What the water is doing out of Ocean City, MD and what changed before the next trip: NWS marine alerts and forecast, NOAA tides, attributed reports, and the Maryland rules that apply at the dock.
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Live panels load straight from NWS and NOAA in your browser. They are for planning, not navigation. A missing alert is not a safe forecast. Check the zone forecast and your own instruments before you leave, and the forecast can change after you do.
No attributed report from Ocean City is on file right now. No report does not mean no fish. It means no operator or regional source we carry has posted one we could link.
FishTalk's October 2 lower-bay report had Eric Packard catching six striped bass near Point Lookout on shad-head jigs with soft plastics, and editor Dillon Waters reporting slot fish and overs to 26 inches at a lower Potomac creek mouth. Water at 68 degrees; speckled trout running 10-12 inches across the lower bay.
The full Bite Wire, Maine to Florida →
State-water rules for the species we have verified against Maryland DNR Fishing and Boating Services. Federal water and highly migratory species follow NOAA rules.
| Species | Size | Bag | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Striped bass | Chesapeake Bay: 19"–24" (slot); Atlantic/Coastal Bays: 28"–31" (slot) | 1 fish per person per day | Openas of Oct 13 · Open in part from Dec 6 |
| Summer flounder | 16" (Jan 1–May 31); 17.5" (Jun 1–Dec 31) | 4 per day | Openas of Oct 13 |
| Black sea bass | 12.5" (excluding tail filament) | 15 per day | Openas of Oct 13 |
| Bluefish | 8" minimum | Shore or private boat: 5 per person; for-hire boat: 7 per person | Openas of Oct 13 |
| Red drum | 18"–26" (slot) | 3 per day | Openas of Oct 13 |
| Tautog | 16" minimum | 4/day Jan 1–May 15; 2/day Jul 1–Oct 31; 4/day Nov 1–Dec 31 | Openas of Oct 13 |
| Scup | 9" minimum | 30 per day | Openas of Oct 13 |
| Spotted seatrout | 14" minimum | 4 per day | Openas of Oct 13 |
| Weakfish | 13" minimum | 1 fish per angler per day | Openas of Oct 13 |
| Black drum | 16" minimum | 1 fish per angler per day; 6 fish per boat | Openas of Oct 13 |
| Sheepshead | 12" minimum | 4 fish per angler per day | Openas of Oct 13 |
| Cobia | 43" minimum total length | 1 fish per person per day, or up to 2 per vessel per day if 2 or more people aboard | Catch and release onlyas of Oct 13 |
| Spanish mackerel | 14" minimum | 15 fish per angler per day | Openas of Oct 13 |
Summarized from Maryland DNR Fishing and Boating Services pages; status derived for Oct 13, 2026. The agency page controls: Maryland DNR Fishing and Boating Services ↗ · Full Maryland table →
