Rehoboth Beach — Surf & Nearshore
Delaware Atlantic Coast
🔥 HOT
Striped Bass
Full-moon tides firing. Dawn/dusk from jetties and tower-road surf. Slot fish hitting cut bunker and bloodworms in the wash.
📈 BUILDING
Kingfish / Northern Kingfish
Arriving in surf by mid-June. Blood worms and sand fleas in the trough. Focus near cuts and pockets.
📈 BUILDING
Croaker
Showing up alongside kingfish. Squid strips and bloodworms on bottom rigs. Surf troughs producing.
🎣 ACTIVE
Bluefish (Snappers)
Snapper blues active on incoming tide. Gotcha plugs, small metal jigs, cut bunker. Fast action when they're in.
🪱 Best Baits & Rigs
- Bloodworms on high-low rig
- Cut bunker for stripers
- Sand fleas for kingfish
- Small metal jigs for blues
⏰ Best Timing
- Dawn & dusk for stripers
- Incoming tide for blues
- Night fishing productive at full moon
📍 Where to Fish
- Tower Road & 3R's Road surf
- North of Indian River Inlet
- Cape Henlopen Point
- Haven Rd & Navy Jetty
Rehoboth Bay
Inland Bay — Drift & Anchor
🔥 HOT
Summer Flounder
Excellent bite along channel edges. Buoys 19A–24 back to the inlet mouth are producing keepers. Drifting minnow/squid combos deadly. 5+ lb fish reported.
🎣 ACTIVE
Spot & Croaker
Scattered through the bay. Light rigs with bloodworm or squid. Good panfish action near docks and channel edges.
📸 Notable Catch: A 5.2-lb flounder was pulled from Rehoboth Bay mid-June — personal best territory. Keeper limit action near channel drops at Buoy 24.
🪱 Best Baits
- Live minnows (best)
- Shiners on bucktail jigs
- Squid strip on Gulp combo
- Live sand eels when available
⏰ Best Timing
- Outgoing tide — drift channel edges
- Early morning action strong
- Incoming tide stacks fish at B-Buoy
📍 Where to Fish
- Channel edge between Buoys 19A–24
- Out around B-Buoy
- Grass bed drop-offs
- Near bridge pilings
🎯 Pro Tip: Drift a live minnow under a small float along the channel edge from Buoy 20 toward 22. Most keepers are sitting right on the bottom break between 4–8 ft.
Lewes — Canal & Outer Breakers
Lewes–Rehoboth Canal & Cape Henlopen
🔥 HOT
Summer Flounder
Canal pilings holding fish. Short walk from the docks. Minnows fished tight to structure — most are shorts but keepers in the mix (3 caught, 2 keepers reported this week).
📈 ACTIVE
Striped Bass (Slot)
Short stripers in the canal early morning and at dusk. Summer slot season rolling — keep what fits the slot (18–28", 1 fish/day). Soft plastics and paddletails working.
🎣 STEADY
Spot & Croaker
Filling the cooler. Canal and the bay near the ferry landing. Bloodworms, squid, PowerBait on bottom rigs. Easy action for kids.
🪱 Best Baits
- Bloodworms (canal workhorse)
- Squid + PowerBait combo
- Live minnows near pilings
- Soft plastic paddletails (stripers)
⏰ Best Timing
- First light — striper window
- Tidal current movement = flounder feed
- Evening for slot stripers
📍 Where to Fish
- Canal pilings along Savannah Rd
- Cape Henlopen State Park pier
- Navy jetty breakers
- Delaware Bay mouth
⚠️ Tip
Cape Henlopen pier: great for trout, spot, croaker, flounder, and bluefish all in one spot. Worth the park fee.
Indian River Inlet
Both Sides of Inlet & Back Bay
🔥 HOT
Sheepshead
Several fish to 8 lbs reported this week — unusually good bite for early June. Daytime bite on rocks and inlet mouth structure. Live sand fleas and frozen shrimp.
🔥 HOT
Tautog (Tog)
Decent keeper bite continuing. A few more keepers mixing in. Live green crabs best — but sell out by early afternoon, so get there early. Live sand fleas a close second.
🎣 ACTIVE
Summer Flounder
Working the rocks on leadhead/Gulp combos. Focus on rocky bottom transitions near inlet mouth. Keepers mixed in with shorts.
📈 BUILDING
Snapper Blues
Arriving on incoming tide. Small jigs and gotcha plugs from the jetty rocks. Fast, furious, great for light tackle.
