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Weather (Click Here)
Before you hit the trails or set up camp, make sure to take a second glance at the weather for this weekend!
Today's Moon Phase according to NASA (Click Here)
Waning Gibbous: "During the second half of the lunar month, the Moon grows thinner each night. We call this waning. Its shape is still gibbous at this point, but grows a little thinner each night."
2021 Camping Reservations (Click Here)
The Maryland Park Service offers more than 2,000 campsites, 120 full-service and camper cabins, and 100 picnic shelters to guests. Reservations for these facilities can be made through a toll-free, reservation service by calling 1-888-432-2267, (9 am - 5 pm Monday through Friday). For citizens residing outside the United States, reservations can be made by calling 301-687-8160. This is not a toll-free call. TTY users can call 866-804-7846.
On-line reservations may be made at parkreservations.maryland.gov. Internet customers have the ability to make reservations on Maryland's Reservation Internet site 24 hours a day/7 days a week. Reservations are available 365 days in advance of your arrival date. New reservation inventory is available Monday through Friday beginning at 9 a.m. both online and in the call center. New inventory does not become available on Saturdays, Sundays, and designated holidays (Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve, New Year's Day) when the call center is not open. Inventory that would become available on these dates will be available on the next day the call center is open. Not all state park campgrounds are open for camping year round. Please check with the state park before you arrive.
Reservation staff will help you select the most appropriate site for your needs. With one call, you can make multiple reservations for your camping and outdoor recreation needs. Walk-in guests at parks and forests can request any non-reserved sites. Campsites, cabins, picnic shelters and youth group campsites in Maryland state parks can be reserved by calling 1-888-432-2267, or 301-687-8160 if you live outside the United States, unless otherwise noted.
Reservations can be made up to 12 months in advance of the date of arrival. Camping and cabin service charges must be paid at the time the reservation is made by credit card, using either MasterCard or VISA. Campsite and cabin rental rates vary. The rates are available by calling the toll-free reservation number. Service charges are subject to change.
Maryland Fishing Report - September 17th, Composed by Lyndsie Pratt (Click Here)
Rockfish: Rockfish are following bait all over the bay, so you can really take your pick of both method and location! Trolling has been quite productive. Most people are still using smaller sized tandems and spoons, although we will want to start to upsize those baits as we move more into the fall. You can troll north of bridge around the mouth of the Patapsco and up into the river towards the Key Bridge, and around and just inside the mouth of the Chester. Or, you can head south and troll the mouth of the Magothy and the Severn down to Thomas Point, Bloody Point and the mouth of Eastern Bay. Further south the ledges near Chesapeake Beach have been producing too! Jigging is also productive in the rivers and around structure in the main bay. There have been a ton of fish stacked up in the Magothy River that you can mark and catch by jigging. Top water in the early morning and late evening is also still on fire in the rivers. Bait fishing is working very well too. Around structure such as the Bay Bridge and any of the lighthouses, try soft crab or live-lining spot. From shore, Soft Crab has been the ticket for rockfish. Alewife works too and will produce a mix of rockfish and nice catfish!
Perch: Perch fishing has slowed down in the rivers a little bit, but is still pretty good in the main bay! Cast spinners or small paddletails towards structure or rocky shoreline. You can also bait fish small pieces of soft crabs, razor clams or worms over hard bottom or structure, try the 6 foot knoll or 7 foot knoll! We also heard reports of yellow perch being caught in the Magothy! Try live minnows!
Bluefish: South of Thomas Point, you can still find schools of breaking bluefish with rockfish mixed in. There may be an occasional Mackerel, but we aren’t hearing as many reports of them anymore. When you find those breaking fish, cast a metal jig such as a rain minnow, an epoxy jig or a sting silver and burn it as fast as you can!
Red Drum/Cobia: Both Cobia and Big Bull Reds are still being caught as far north as Chesapeake Beach. Most are being caught trolling. Troll large surgical hoses (make sure that you twist them, click here for a how to video) and large spoons, and troll around 5 mph. Look for ledges and humps in the water and troll those areas. You can also search for them. Look for cobia on the surface and cast to them. Look for Bull Reds on your fish finder and side scan and use 1-1/2 oz jig heads with 7-10 inch plastics. You can also sometimes find bull reds underneath of those schools of breaking bluefish and rockfish, of you might get lucky and find a school of red drum breaking!!
Speckled Trout: The speckled trout bite has slowed down some, but is still on in the Tangier Sound. Fishing for them can be slow this time of year, and a popping cork can be a great way to entice a bite! Use a light jig head, 1/16-3/8 oz with a 3-4 oz paddletail and pop it over ledges and grass beds. Remember that you may also be able to find speckled trout deeper around structure. You can fish for smaller puppy red drum in the same way!
This Weekend's Tide Predictions (Click Here)
Keep an eye on this weekend’s tide schedule. These are the predicted tides for the Western Shore of the Chesapeake from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.
Wednesday 9/22:
Low tide starting at 12:42 a.m. and again at 12:57 p.m.
High tide starting at 6:43 a.m. and again at 7:12 p.m.
Sunrise: 6:54 a.m.
Sunset: 7:03 p.m.
Thursday 9/23:
Low tide starting at 1:31 a.m. and again at 1:22 p.m.
High tide starting at 7:18 a.m. and again at 7:55 p.m.
Sunrise: 6:55 a.m.
Sunset: 7:01 p.m.
Friday 9/24:
Low tide starting at 2:21 a.m. and again at 1:46 p.m.
High tide starting at 7:52 a.m. and again at 8:38 p.m.
Sunrise: 6:56 a.m.
Sunset: 6:59 p.m.
Saturday 9/25:
Low tide starting at 3:14 a.m. and again at 2:14 p.m.
High tide starting at 8:28 a.m. and again at 9:20 p.m.
Sunrise: 6:57 a.m.
Sunset: 6:58 p.m.
Sunday 9/26:
Low tide at 4:11 a.m. and again at 2:47 p.m.
High tide starting at 9:07 a.m. and again at 10:04 p.m.
Sunrise: 6:58 a.m.
Sunset: 6:56 p.m.
Animal Cams (Click Here)
This week tune in to watch the Gorilla Forest Corridor at the Grace Center in Kasugho, Eastern DRC
Beach Cam
In the winter months we all long for the beach. Take a look at whats going on at your favorite East Coast beaches right now.