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Chesapeake Bay December Fishing Report - Catfish, Stripers, and More
Published 4 months, 3 weeks ago
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# Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report – December 4th
Hey folks, Artificial Lure here with your Wednesday morning Chesapeake Bay fishing report for December 4th, 2025.
We're looking at cool and sunny conditions across the bay this week, with water temperatures holding steady in the upper 40s in the main bay, and slightly cooler around 40 degrees in the rivers. Today's tide at Barren Island shows a low tide at 6:32 AM and we've got above-average tidal currents all week thanks to the full moon on December 4th and 5th.
**Upper Bay Action**
Up in the Susquehanna, the large blue catfish have been absolutely fire. The Conowingo Dam's late afternoon power generation schedule is bringing solid action, and if you head to the lower Susquehanna near the railroad bridge mouth, that's where the biggest catfish are staging. Walleye and smallmouth bass are also cooperating on soft plastic jigs and paddletails worked near the bottom. The deep waters of the Patapsco and Chester rivers are holding striped bass, though they're feeding less as the water cools. You'll want to jig with soft plastics or troll with umbrella rigs – some anglers are having great success with umbrella rigs armed with hookless spoons as teasers. White perch have dropped into the channel waters at 40-plus feet deep – use bottom rigs baited with grass shrimp or bloodworm pieces.
**Middle Bay**
Around the Bay Bridge, striped bass are holding deep when the wind cooperates. Try the mouth of the Choptank, False Channel, and Gooses with jigging and trolling. The mouth of Eastern Bay, Breezy Point, and Chesapeake Beach are also solid. Watch your depth finder for striped bass stacked on the bottom in 50 feet of water.
**Lower Bay Hotspots**
The lower Potomac below Route 301 and the channel edges from St. Georges Island to Piney Point have been holding good numbers of striped bass. Down in the Patuxent below Route 4, both metal and soft plastic jigs are producing. The main channel edges near Cove Point and from Buoy 72 to Buoy 76 are worth exploring while trolling. There's also been fall migrant striped bass activity at the mouth of the Chesapeake – use cut mullet or menhaden as bait from the beach.
**Coastal Action**
Inside the inlet, you've got fun catch-and-release striped bass action on soft plastic jigs and paddletails around jetties and docks. Tautog are crushing sand fleas and crab pieces in good numbers. Outside, the wreck and reef sites are loaded with black sea bass, flounder, and porgies. Tautog fishing is very good on inshore and offshore sites, and if you're heading to the canyons, deep drop for blueline and golden tilefish.
**Freshwater Options**
If saltwater doesn't call to you, Deep Creek Lake and the upper Potomac are producing solid smallmouth bass, walleye, and northern pike action. Chain pickerel provide excellent catch-and-release fun around structure in reservoirs and ponds across the state.
Get out there and make it happen. Thanks for tuning in and don't forget to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.
Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
This episode includes AI-generated content.
Hey folks, Artificial Lure here with your Wednesday morning Chesapeake Bay fishing report for December 4th, 2025.
We're looking at cool and sunny conditions across the bay this week, with water temperatures holding steady in the upper 40s in the main bay, and slightly cooler around 40 degrees in the rivers. Today's tide at Barren Island shows a low tide at 6:32 AM and we've got above-average tidal currents all week thanks to the full moon on December 4th and 5th.
**Upper Bay Action**
Up in the Susquehanna, the large blue catfish have been absolutely fire. The Conowingo Dam's late afternoon power generation schedule is bringing solid action, and if you head to the lower Susquehanna near the railroad bridge mouth, that's where the biggest catfish are staging. Walleye and smallmouth bass are also cooperating on soft plastic jigs and paddletails worked near the bottom. The deep waters of the Patapsco and Chester rivers are holding striped bass, though they're feeding less as the water cools. You'll want to jig with soft plastics or troll with umbrella rigs – some anglers are having great success with umbrella rigs armed with hookless spoons as teasers. White perch have dropped into the channel waters at 40-plus feet deep – use bottom rigs baited with grass shrimp or bloodworm pieces.
**Middle Bay**
Around the Bay Bridge, striped bass are holding deep when the wind cooperates. Try the mouth of the Choptank, False Channel, and Gooses with jigging and trolling. The mouth of Eastern Bay, Breezy Point, and Chesapeake Beach are also solid. Watch your depth finder for striped bass stacked on the bottom in 50 feet of water.
**Lower Bay Hotspots**
The lower Potomac below Route 301 and the channel edges from St. Georges Island to Piney Point have been holding good numbers of striped bass. Down in the Patuxent below Route 4, both metal and soft plastic jigs are producing. The main channel edges near Cove Point and from Buoy 72 to Buoy 76 are worth exploring while trolling. There's also been fall migrant striped bass activity at the mouth of the Chesapeake – use cut mullet or menhaden as bait from the beach.
**Coastal Action**
Inside the inlet, you've got fun catch-and-release striped bass action on soft plastic jigs and paddletails around jetties and docks. Tautog are crushing sand fleas and crab pieces in good numbers. Outside, the wreck and reef sites are loaded with black sea bass, flounder, and porgies. Tautog fishing is very good on inshore and offshore sites, and if you're heading to the canyons, deep drop for blueline and golden tilefish.
**Freshwater Options**
If saltwater doesn't call to you, Deep Creek Lake and the upper Potomac are producing solid smallmouth bass, walleye, and northern pike action. Chain pickerel provide excellent catch-and-release fun around structure in reservoirs and ponds across the state.
Get out there and make it happen. Thanks for tuning in and don't forget to subscribe. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.
Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
This episode includes AI-generated content.