In the Chesapeake Bay, Gray and speckled trout were once
plentiful. Their populations have fluctuated historically so the
low numbers may rebound in a matter of time. Gray and speckled
trout are caught locally using a variety of methods including
fishing with live bait, cut bait and casting
artificial lures, even by trolling.
Like
rockfish, trout can be caught in a myriad of ways. I will cover only a few basics which are by no means the only ways to catch trout.
Probably the most widely utilized technique for catching local grey trout is to anchor along a channel edge and bottom fish with cut peeler crab bait. Other baits in the bay include,
squid, cut spot, live spot and even chicken breast soaked in peeler crab oil. In Pocomoke and Tangier Sounds, I usually look for a somewhat sharp drop and like
to anchor so that the boat lies in roughly 42 feet of water. This depth is only a starting point and can vary greatly. I prefer to fish a window of opportunity
that includes the last 2 hours of the incoming current and the first 2 hours of the outgoing. If this coincides with dusk, the fishing is more likely to be
good.
We also catch grey trout in the spring and fall in very shallow water. I like to fish grass beds in depths as little as 3 feet. Again, my favorite bait is fresh cut peeler crab and I prefer
a high tide event. I fish around Smith, Tangier, Watts, South Marsh and Fox Islands. This fishing can be very exciting and speckled trout, croaker,
rockfish, bluefish and drum are sometimes found with grey trout. This fishing is often best from sunset to midnight.
Occasionally, we fish by casting bucktails to structure such as rockpiles, jetties and the target ships found in
the bay. I prefer a plain white bucktail with a plastic worm and a piece of peeler crab.
We catch a lot of grey trout while trolling with wire line. Much of this is accidental while we are rockfishing but we do target grey trout specifically with wire line at times.
The Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel is where we do most of this fishing. We troll bucktails very slowly along the pilings and right on top of the tunnels for
trout. This is hard work but can be very productive, especially if targeting large trout.
Another trout fishery in that area occurs along the high rise bridge area of the CBBT. In May Thru July, small
trout are sometimes common in the high rise area. They are easily caught by drifting strips of squid. The fish often prefer to sit in depths of 70 feet of
more. This requires the use of braided line in order to feel
the fish. Flounder and other fish are caught here as well. I move repeatedly
until my crew finds a consistent bite.
