The locations
Piney Run: Largemouth bass are in their post-spawn pattern, says Jim Gronaw at the park office. Small plastics, such as wacky-rigged worms, are working now, but expect top-water lures, spinnerbaits and crankbaits to become more popular. The fish are running 2 to 4 pounds. Yellow perch and bluegills - both on the hefty side - are delighting youngsters. Red worms and nightcrawlers are best baits. Catfish in the 3- to 7-pound range are being caught by anglers armed with nightcrawlers and liver.
Prettyboy Reservoir: Fishing crankbaits and jerkbaits in 12 to 15 feet of water over points and ledges as well as around the islands has been productive, says Duke Nohe, president of the Maryland Aquatic Resource Coalition. Bass are averaging 2.5 pounds. Water level is down almost 30 feet, so boat launching is tricky.
Loch Raven Reservoir: White perch and bass fishing couldn't be better, says Ryan Ward at the Loch Raven Fishing Center. Target the mouth of Turtle Rock Cove or off the points in grass beds. Use spinnerbaits or plastics. Mornings and evenings are best for bass; white perch are available all day. Last week's best catch was a 14-pound hybrid rockfish.
Liberty Reservoir: Overcast conditions predicted for the weekend should help anglers, says Doug Geis at Old Reisterstown Bait and Tackle. The water has been very warm, meaning the best fishing is in early morning and late evening. Walk the reservoir edge and target bass with medium to large shiners and crankbaits and plastic worms. Shoreline anglers also are catching white perch on worms. Bluegills haven't moved in yet. Hit the points with fathead minnows, maggots and Mini Mites for crappies.
Susquehanna River: Daybreak is the best time to pick up stripers below the Conowingo Dam, says Capt. Mike Benjamin at Herb's Tackle Shop in North East. Go with poppers. Out toward the Flats and the tributaries, anglers are catching stripers. White perch are plentiful, with bloodworms and shad darts the best options. Smallmouth and largemouth bass season reopens Sunday in freshwater, and the minimum size for tidal largemouth and smallmouth bass drops from 15 to 12 inches. Fish plastic worms and tubes.
Gunpowder River: The water temperature is 60 degrees and the water is clear and low (6-16 inches), says Rocky Cox at Backwater Angler in Monkton. Caddis, size 16 and 18, and sulphers, size 12 to 16, will get the job done. Midday, float terrestrials. Best stretch of water is from Masemore Road to York Road.
Middle River: Anglers will find plenty of bass, catfish, white perch and yellow perch, says Bill Horstman at The Fishin' Shop on Pulaski Highway. Go with spinnerbaits, buzzbaits, flukes, jigs and small plastics. Two anglers called to report good bottom fishing for catfish in the Bird River at the mouth of Railroad Creek. Eeling for rockfish remains good in the Pooles Island area.
Patapsco River: If thunderstorms hold off, fishing should be decent this weekend, says Hank Holland, at The Fisherman's Edge in Catonsville. Water temperatures are down, and overcast conditions should allow fishing through a greater portion of the day. If the water remains a bit off color, stay away from the poppers and go with underwater streamers such as woolly buggers and Mickey Finns in size 8 or a pearl-colored or chartreuse crystal bugger. "If you see them looking at it but not taking it, drop down a size," he advises.
Triadelphia and Rocky Gorge reservoirs: Anglers are catching the three Cs - crappies, carp and catfish - at the two reservoirs, says Officer Hector Padilla, the WSSC officer at Brighton Dam. Use minnows for the crappies and catfish, nightcrawlers for carp. Plenty of bass are still out there. Plastic worms and crankbaits are effective, with top water lures beginning to come on in the morning.
Chesapeake Bay: Cove Point remains a productive site for chumming for rockfish, says Capt. Jim Brincefield. Razor clams and bunker chunks are the best baits. The West River lumps and Holland Point Bar are showing some promise for bottom fishing for croaker, gray trout and white perch. Peelers, squid and bloodworms are effective. Stripers and catfish abound near Hart Miller Island. Use bucktails for the rocks and nightcrawlers for the cats. Also try chumming at the points - Love, Sandy and Swan - if you can stand the weekend crowds. Bunker and chicken livers are doing the trick. Commercial watermen near Hooper's Island are reporting catches of black drum, so perhaps the season isn't a total loss yet.
Ocean City: The nighttime is the right time, at Oceanic and Shantytown piers and the U.S. 50 bridge, says Sue Foster of Oyster Bay Tackle. Bucktails with peeler crabs, and plastic twisters are attracting rockfish and trout. Trout also are hitting Got-cha Plugs and spec rigs. Fish the east end of the bridge on the incoming tide. Anglers at the Route 90 bridge have reported catches of black drum near the pilings, using frozen peeler crabs for bait. The best flounder action still seems to be in Sinepuxent Bay. Minnows and squid combos are best bait. Surf anglers at Assateague are catching rays and skates, but warming temperatures have slowed the action at Ocean City. Offshore, the fishing has shifted from dolphin to sharks, just in time for the Ocean City Shark Tournament, which runs through tomorrow. You'll have to cruise farther offshore to find pockets of warm water.
Potomac River: The water temperature is in the mid-70s and the grass is thick, says guide Ken Penrod of Life Outdoors Unlimited. Work the beds in the main river during mid-tides. Back off a bit from the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and fish deep with crankbaits. Also target the older bridge foundations in the District, the Reagan National Airport dropoff and the Washington Channel dropoff near Fort McNair.