😴 SLOW
Stripers
Shorty stripers in the South Pocket (Big Chill area). Not much going on with keepers. Early morning soft plastics for shorts only.
📸 Notable: Sheepshead to 8 lbs on daytime tide — if you want sheepshead, this is the window. Indian River Inlet is one of the best sheepshead spots on the Delmarva coast.
TIDE PRODUCTIVITY — INDIAN RIVER INLET
🪱 Best Baits
- Live green crabs (tog/sheepshead)
- Live sand fleas (sell out by noon!)
- Frozen shrimp (sheepshead)
- Gulp/leadhead combo (flounder)
⏰ Best Timing
- Incoming tide — top producer
- Arrive early for live bait
- Daytime sheepshead bite strong
📍 Where to Fish
- North & south jetty rocks
- South Pocket (Big Chill area)
- Rock transitions at inlet mouth
- Inlet mouth bridge pilings
⚠️ Live sand fleas selling out by early afternoon at the inlet bait shops. Get there first thing if you're targeting sheepshead and tog.
🔵 OFFSHORE — 40–90 Miles Out
🔥 ON FIRE
Yellowfin Tuna
Boats filling boxes. Weekend reports: "Reel Chaos" 11 YFT + 2 bigeye; "Boss Hogg" 11 YFT + 1 mahi; "Christine Marie" 12 YFT. 60–90 miles to the canyons.
🔥 HOT
Mahi-Mahi (Dolphin)
"TomCat" returned with 9 mahi + 3 YFT last weekend. Weed lines 40–60 miles out. Ballyhoo under a sea witch or naked on a flat line.
🎣 ACTIVE
White Marlin
Captains releasing whites. Teaser spreads and rigged ballyhoo. Active in 150+ fathoms. Season building toward White Marlin Open.
🎣 ACTIVE
Bigeye Tuna
Mixed in with yellowfin trips. Night swordfishing picking up at the canyons. Larger boats making overnight runs.
🟢 INSHORE, SURF & BACK BAYS
🔥 HOT
Summer Flounder
Back bays firing as water warms. Channel edges and grass lines from OC Inlet north. Gulp Alive Shrimp and live minnows on light jig heads.
🎣 ACTIVE
Striped Bass (Slot)
Large rockfish to 46" reported but C&R (above slot). Slot fish available. OC Inlet structure and nearshore wrecks. Live eels and pencil poppers at dawn.
📋 OPEN
Black Sea Bass
Season now open off OC. Inshore reefs and structure at 25–60 ft. Squid and clam on Virginia-style rigs. Headboats loading up.
📸 Notable: Stripers to 46" being landed — all released under current slot rules. Check current MD DNR regulations before keeping any rockfish.
🪱 Offshore Baits
- Rigged ballyhoo (mahi/marlin)
- Sea witches + ballyhoo (tuna)
- Naked flat lines (mahi)
- Spreader bar & bird teaser
🪱 Inshore Baits
- Gulp Alive Shrimp (flounder)
- Live minnows + bucktail
- Live eels (stripers, night)
- Squid & clam (sea bass)
⏰ Offshore Timing
- Leave dock 4–5 AM
- Canyon bite peaks 7–11 AM
- Mahi weed lines mid-day
- Night swordfishing on overnights
📍 Key OC Spots
- Massey's Canyon / Poor Man's Canyon
- Baltimore Canyon (60 mi)
- Jackspot/Old Grounds (inshore flounder)
- Talbot St Pier (pier fishing)
🎣
RICK'S
TACKLE
RICK'S
TACKLE
Rick's Tackle — Long Neck, DE
Before you hit Indian River Inlet, Rehoboth Bay, or anywhere on the Delmarva coast — stop by Rick's Tackle in Long Neck, DE. They carry live bait (green crabs, sand fleas, minnows), all the local rigs, Gulp products, and tackle matched to what's biting right now. The staff are locals who fish these same waters and can point you to the bite. Don't leave home without checking in with Rick's first.
📊 Current Conditions Summary
🌡 Water Temps
- Delaware Bay: ~60–62°F
- Coastal surf: ~62–64°F
- Indian River Inlet: ~55–60°F
- OC offshore: 65–70°F (canyon)
📅 What to Expect Next 2 Weeks
- Kingfish arrive mid-June in surf
- Flounder bite peaks late June
- White Marlin Open pressure builds
- Tog season wrapping — fish it now
📋 Reg Reminders
- Striper slot: 18–28", 1/day (MD)
- Flounder: 12" min, 8/day DE
- Black sea bass season: OPEN
- Always verify current DE/MD DNR regs