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Chesapeake Bay Bounty: April Fishing Heats Up with Cats, Shad, and More
Fishing report for Friday, April 18, 2025, brought to you by Artificial Lure:
The action is really heating up in and around the Chesapeake Bay as we get deeper into April. Sunrise this morning was at 6:23 am and sunset will be at 7:46 pm, giving you plenty of daylight to wet a line. The latest water temps are in the low to mid 50s and we’re seeing a warming trend this week, which has a lot of fish on the move and feeding[2].
Today’s tides for Baltimore: Low at 4:08 am, high at 10:46 am, low again at 6:32 pm, and another high at 11:32 pm[6]. We’ve got above-average tidal currents thanks to the recent full moon, so expect strong movement and plan to fish the moving water for the best action.
Up around Baltimore and the Upper Bay, the striped bass season is still closed in Maryland waters until May 16, but don’t let that stop you. Blue catfish are thick right now, especially from Hart-Miller Island down to Sandy Point, with fish coming in all sizes, including some pushing 30 pounds or more. The best bait has been fresh chunks of gizzard shad fished on the bottom[7]. Tolchester, Rock Hall, and the mouth of the Magothy River are definitely worth a try. White perch are also biting post-spawn—they’re running the channels in the rivers and can be found with bottom rigs baited with bloodworm or grass shrimp[2][7].
Downriver, the Potomac near D.C. is providing fantastic multi-species action. Shad are running hot, especially north of Fletchers Cove and the nearby river bends. Tandem shad darts, small spoons, or shad darts on a fly rod will keep your rod bent. Flathead and blue catfish are active as well, with the hot ticket being scented jerk shads or fluke-style plastics on heavy jig heads—don’t forget to add a scent attractant for more bites[1].
Snakehead fishing continues to ramp up in the grassy and brushy creeks of the Middle and Bush rivers, as well as the creeks off the Potomac. Try white paddletails or big minnows under a bobber, especially near newly emerging grass beds or shoreline brush[2][5][9].
Pickerel are still a good bet in the upper reaches of Magothy, Bodkin, and Patapsco creeks, hitting inline spinners and jerkbaits[7].
If you’re heading farther south, the bite for black drum is just picking up around the Middle Grounds and Target Ship—the best bait here is soft crab if you can find it, otherwise clam will do[2]. The lower Bay is seeing a mixed bag right now, with catfish, shad, and the first few red drum and flounder making appearances near the inlets[5].
Hot spots for today:
Sandy Point to Tolchester for blue cats, creeks off the Patapsco for white perch and pickerel, the Potomac near Fletchers Cove for shad and catfish, and the upper Bush and Middle rivers for snakeheads.
Best baits and lures:
Chunks of fresh gizzard shad or mud shad for catfish, bloodworm or shrimp for perch, tandem shad darts or spoons for shad, white paddletails and minnows for snakeheads, and soft crab or clam for black drum[8].
Stay safe out there and good luck—Artificial Lure signing off.
The action is really heating up in and around the Chesapeake Bay as we get deeper into April. Sunrise this morning was at 6:23 am and sunset will be at 7:46 pm, giving you plenty of daylight to wet a line. The latest water temps are in the low to mid 50s and we’re seeing a warming trend this week, which has a lot of fish on the move and feeding[2].
Today’s tides for Baltimore: Low at 4:08 am, high at 10:46 am, low again at 6:32 pm, and another high at 11:32 pm[6]. We’ve got above-average tidal currents thanks to the recent full moon, so expect strong movement and plan to fish the moving water for the best action.
Up around Baltimore and the Upper Bay, the striped bass season is still closed in Maryland waters until May 16, but don’t let that stop you. Blue catfish are thick right now, especially from Hart-Miller Island down to Sandy Point, with fish coming in all sizes, including some pushing 30 pounds or more. The best bait has been fresh chunks of gizzard shad fished on the bottom[7]. Tolchester, Rock Hall, and the mouth of the Magothy River are definitely worth a try. White perch are also biting post-spawn—they’re running the channels in the rivers and can be found with bottom rigs baited with bloodworm or grass shrimp[2][7].
Downriver, the Potomac near D.C. is providing fantastic multi-species action. Shad are running hot, especially north of Fletchers Cove and the nearby river bends. Tandem shad darts, small spoons, or shad darts on a fly rod will keep your rod bent. Flathead and blue catfish are active as well, with the hot ticket being scented jerk shads or fluke-style plastics on heavy jig heads—don’t forget to add a scent attractant for more bites[1].
Snakehead fishing continues to ramp up in the grassy and brushy creeks of the Middle and Bush rivers, as well as the creeks off the Potomac. Try white paddletails or big minnows under a bobber, especially near newly emerging grass beds or shoreline brush[2][5][9].
Pickerel are still a good bet in the upper reaches of Magothy, Bodkin, and Patapsco creeks, hitting inline spinners and jerkbaits[7].
If you’re heading farther south, the bite for black drum is just picking up around the Middle Grounds and Target Ship—the best bait here is soft crab if you can find it, otherwise clam will do[2]. The lower Bay is seeing a mixed bag right now, with catfish, shad, and the first few red drum and flounder making appearances near the inlets[5].
Hot spots for today:
Sandy Point to Tolchester for blue cats, creeks off the Patapsco for white perch and pickerel, the Potomac near Fletchers Cove for shad and catfish, and the upper Bush and Middle rivers for snakeheads.
Best baits and lures:
Chunks of fresh gizzard shad or mud shad for catfish, bloodworm or shrimp for perch, tandem shad darts or spoons for shad, white paddletails and minnows for snakeheads, and soft crab or clam for black drum[8].
