Pocomoke River Bass Fishing

The Eastern Shore of Maryland has several fantastic rivers for bass fishing and for over 25 years I have fished the Pocomoke, Wicomico, Nanticoke and Choptank Rivers. I got my start by fishing bass tournaments on these waters in the 80s’ and 90’s and made the state bass fishing team several years.

For the last 16 years I have been a Coast Guard Licensed Captain and fishing guide for fresh and saltwater. We target largemouth bass and other freshwater fish in the Pocomoke.

The Pocomoke River is my most requested fishing location and hopefully this article will give readers a few pointers on fishing there. We take fishing charters year round on the Pocomoke so let’s start in winter. Everything after thanksgiving to around the second week in March is winter fishing this far north and is surprisingly very good. A bass is a cold-blooded creature so their body temperature is the same as the water temperature for the most part.

Largemouth bass avoid heavy current and prefer backwater areas where they can suspend using their air bladder and conserving energy. They might only feed a couple of days a week due to their slow metabolism so slower presentations with your baits are critical. Target any areas like oxbows, marinas, cuts or ponds you can access that has warmer water and low current. This is when a water temperature gauge will really help. The sun hits the north and northwest shores most on the river in winter so target these areas looking for warmer water.My pick for baits would be spin baits, crank baits, jigs and senkos.

I call spring fishing late March, April, May and June. This is all phases of the spawn. Find areas you suspect of being spawning areas like coves, flats and backwater areas and find deeper water with cover leading to that area. This is called pre-spawn and can be great. Water temperatures for pre-spawn, spawn and post-spawn can vary greatly so I suggest checking the spawning areas and migration routes leading to and away from them on every trip this time of year. Keep in mind bass prefer a sandy or hard bottom and must have sunlight to aid in hatching the eggs. Firm river bottoms are rare on this river but bass will make due with the best they can find. The best lures during this period are senkos, tubes, lizards and flukes.

Summer is my favorite fishing on the Pocomoke River for the fish are very active. This river is tidal and in my opinion a good low tide is at least three feet down. In summer this river is notorious for only dropping a foot or less and quickly filling back to high tide. Northeast winds usually back up water at the mouth of the river and it’s a good bet the next couple of days after that will be really high tides. Don’t panic for the fish can still be caught if you adapt to the conditions .I find containment areas like bulk heads, walls or high river banks the higher tides cannot get past. This holds the fish in an area you can still access. Also skipping baits like senkos and frogs on the flooded shorelines, creeks and pad fields will still produce. If you are lucky enough to get a good low tide, fish wood close to the channel drops, pad line drops and creeks with jigs, senkos, spinner baits and crank baits.

Fall fishing is almost everyone’s preferred time to fish. The bass are not affected as much by cold fronts and very active in feeding up for tough days ahead. This is a great time to run way up the creeks like Nassawango and even further north above the Snow Hill Bridge. I like to cover lots of water in fall with crank baits, spin baits and buzz baits. Senkos, jigs and worms are always good for the tougher days in fall with high barometric pressures. I hope you find a couple of tips you can use in this article and will join us for a day of fishing on the Pocomoke River.