Ocean City’s late-spring run is peaking. Stripers are in the surf and the back bays, black sea bass season is open and the bite is excellent on the offshore wrecks, and tautog are still being caught in good numbers nearshore.
Stripers — Surf and Bay
Striped bass action in the surf and back bays of OC is at full pace. The Inlet, the Route 50 Bridge, and the Thorofare are all producing fish on live spot and cut menhaden. Most fish are running 24 to 32 inches with shots at over-slot fish.
Surf anglers are doing well with cut bunker and clam from the OC and Assateague beaches at dawn and dusk.
Remember: Maryland’s striped bass regulations are strict. Check current size and bag limits, and follow all conservation rules including circle hook requirements when chumming or using bait.
Black Sea Bass — Open and Biting
Black sea bass season opened May 15 in federal waters and the bite is excellent on the nearshore and offshore wrecks. Squid and clam strips on a high-low rig is the simple, proven method.
Best action has been on the 20 to 30 fathom wrecks. Limit catches are common.
Tautog and Flounder
Tautog season has narrowed (check Maryland DNR for current open dates), but a few fish are still being caught on the inshore wrecks.
Summer flounder (fluke) season is open in Maryland and the bite is starting to build in the back bays. Drift live minnows and squid strips along the channel edges.
Offshore
The canyons are starting to fire up for early-season tuna and mahi, but it’s a long run and the consistent bite is still a few weeks off. Yellowfin reports from the Washington and Baltimore canyons have been spotty.
Conditions
Water temps 60–64°F. Variable winds, fishable most days.
Ramps & Access This Week
The Route 50 boat ramp in downtown Ocean City and the public ramp at the Ocean City Inlet put boaters right on the striper and flounder grounds in the back bays and the Thorofare. Surf anglers should target the Assateague Island beaches for room to spread out and the OC beaches near the inlet for the moving-water bite. The Route 50 Bridge and the inlet bulkhead are the prime shore spots for stripers on live spot and cut menhaden at dawn and dusk. For sea bass, you will need a boat or a head-boat ride to the offshore wrecks.
Tackle Breakdown & This Week’s Tip
Striper anglers do best with a 7-foot medium-heavy outfit, 20–30 pound braid, and a fish-finder rig with cut bunker or live spot in the surf and bays. For the back-bay flounder, a light spinning rod and a Gulp-tipped bucktail dragged on the moving tide is hard to beat. Sea bass on the wrecks call for a stout conventional rod, 40-pound braid, and a high-low rig baited with squid and clam — bring extra rigs, because the structure eats tackle.
This week’s tip: Maryland’s striped bass rules are strict and change through the season, so check the current size and bag limits and the circle-hook requirement before you keep a fish. For early-season flounder, keepers are scattered — make long drifts across varied bottom and the channel edges rather than anchoring, and mark the spot the moment you catch one, because they group up where bait collects on subtle bottom changes.
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