Overview Catfishing on Maryland's Eastern Shore presents anglers with a network of brackish waterways, each teeming with opportunities to reel in impressive catches. The Chesapeake Bay, along with its tributaries such as the Choptank and Nanticoke Rivers, provides fertile grounds for Blue and Flathead Catfish. These estuarine environments offer a unique mix of freshwater and saltwater, creating diverse habitats where catfish thrive. With abundant forage and ample cover provided by marshes, oyster reefs, and submerged[...]

Imagine a 17th-century Dutch painting, with rolling farms and a gentle gradient river flowing through a picturesque valley, and you’ve just described western Maryland’s Casselman River. Located 15 miles northwest of the Garrett County FLy Fishing Trail Site at Big Run State Park - about a 20 minute drive - the Casselman is one of Maryland’s best kept secrets for fly fishing. It’s springtime and mid-morning on the Casselman and there’s a caddis hatch on[...]

If you are looking for a way to follow social distancing guidelines and have some fun in the fresh air, it’s time to try your hand at shad fishing. Seasoned anglers say the time to go shad fishing is when the dogwood trees are in bloom. Hickory shad start showing in the upper bay tributaries by mid-March; the run peaks in late April and goes into early June. The larger and more sought after American[...]

In our state of Maryland, September and October brings more than spectacular foliage. As stockings pick up and anglers concentrate on other species, fall bring with it a pleasant shift in trout fishing opportunities for both fly and spin fishermen. Throw in the fact that many Free State outdoorsmen and women are taking to the woods for the annual deer, waterfowl and small game seasons and one can imagine that many of our better trout[...]

Deep Creek Lake Deep Creek Lake is Maryland’s largest inland body of water. Constructed in the early 1920’s to produce electricity, its 3,900 acres and 65 miles of shoreline offer exceptional fishing for walleye, great action on largemouth and smallmouth bass, and an abundance of pike, pickerel, and crappie. As the largest freshwater impoundment in the state, it attracts many anglers looking for yellow perch and bluegills. The panfish here also grow to epic proportions[...]

History In Maryland, duck hunting traces its roots to the colonial era, with settlers relying on waterfowl for sustenance. As the state developed, hunting traditions persisted, adapting to changing conservation needs. In the early 20th century, there was a growing awareness of the importance of regulating hunting to protect waterfowl populations. The Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 marked a significant milestone, granting federal protection to migratory birds and regulating hunting practices. This legislation influenced[...]

It’s hard to imagine somewhere more quintessentially Maryland than the lower Eastern Shore. Deeply connected to both its past and a sense of place, it’s the source of most of our iconic blue crabs, the home of our remaining skipjacks and the center of some of the region’s last working maritime communities. It’s also a place where the land and water are so intertwined, it’s hard to know where one starts and the other begins[...]

In the Upper Bay area of the Susquehanna Flats and surrounding tidal rivers, largemouth bass begin to stir in March. Yellow perch spawn in early March depending on the weather. The hungry bass eat yellow perch fry since the colorful perch are the first species to hatch in the upper reaches of the bay’s tidal tributaries. White perch hatch in April, then herring, followed by largemouth and striped bass in May. Largemouth bass eat some[...]