Stay safe out there and good luck—Artificial Lure signing off.
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By Quiet. PleaseFishing report for Friday, April 18, 2025, brought to you by Artificial Lure:
The action is really heating up in and around the Chesapeake Bay as we get deeper into April. Sunrise this morning was at 6:23 am and sunset will be at 7:46 pm, giving you plenty of daylight to wet a line. The latest water temps are in the low to mid 50s and we’re seeing a warming trend this week, which has a lot of fish on the move and feeding[2].
Today’s tides for Baltimore: Low at 4:08 am, high at 10:46 am, low again at 6:32 pm, and another high at 11:32 pm[6]. We’ve got above-average tidal currents thanks to the recent full moon, so expect strong movement and plan to fish the moving water for the best action.
Up around Baltimore and the Upper Bay, the striped bass season is still closed in Maryland waters until May 16, but don’t let that stop you. Blue catfish are thick right now, especially from Hart-Miller Island down to Sandy Point, with fish coming in all sizes, including some pushing 30 pounds or more. The best bait has been fresh chunks of gizzard shad fished on the bottom[7]. Tolchester, Rock Hall, and the mouth of the Magothy River are definitely worth a try. White perch are also biting post-spawn—they’re running the channels in the rivers and can be found with bottom rigs baited with bloodworm or grass shrimp[2][7].
Downriver, the Potomac near D.C. is providing fantastic multi-species action. Shad are running hot, especially north of Fletchers Cove and the nearby river bends. Tandem shad darts, small spoons, or shad darts on a fly rod will keep your rod bent. Flathead and blue catfish are active as well, with the hot ticket being scented jerk shads or fluke-style plastics on heavy jig heads—don’t forget to add a scent attractant for more bites[1].
Snakehead fishing continues to ramp up in the grassy and brushy creeks of the Middle and Bush rivers, as well as the creeks off the Potomac. Try white paddletails or big minnows under a bobber, especially near newly emerging grass beds or shoreline brush[2][5][9].
Pickerel are still a good bet in the upper reaches of Magothy, Bodkin, and Patapsco creeks, hitting inline spinners and jerkbaits[7].
If you’re heading farther south, the bite for black drum is just picking up around the Middle Grounds and Target Ship—the best bait here is soft crab if you can find it, otherwise clam will do[2]. The lower Bay is seeing a mixed bag right now, with catfish, shad, and the first few red drum and flounder making appearances near the inlets[5].
Hot spots for today:
Sandy Point to Tolchester for blue cats, creeks off the Patapsco for white perch and pickerel, the Potomac near Fletchers Cove for shad and catfish, and the upper Bush and Middle rivers for snakeheads.
Best baits and lures:
Chunks of fresh gizzard shad or mud shad for catfish, bloodworm or shrimp for perch, tandem shad darts or spoons for shad, white paddletails and minnows for snakeheads, and soft crab or clam for black drum[8].
Stay safe out there and good luck—Artificial Lure signing off.
The action is really heating up in and around the Chesapeake Bay as we get deeper into April. Sunrise this morning was at 6:23 am and sunset will be at 7:46 pm, giving you plenty of daylight to wet a line. The latest water temps are in the low to mid 50s and we’re seeing a warming trend this week, which has a lot of fish on the move and feeding[2].
Today’s tides for Baltimore: Low at 4:08 am, high at 10:46 am, low again at 6:32 pm, and another high at 11:32 pm[6]. We’ve got above-average tidal currents thanks to the recent full moon, so expect strong movement and plan to fish the moving water for the best action.
Up around Baltimore and the Upper Bay, the striped bass season is still closed in Maryland waters until May 16, but don’t let that stop you. Blue catfish are thick right now, especially from Hart-Miller Island down to Sandy Point, with fish coming in all sizes, including some pushing 30 pounds or more. The best bait has been fresh chunks of gizzard shad fished on the bottom[7]. Tolchester, Rock Hall, and the mouth of the Magothy River are definitely worth a try. White perch are also biting post-spawn—they’re running the channels in the rivers and can be found with bottom rigs baited with bloodworm or grass shrimp[2][7].
Downriver, the Potomac near D.C. is providing fantastic multi-species action. Shad are running hot, especially north of Fletchers Cove and the nearby river bends. Tandem shad darts, small spoons, or shad darts on a fly rod will keep your rod bent. Flathead and blue catfish are active as well, with the hot ticket being scented jerk shads or fluke-style plastics on heavy jig heads—don’t forget to add a scent attractant for more bites[1].
Snakehead fishing continues to ramp up in the grassy and brushy creeks of the Middle and Bush rivers, as well as the creeks off the Potomac. Try white paddletails or big minnows under a bobber, especially near newly emerging grass beds or shoreline brush[2][5][9].
Pickerel are still a good bet in the upper reaches of Magothy, Bodkin, and Patapsco creeks, hitting inline spinners and jerkbaits[7].
If you’re heading farther south, the bite for black drum is just picking up around the Middle Grounds and Target Ship—the best bait here is soft crab if you can find it, otherwise clam will do[2]. The lower Bay is seeing a mixed bag right now, with catfish, shad, and the first few red drum and flounder making appearances near the inlets[5].
Hot spots for today:
Sandy Point to Tolchester for blue cats, creeks off the Patapsco for white perch and pickerel, the Potomac near Fletchers Cove for shad and catfish, and the upper Bush and Middle rivers for snakeheads.
Best baits and lures:
Chunks of fresh gizzard shad or mud shad for catfish, bloodworm or shrimp for perch, tandem shad darts or spoons for shad, white paddletails and minnows for snakeheads, and soft crab or clam for black drum[8].
Stay safe out there and good luck—Artificial Lure signing off.