to the Virginia line: Point Lookout at the mouth of the Potomac, Tangier Sound, Smith Island and Crisfield, saltier water and grass flats where speckled trout and redfish reach into Maryland.
Who reports here. FishTalk's Lower Bay page posted a dated update every week all winter, seventeen in all from November 7 to February 27.
Engine outlook
- Best: Thu, Nov 12, A+13 good hours63F measured Nov 3 at Lewisetta tide stationbest run 7h
Ocean City and the coastal bays
Ocean City · Ocean City Inlet · Assateague · Assawoman Bay · Sinepuxent Bay
The ocean front from Fenwick Island and Ocean City south to Assateague, with the Ocean City inlet and the shallow coastal bays, Assawoman, Isle of Wight, Sinepuxent and Chincoteague, behind the barrier island.
Who reports here. FishTalk's weekly page for the coast named Ocean City in three of last winter's four months and the national seashore in two.
Engine outlook
- Best: Wed, Nov 11, A+10 good hours61F measured Nov 3 at Ocean City Inlet tide stationbest run 10h
Western Maryland
Deep Creek Lake · Savage River · Youghiogheny River · North Branch Potomac River · Casselman River
The mountain counties, Garrett and Allegany, with Deep Creek Lake, the Savage and the Youghiogheny, the North Branch of the Potomac below Jennings Randolph, and the upper Potomac's smallmouth water running down toward Washington.
Who reports here. FishTalk's Freshwater page named Deep Creek Lake in three winter months and the upper Potomac in some weeks; nobody reports the western trout streams. No trout are stocked here in winter, and the spring stocking reaches the milder counties first.
Engine outlook
- Its best day in this outlook has passed.
Central Maryland and the reservoirs
Loch Raven Reservoir · Prettyboy Reservoir · Liberty Reservoir · Triadelphia Reservoir · Gunpowder Falls
The reservoirs that supply Baltimore and Washington, Loch Raven, Prettyboy and Liberty north and west of Baltimore and Triadelphia and Rocky Gorge on the Patuxent, with the Gunpowder below Prettyboy Dam, a cold, wild brown trout river, and the Patapsco valley, bass, pike, crappie and trout water through the cold months.
Who reports here. FishTalk's freshwater report ran weekly through last winter for Maryland and Virginia, but it names these waters as a group: on January 22 the larger lakes were offering winter largemouth, slow and deep. DNR's own weekly report stopped on December 10.
Engine outlook
- Its best day in this outlook has passed.
The rules from November to February
What changed this time
- New since June 8, 2026: yellow perch are five a day in all tidal waters and in nontidal streams and rivers, half the old tidal limit, ahead of the late-winter perch run. The state's online code still read ten on October 19; DNR's changes page is the current rule.
- New since August 3, 2026: red drum are three a day, from 18 to 26 inches, where the limit had been one a day up to 27 inches.
- The Bay striped bass season set this year closes on December 5 and reopens in May.
- Pending, with comments due on November 2: the lower Savage River's trophy areas would become catch and return, upper Owens Creek catch and return with fly fishing only, and Governors Bridge Pond and Waterworks Park Pond put-and-take trout waters.
- DNR's weekly Maryland Fishing Report takes a winter break: last winter its last issue was December 10 and the next came on March 4.
Read on October 19, 2026, from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources (its licensing and regulation pages, its changes to fishing regulations page, its public notices, its trout stocking pages and its fishing report) and from the Code of Maryland Regulations.
Licenses, and which state's rules apply
- Anyone 16 or older needs an angler's license for Maryland's nontidal waters and a trout stamp to fish for trout there, and a Chesapeake Bay and coastal sport fishing license for the Bay, its tidal rivers, the coastal bays and the ocean to three miles. Both run a year from purchase. Anglers under 16 and anglers on a licensed charter boat need no tidal license, and a Virginia, Potomac River Fisheries Commission or District of Columbia tidal license counts where Maryland has declared it reciprocal. Anglers fishing tidal water from their own waterfront register free instead.
Bait, gear and fish you cannot keep
- A striped bass may not be gaffed; land it by hand or with a dip net. While a Bay striped bass season is open, no striped bass may be kept aboard between midnight and 5 a.m. on the Bay and its tidal rivers. Felt-soled waders and wading shoes are banned.
Lakes, ponds and rivers
- Trout water without special rules allows 2 trout a day all year, and put-and-take water 5 a day with no minimum size. Delayed-harvest waters are catch and release from October 1, no bait, scented lures or barbed hooks: through May 31 on Group I waters such as Town Creek and the South Branch Patapsco, and through June 15 on the Casselman, the North Branch Potomac in Potomac State Forest and the Youghiogheny below Friendsville.
- Yellow perch are 5 a day in all tidal waters and in nontidal streams and rivers.
