Local Fishermen Celebrate Opening Of Spring Rockfish Season

By John Singleton

On Saturday, April 16,a Maryland tradition resumed with the arrival of Spring Rockfish Trophy Season. All over Pasadena, local anglers were on the Magothy River before dawn in pursuit of Maryland’s tastiest catch.

“The rockfish is an icon of our state that goes back deep into our history. On the seal of the state of Maryland there is a rockfish,” noted Jack Streb of Pasadena. “It’s a good fighting fish and it’s good eating fish. You can’t do much better than that,” he added.

Rockfish are known to spend winter in North Carolina through the deep channel off the Atlantic shelf. In March, they migrate to the calmer waters of the Chesapeake Bay where they are drawn to the shallows of the Magothy to spawn. During the spring trophy season, fishermen are allowed one rockfish per person, per day, 28 inches or larger, according to the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.

“About 75 percent of all rockfish on the east coast are born in the Chesapeake Bay,” added Streb, who has been fishing on the Bay for the last 70 years. “The others come from the north near the Hudson Bay in New York.”

Last year, “Captain” Jack Streb received the Governor’s Chesapeake Bay Ambassador Award honoring his lifetime of commitment to the Chesapeake Bay as a fisherman and outdoorsman. It was presented by Delegate Nic Kipke to acknowledge Streb’s work to preserve, protect and enjoy America's largest estuary - the Chesapeake Bay.

“Up north, they call them striped bass,” said Streb. “Around here, we call them rockfish.”

Most rockfish are caught using a fishing technique known as “trolling,” where baited lines are dropped in deep water behind a slow moving boat. Most rockfish are caught in the deep channels, 30-feet or more, through the upper Bay.

Multiple lines are often used to accommodate large fishing parties. The lines can be baited with artificial lures or bait fish. Rockfish, however, do not swim in schools, which accounts for the way they generally strike – one-at-a-time.

“Fishing is a great family activity,” said Captain Kevin Kuhne of Pasadena. “The bay is gorgeous, there’s plenty of fresh air, and catching a rockfish and then cooking it up as a family can be a pretty special experience.”

Captain Kuhn is a Coast Guard-Licensed Captain and one of the youngest commercial watermen in the Chesapeake Bay area. His Koondog Charters offer exploration and fishing excursions on a 42' Evans Baybuilt watercraft.

“We have lots of fathers and sons, and mothers and daughters too, who make it a tradition to book an annual fishing trip on the Bay,” summarized Kuhn, whose website can be found at www.koondogcharters.com. “Learning about the Bay in a fishing boat is very different experience than learning in the classroom. For folks who live in the area, fishing for ‘trophy rock’ is a can’t-miss-experience,” he concluded.

In April and May, anglers will be monitoring water temperatures carefully as an indicator of the intensity and duration of the season. Typically, if Bay waters warm slowly, the fishing season will last longer. If waters warm quickly, the season will be shorter in duration, with more intense action in the earlier weeks.