The fishing has been good to poor or better to worse depending which day you went and where. I’m trying to get used to the fact my fall allergies are going to last until my spring allergies start. Seriously can it get any drier around here? My grass is crunchy brown, leaves are falling, and I am walking around in shorts. Sorry I’m just a little tired of turning on the AC to counter the heat that was on all night to counter the AC from the instant temperature drop in the evening at 5:30 p.m., while my dog stares at me for an hour starting at 4 p.m. because he thinks I am an idiot now and can’t tell time. Feed the pets early the next two weeks, and wean yourself into the new trained time.

Surf fishing has been OK one day and not so much the next. One spot is good then that changes. But as we always say, it is fishing and there is some catching to be had. Spot and kingfish were around Sunday, not Saturday, not Friday but Sunday.

Fishbites was working well for a few anglers at The Point. The southern beaches are still seeing some drum action in the surf from Fenwick to Assateague. That will slow down, then just drop off. Use spot for bait. Buck’s at Assateague has spot. It’s hard to find fresh mullet — they seem to have packed up and left for the season.

Jimmy at Dan’s Bait and Tackle said they spent hours the other day picking through a couple hundred sea bass to bring home 13 keepers. Oddest trip ever. Normally you go out and limit out fast on sea bass. Then you decide where you are fishing on the way back. There are plenty of options when you leave the Del-Jersey-Land Reef area. Instead, they spent most of the day trying to catch a keeper sea bass. They did manage to land a few large bluefish too.

Fishbites earthworm is still working well in fresh and brackish water for catching little sea bass near the Indian River Inlet. This formula is versatile. I’m betting it will hammer stocked trout. That will be the next target when we get a hot minute. Maryland has an amazing trout stocking program. Delaware’s fall trout stocking is usually mid-October to the beginning of November. Get your trout stamps if you don’t have one.

Flounder action is decent in the surf if you put in the time jigging the ledges and cuts. Little pompano are still around, like bait stealer sizes aka the nibblers. Dogfish, even spiny, are around. I’ve seen or heard tell of some speckled trout around. I’m not sure what the fly anglers club has been picking up along the surf at the fishing pier in Cape Henlopen State Park. There is always bait and skate at the beach.

Right whales increased in number this year but four calves were lost to ship strikes and entanglements — the biggest threat to whales and cause of whale deaths.

The 2024 Striped Bass Young-of-Year survey was released by Maryland DNR. It is less than good news, as usual. The release stated, “The 2024 survey recorded 2.0 juvenile striped bass per seine haul, a very slight increase from 2023, but well below the long-term average of 11.3.” Now I get to watch every interest group argue online and nothing change. Recreational anglers need to learn to be responsible for their own fishery and things would be better. I will die on this hill but we are the worst group. Despite the commercial stuff that is an issue as well, we have our own issues in the recreational sector that need serious changes, and everyone knows it. That always starts with self-responsibility to the fishery you are targeting. The DNR folks shouldn’t have to follow around grown adults to remind them there are limits to keep a fishery in check for very good reasons.

For tautog action at the Indian River Inlet, find a good spot and hope for a keeper. Use sand fleas or green crabs for bait. Construction is still underway for the jetty wall fix. It will be interesting to see how that corner is rebuilt.

Short striped bass action has been fun in all the waterways — the rock walls at the inlets, along the surf, and in structure around the back bays and canals. It’s fun to chase striped bass this time of year and figure out where they are hitting and when. The schools move, following food and the current. These trips chasing fish can make for a fun day.

That’s the great thing about fishing in Delmarva and the most annoying — deciding what to catch and where to fish. Depending on the desired target and location this can be easy to the hardest trip ever. That depends on how you want your day to turn out and you still just never know. Planning trips becomes an obsession to some folks and others are just like “we are fishing to catch what we catch.” The latter group usually has the most fun. But the former group will be rewarded with all that hard work. I guess it depends on how much you want to put into catching that one fish. I personally will do both, but prefer the easier day. For example, it is a lot easier to sit there and toss sand fleas to short striped bass than use my fly rod. I think as you get older you just want to go fish and relax more. Or that’s just me and the amount of time I get off is valuable.

Plan your fishing day accordingly, and you will enjoy it the most.

Winter is coming. Look up the Finding Demo Surf Fishing podcast. It’s a great information source to check out over the winter as we wait for better weather. He has a show coming up on excise tax and the fishing industry that I think everyone should pay attention to. It is shocking how many anglers have no idea how some of the things they use such as boat ramp improvements are financed. Many of the things we use in the outdoors are maintained by monies from these excise taxes.