There is a true gem in St. Mary’s County when it comes to fishing and that is St. Mary’s Lake. Nested within St. Mary’s State Park’s 2,200 acres of mainly undeveloped lands, the lake encompasses 250 acres of fishing habitat for a great assortment of fish species including bluegill, crappie, largemouth bass, redear sunfish, chain pickerel and yellow perch. The park offers a modern comfort station, picnic tables, playground, boat launch ramps and a large[...]

Among the many Eastern Shore ponds, Smithville Lake stands out as one of the more productive waters, offering fly fishers with an assortment of fish species to target. Its populations of largemouth bass, bluegill, crappie and chain pickerel provide for year round fishing opportunities. During the winter months, fly fishers can cast for those toothy top predator chain pickerel even when the waters are too cold for other fish species. With the onset of spring[...]

Taking smallmouth bass with popping bugs is some of the most exciting fishing available. The strike is explosive and there is the added benefit that poppers take some of the largest bass. The Potomac River in Washington County provides exactly these types of prime smallmouth bass fly fishing opportunities given its wide, shallow nature with lots of rock ledges running across the river leading to riffles and long pools. Walking the footpath alongside the C&O[...]

As you head down the hill towards the shoreline and launch ramps along Piney Run Reservoir, you will automatically be wondering “where do I want to start fishing?” Piney Run Park and the Reservoir gives you a lot of choices in terms of where to fish and what to fish for. First, where to fish. You can fly fish from the shoreline in the immediate area around the boat launch ramps as well as from[...]

Protected by the Patapsco Valley State Park, the Patapsco River offers a great fly fishing experience for those just starting to pick up the fly rod as well as those who have been fly fishing for decades. The State Park provides multiple points to access the river, each with parking, and the river itself is easy to fish from shore or by wading in the gentle currents. In the spring, you can cast for the[...]

Kent County offers some of the best access to great places to fly fish along the upper Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay and up into the Chester River. Fly fishers launching from Rock Hall will find themselves immediately in productive Chesapeake Bay waters with options to head up the Eastern Shore towards Tolchester Beach and fish the multitude of tidal creeks further up Bay. From the boat launch at Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge[...]

Located within commuting distance of much of Maryland, you will find a beautiful trout stream and a great place to experience fly fishing on Gunpowder Falls. Naturally breeding brown trout populations, combined with continual cold water reservoir releases, yields year round fly fishing opportunities. This unique tailwater, located in Baltimore County, provides miles of trout fishing including the 7.2 miles of catch and release fishing only area which is the focus of this Trail site[...]

Conveniently located just off Route 2 in Calvert County, this small farm pond was donated by Harry and Grace Hutchins for public fishing access. With an open shoreline surrounding the pond, you can easily fly fish all areas of the pond. During the spring, the pond is stocked with rainbow trout by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, providing for a unique fishing experience. In addition, during the spring, summer and fall, fly fishers can[...]

The ride over to Smith Island from Crisfield alone is worth traveling to this Trail site, whether by ferry or mailboat or your own boat. You can even make arrangements for the transport of your own kayak or rent one on the Island. Be sure to make time to explore the Island and its towns, but don’t forget you also made the trip to hook into the striped bass, speckled trout, redfish, flounder, and bluefish[...]