Memorial Day weekend is now behind us – an important pause to remember and reflect on those who gave their lives for the freedoms and rights that we all enjoy. It also means the “summer” season has begun.

The fishing rodeo season is in full swing. For those not initiated, these are free youth fishing events held around the state by civic organizations and partners for the enjoyment of children and families. The sites are usually well stocked with fish and it is great fun with a little bit of a competitive edge tossed in for the kids, with prizes and trophies.

Gather up your kids – or perhaps a group of neighborhood kids – and head out to one of these fun events near you.

Don’t forget there are some free fishing days coming up June 2, June 9 and July 4. If you can think of someone you might like to introduce to fishing, this is a great opportunity for someone to try the sport without buying a license.

Weekly Fishing Conditions Forecast Summary: May 30-June 5 Anglers will continue to experience wet conditions for most of the upcoming week. Bay temperatures are hovering near the 70 degree mark and will slowly rise this week due to warm air temperatures and longer daylight hours. The recent algal bloom known as a “mahogany tide” on the middle part of the western shore continues to cause some reduced water clarity and poor oxygen conditions below depths of 15 to 20 feet. However, other portions of the main bay and tidal rivers have much better oxygen conditions. There will be above average tidal currents Friday through Tuesday as a result of the full moon May 29. For the full weekly fishing conditions summary and more detailed and up-to-date fishing conditions in your area of the bay, be sure to check out Click Before You Cast. Also check out the new Bay Bottom Habitat Mapper that shows bottom type, fishing reefs, popular fishing areas, recent oyster planting sites and submerged aquatic vegetation. The depth/navigation charts backdrop allows you to see their relationship with nearby channel edges, points, humps, flats or other key contour features.

Upper Chesapeake Bay It is no secret that the upper bay has been receiving a lot of runoff from the Susquehanna River and western shore rivers like the Patapsco. Generally speaking, the Susquehanna Flats area has water clarity issues making for poor fishing, and the western side of the bay is also showing stained water. The eastern side of the bay is a bit clearer and the trolling action tends to be better. The Triple Buoys and the Love Point channel edges have been poplar locations to troll a mixed spread of medium-sized bucktails, spoons and umbrella rigs. Chumming has been more popular in the stained waters on the western side of the bay at some of the 7 and 9-foot knolls, Belvidere Shoals and Podickory Point. At Podickory, the 25-foot channel edges are a sweet spot on a flood tide. Allowing baits to sink to the back of the chum slick and rest on the bottom tends to catch the largest fish. There is plenty of striped bass action in the vicinity of the Bay Bridge this week. Jigging around the bridge piers and rock piles to suspended fish has been good, while soft plastics and bucktails have been popular baits. The sewer pipe just north of the bridge on the eastern side has been a popular place to troll or set up a chum slick.

Middle Bay Water temperatures in the middle bay are hovering around 70 degrees and the fishing for striped bass is about as good as it gets. Trolling, jigging and chumming are all excellent ways to catch striped bass. Trolling has been good along the major shipping channel edges from the Bay Bridge south past Bloody Point, Buoy 83 to the CP Buoy. Most are trolling a mix of medium-sized bucktails dressed with sassy shads in chartreuse and darker colors in tandem or behind umbrella rigs. Spoons can also be effective and some anglers are mixing in a few large parachutes in their trolling spreads, in the hope of intercepting a large striped bass. The western side of the shipping channel – from Thomas Point south past Chesapeake Beach to Calvert Cliffs – has also been a popular place to troll. Jigging has been a very popular way to catch striped bass along the same channel edges others are trolling. Many are using relatively light jig heads with skirted soft plastics in 6 to 8-inch lengths. There is a wide opinion on colors, and pink and purple often come up in the conversation. Chumming and chunking has been a successful way to get striped bass to come to you. Perhaps one of the most popular places to set up is the 35-foot outside edge of Hacketts Bar. Allowing baits to sink to the bottom at the back of the chum slick tends to account for the largest striped bass. The outside edge of the Hill has been a good place to chum and there have also been good reports coming from the Diamonds. The shallow water fishery for striped bass continues to provide fun light tackle topwater action in numerous areas of the bay and tidal rivers. The rocks at Poplar Island have been great to cast poppers in the early morning and late evening hours. As the mornings wear on, many are finding casting swimshads is another great way to catch fish. There are too many places to count along bay shores and tidal rivers where shallow water striped bass can be found feeding. Most of these fish tend to be in the 18 to 19-inch range, but they offer a lot of fun on light tackle.