At Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, the snakehead prowls the shallows, offering anglers the chance to test their skills against one of the region's most aquatic predators. Here, the snakehead prowls the shallows, offering anglers the chance to test their skills against one of the region's most formidable predators. With its tranquil ambiance and abundant wildlife, fishing for snakeheads at Blackwater becomes not just a pursuit of a trophy fish, but also a glimpse into the[...]
As you can imagine, when a fish has a name like “northern snakehead,” there are going to be things about them that are good, bad, and ugly… but luckily, they’re also tasty. In Maryland, the love-hate relationship is so strong, there’s even a highly anticipated tournament series for them. About the Northern Snakehead First, the bad and ugly – what is a snakehead? As an invasive species in the Maryland area, the northern snakehead first[...]
As summer fades and the first of September approaches, the excitement for the upcoming whitetail deer hunting season in Maryland starts to build. The thrill of the hunt is a culmination of months of preparation, strategy, and patience. As a first-generation whitetail deer hunter, I’ve learned over the last 6 years that proper preparation is crucial to a successful season. Three essential aspects I focus on leading into the whitetail deer season are archery practice[...]
Must Know: The season runs from April 18 - May 23, and Youth Days are April 16 statewide and April 17 in select counties. The bag limit is one bearded turkey per day and two bearded turkeys per season. Written permission is required when hunting on private property unless the owner or lessee is in the hunting party. The state provides thousands of acres of public land located in all counties that can be used[...]
Striped bass, locally known as rockfish, are a prized catch in Kent County. These iconic fish migrate along the Atlantic coast, entering the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries to spawn. The spring and fall seasons are particularly popular for targeting striped bass in Kent County waters. The 2024 spring season begins on June 1. Anglers often find success fishing for striped bass in the early morning or late evening, when the fish are most active[...]
Maryland is home to the nation’s first state-wide Fly Fishing Trail. I’ve had experiences at many of its 48 sites. In fact last spring in late May I was hiking near a trail site along the Upper Savage River at Big Run State Park. I had been hiking for just under an hour - about two miles upstream from the road - in search of the elusive Green Drake mayfly and brook trout, Salvelinus Fontinalis[...]
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[...]