Updated: Thursday, September 17, 2026 · Next update: Thursday, September 24, 2026
This Chesapeake Bay fishing report covers mid-September, when the first cool nights of fall flip a switch on the bay. Striped bass that spend August deep and lethargic move back to the shorelines and structure, feeding on topwater at dawn, and they are the lead target. The middle bay stays full of Spanish mackerel and bluefish chasing bait. Plan around the short first-light window and the morning moving water. I spent enough Septembers on this bay during my Mid-Atlantic editing years to know this is the week to clear the calendar.
What’s Hitting
Topwater stripers lead the list. Expect fish from schoolie size to the mid-20-inch range on the rock piles, points and bridge pilings in the morning, with bigger fish under the birds in the middle bay. Spanish mackerel and bluefish break on bait from the Bay Bridge down to the Potomac mouth and along the eastern shore channel edges.
Cobia make a last showing around the lower bay buoys and the Bay Bridge-Tunnel before they head south, and red drum stay on the lower bay shoals. Spot and croaker are thick in the rivers, and white perch are steady on the shoreline structure.
Where to Find Them
Target stripers on the rock piles and shoreline points at first light, including the Bay Bridge pilings, the Poplar Island and Eastern Bay points and the mouths of the western shore rivers. Look for birds over breaking fish in the middle bay from the Bridge down to the Choptank and Little Choptank.
Spanish and blues run under the birds along the channel edges. Cobia cruise the buoys and the Bay Bridge-Tunnel islands in the lower bay. Spot and croaker fill the Patuxent, Choptank and Rappahannock rivers.
Tides & Conditions
Mid-September brings moderate tides between the moons, with the morning moving water setting up the topwater feed. Bay water runs in the mid to upper 70s and drops, which pushes the dissolved oxygen issues out of the picture and brings the stripers shallow. Expect light north winds most mornings, a calm bay and clear water.
Tackle & Tactics
- Topwater stripers: a walk-the-dog plug or a popper in the low light, then a soft-plastic paddle tail on a half-ounce jig head or a light jig once the sun gets up, on a 7-foot medium spinning rod with 20-pound braid and 20-pound fluorocarbon leader.
- Under the birds: a metal jig or a paddle tail cast to the edge of the school.
- Spanish and blues: a small spoon trolled at speed, or a Gotcha plug cast to breaking fish.
- Cobia: a live eel or a bucktail sight-cast to cruising fish.
Local Intel This Week
Sandy Point State Park is the main public ramp for the Bay Bridge area, with Matapeake and Kent Narrows serving the eastern shore, Solomons the Patuxent mouth, and the Lynnhaven ramp and Kiptopeke the lower bay. Shore anglers can fish the Sandy Point and Matapeake shorelines and the Bill Burton fishing pier for stripers and perch at first light. Striped bass rules differ between Maryland and Virginia waters and change seasonally. Check current state and federal regulations and seasons before keeping fish.
This Week’s Tip
The topwater window on the fall Chesapeake is short. Be on your first spot with a plug in the water at first light, not at sunrise, and when the surface feed fades, switch to a jig on the same structure rather than running to look for more birds. The fish are still there; they just drop a few feet.
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