PLO 12/20/14 No Birds - No Problem

[Breakaway]

The birds have been around for the last 6 weeks, so when I couldn't find them today I thought I had a BIG problem. I did find quite a few boats just below the Md/Va line but I felt out of place since almost all of them were trolling and I only had jigging rods. Again I found no birds other than occasional gannet diving but nothing to get too excited about. I stayed there all morning jigging my ass off (while the trollers dodged me to the left and right) with nothing to show for it. Finally around noon I said screw it and headed back towards St Jerome's Creek, hoping MAYBE I would find birds somewhere on the way back that would save the day. No birds anywhere but when I got close to buoy 65, where I had caught fish last week, the depth finder lit up. Finally I started catching (and releasing since I was in Md waters) fish. I had a couple of really nice drifts where I stayed with and caught fish steadily for a half hour each time. Caught lots of fish with some in the 22"-27" range, using mostly a chrome/black stingsilver. I was all set to put the boat away for the year but, who knows, maybe one more trip?

[Chessie27]

Nice job sticking it out!! Too bad the fish didn't realize they were supposed to move a few miles south now.

[5th Tuition]

Good Job Jeff. I know that, "Oh No", feeling when everything looks different than what you have been seeing.

I can't help but wonder how all those fish we saw at 65 will fair as they try to run the gauntlet of nets just inside the Virginia line

I hope the majority get through
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[Skip]

There can be some awesome C/R fishing off PLO / Smith Point in January - way too early to put boat away.

[B-Faithful]

Good seeing you down there Jeff. On my run down our finder lit up in the area you are speaking of. Hindsight, I should have set lines there catch and releasing until we got south of the line. I will likely offer that on Tuesday if we fish.

Skip, I remember that trip as we buddy boated with you. I had two CBAngler guys with me and I think the first 4 or 5 fish were over 40". We had a good day that day. If the water temp keep dropping and the sign of big fish is bleak, I may head to OCMD in Jan.

[Breakaway]

Marty, two weeks ago we had an amazing day fishing just SE of the Md/Va line and saw all of the nets you're talking about. I guarantee the netters had a banner day that day We literally fished within 50' of the nets and sometimes had to go around the nets to fish a group of birds that were on the other side. There were nets everywhere, those fish didn't stand a chance

[B-Faithful]

Thanks for the heads up about them on the water Jeff. I would have hated to lose 15 rods at once

[the reel wife]

May sound like a dumb question but if you catch a legal fish in Virgina and bring it back through MD waters and get boarded how are you going to prove you got it in virgina, because when you said you were throwing them back because you were in MD waters I have to assume you would be keeping them if you werent.

Just wondering, as I put the boat away after 12/15 I just never ran into that problem.

[B-Faithful]

You cannot have fish in the box and still be fishing in Maryland. I other words, you can catch and release in MD and go to Va to keep fish but you better not go to VA, keep fish, then catch and release in MD waters.

You can return to MD with fish in the box. Just don't be fishing in MD waters with fish on board. (Potomac is open until the 31st too)

[5th Tuition]

Do Virginia's nets come out after Jan. 1st 2015; or do we still have to be on the lookout for them?

How about Maryland?
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