Salt water
- In the Chesapeake Bay and its tidal rivers, including the Maryland tributaries of the Potomac, striped bass may be kept from June 1 through December 5, 1 a day from 19 to 24 inches, and not again until May. In the Atlantic Ocean, the coastal bays and their tributaries they are 1 a day from 28 to 31 inches.
- Red drum are 3 a day, from 18 to 26 inches.
Read on these agency pages: Maryland Code, Natural Resources Article 4-604: angler's license (nontidal waters), Maryland Code, Natural Resources Article 4-745: Chesapeake Bay and coastal sport fishing license, Maryland DNR: Trout Stocking Frequently Asked Questions, COMAR 08.02.15.12: Striped Bass General Restrictions, Maryland DNR: Trout Stocking (with the special management area rules), Maryland DNR: Trout Fishing in Maryland, COMAR 08.02.11.01: Trout Fishing and Management Areas, Maryland DNR: Changes to Fishing Regulations, COMAR 08.02.15.09: Recreational and Charter Boat Striped Bass Fishery in the Chesapeake Bay and Its Tidal Tributaries, Maryland DNR public notice: 2026 Atlantic Coast Recreational and Charter Boat Striped Bass Fishery (effective January 1, 2026), COMAR 08.02.05.16: Red Drum.
The season at a glance
What these months usually do
Each lake's own seasonal curve, the one the engine scores the lake on: what these dates usually do, modeled rather than measured, and not a forecast for this year.
| Water | Nov 1 | Dec 1 | Jan 1 | Feb 1 | Feb 28 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deep Creek Lake | 54F | 45F | 37F | 35F | 36F |
| Loch Raven Reservoir | 59F | 47F | 40F | 39F | 42F |
Each river's own gauge: its average for these dates across the years it has recorded, measured, and not a forecast for this year.
| Water | Nov 1 | Dec 1 | Jan 1 | Feb 1 | Feb 28 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Susquehanna River at ConowingoSUSQUEHANNA RIVER NEAR DARLINGTON, MD, 2014 to 2026 | 59F | 47F | 40F | 38F | 42F |
The moon from November to February
| Month | New moon | Full moon |
|---|---|---|
| November 2026 | Mon, Nov 9 | Tue, Nov 24 |
| December 2026 | Tue, Dec 8 | Wed, Dec 23 |
| January 2027 | Thu, Jan 7 | Fri, Jan 22 |
| February 2027 | Sat, Feb 6 | Sat, Feb 20 |
The U.S. Naval Observatory's dates, on local time.
Daylight in each area from November to February
Worked out for one place in each area, on its own clock.
| Area | Shortest day | Earliest sunset | Latest sunrise |
|---|---|---|---|
| The upper Bayat Susquehanna River at Conowingo | 9h 22m, Dec 21 | 4:42pm, around Dec 8 | 7:27am, around Jan 5 |
| The middle Bayat Solomons Island | 9h 30m, Dec 21 | 4:47pm, around Dec 7 | 7:24am, around Jan 5 |
| The lower Bay in Marylandat Point Lookout | 9h 31m, Dec 21 | 4:47pm, around Dec 7 | 7:23am, around Jan 5 |
| Ocean City and the coastal baysat Ocean City Inlet | 9h 29m, Dec 21 | 4:41pm, around Dec 7 | 7:19am, around Jan 5 |
| Western Marylandat Deep Creek Lake | 9h 23m, Dec 21 | 4:55pm, around Dec 8 | 7:39am, around Jan 4 |
| Central Maryland and the reservoirsat Loch Raven Reservoir | 9h 23m, Dec 21 | 4:44pm, around Dec 8 | 7:28am, around Jan 4 |
The lowest tides from November to February
| Station | Lowest, Nov | Lowest, Dec | Lowest, Jan | Lowest, Feb | Biggest range |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solomons Island | -0.2 ftThu, Nov 26, 8:53am | -0.5 ftFri, Dec 25, 8:41am | -0.6 ftSat, Jan 23, 8:32am | -0.5 ftSat, Feb 20, 7:27am | 1.7 ftDec 24 |
| Point Lookout | -0.2 ftThu, Nov 26, 7:24am | -0.4 ftThu, Dec 24, 6:17am | -0.5 ftFri, Jan 22, 6:25am | -0.4 ftSat, Feb 20, 6:29am | 2.0 ftNov 25 |
| Ocean City Inlet | -0.3 ftThu, Nov 26, 1:56am | -0.6 ftFri, Dec 25, 1:44am | -0.8 ftSat, Jan 23, 1:35am | -0.7 ftSun, Feb 21, 1:25am | 3.4 ftJan 23 |
NOAA's predictions, in feet above the average of each day's lower low tide, so a minus tide falls below it. Wind and air pressure move the water off the prediction.