Largemouth Bass Fishing in Delaware

Largemouth bass are Delaware’s main freshwater game fish, found in every public pond DNREC has surveyed and in the tidal rivers. This guide covers the statewide rule, the exceptions, and the waters where anglers fish for them. For how to catch them, see the largemouth bass how-to guide.

The rules

The rules snapshot above shows each rule with the date we checked it. In non-tidal waters, the minimum size is 12 inches and the daily limit is 6, all year. Becks Pond has a 15 inch minimum and a daily limit of 2. Some waters are catch and release, including Pasture Point Pond at Bombay Hook. The limits for bass in tidal waters are not in the tidal table we read, and we have not confirmed whether the freshwater limits apply there, so check with DNREC before you keep a tidal bass. Check the Delaware Fishing Guide before you keep any fish.

Where to fish in Delaware

Ponds. DNREC pond surveys record bass in every surveyed public pond. See Lums Pond, Wagamons Pond, Millsboro, Hearns and Haven Lake, Tidbury and Newton Ponds and Pasture Point Pond, plus the roundup in our Delaware ponds guide. Wagamons Pond gave two state-record bass, which is the story in our Wagamons tale.

Refuge waters. Prime Hook’s freshwater ponds are in our Prime Hook guide.

Tidal rivers. Tidal Nanticoke and Broadkill bass are monitored and stocked. See the Nanticoke River guide.

DNREC treats Wagamons Pond and Concord Pond annually for hydrilla.

Seasons and timing

In spring, pre-spawn fish move shallow as water warms, and nesting fish should be released quickly. In summer, fish at dawn, dusk and in shade, and look for deeper structure at midday. Fall fish feed up and follow bait into creek channels. In winter, fish are sluggish and slow presentations on deep structure work best.

Rods and tackle

A 6 foot 6 inch to 7 foot 3 inch medium to medium-heavy, fast-action rod, spinning or casting, with a 2500 to 4000 size reel or a baitcaster is typical. Use 10 to 17 pound fluorocarbon, or 20 to 40 pound braid in vegetation. Soft plastics, spinnerbaits, jigs and crankbaits are common lures, and shiners and nightcrawlers are common baits. These are typical choices, not requirements.

Shore and boat

Ponds fish well from shore, and some have accessible piers. Boats must run at no-wake speed on Delaware’s public freshwater ponds.

What DNREC says about the ponds

DNREC says more than 30 Delaware freshwater lakes and ponds are open for fishing, ranging from 5 to 189 acres. Each year six to eight ponds are surveyed by electrofishing, and the Fish Community Survey reports the number of fish caught per electrofishing hour. The survey data are published on the Delaware Open Data Portal, so you can look up the numbers for a particular pond. Our Wagamons Pond guide uses two of those surveys. DNREC also lists eight small youth ponds, from a quarter acre to ten acres, that are catch and release only with barbless hooks. Boats must run at no-wake speed on all public freshwater ponds.

Weeds and water

DNREC’s aquatic plant guidance says plant cover between 20 and 40 percent is ideal for warmwater gamefish such as largemouth bass, bluegill and channel catfish. Hydrilla and fanwort are exotic plants that can take over a pond, and DNREC recommends treating a large infestation in two half-pond treatments two weeks apart to avoid an oxygen crash and a fish kill. Herbicide labels can restrict fishing for a period, so read any posted notice at a pond you plan to fish.

Rules for non-tidal waters

DNREC’s gamefish page lists largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, crappie, walleye, northern pike, chain pickerel, hybrid striped bass and sunfish as gamefish. In all non-tidal waters you may use no more than two rods, with no more than three hooks or lures per rod, except five tip-ups through the ice. Nets are prohibited except a dip net to land a hooked fish. Snagging is prohibited, and stocking any live fish in public water needs written authorization. Largemouth bass tournaments need a permit from the Division. Northern snakeheads live in some public ponds, including Becks Pond, and DNREC encourages anglers to kill one and report it.

State record

DNREC’s records page lists a largemouth bass of 11 pounds 1.6 ounces caught by Andrew Klein in 2016 in the freshwater table. The page gives no water, length or method. Our Wagamons Pond tale tells the story of two earlier Delaware records from one pond. A new record under 25 pounds must weigh at least 2 ounces more, and DNREC staff must approve the catch.