Article by Julie Ball
The Mid-Atlantic area experienced milder temperatures again last week, along with plenty of thunderstorms. Fishing is good right now, but the showing of the red tide is often making it difficult to find good water.
Probably the most popular summer species is flounder, and lately they are at the top of the list. Flounder pounders are thrilled as the bite continued to escalate last week. Most fish are ranging from 3 to 5-pounds, with scattered fish over 7-pounds. Most any method is working right now, but the bigger flatfish are coming from the four islands of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel using live bait or jigs loaded with Gulp baits or stripped bait. Drifters are finding good luck along channels, deep water drop-offs, near Buoys 36A and 42 and off the Concrete Ships. Both Lynnhaven and Rudee Inlets also provided a good ratio of keepers last week.
The rest of the inshore scene is mostly dominated by the hunt for cobia and the hunt is still on for the bigger fish. Sight casters are optimistic with the rise in the numbers of keeper fish last week, with good numbers of 40-pounders making the trip worthwhile again. Boats chumming for cobia are still seeing good results, with an occasional 50-pounder in the mix. All of the usual chumming hot spots are producing off of Hampton and the Eastern Shore.
Big red drum continue to patrol the lower Bay in large schools, which is providing a nice consolation prize for some cobia hunters. Folks are also hooking into big reds while targeting other fish such as flounder.
Sheepshead action was still going well along the CBBT last week. Fish pushing to over 10-pounds are taking fiddlers, blue crab and clams along most any part of the span of the Bay Bridge Tunnel complex. Triggerfish and spadefish are mixed in with the sheepshead in many of the same areas. Most spadefish are small, but the folks at Atlantic Bait and Tackle report that larger spades, averaging to 5 and 6-pounds, are hitting at the 3rd Island of the CBBT lately. Plenty of nice triggerfish are also in these same locations, as well as some larger fish on several inshore wrecks.
Tautog are also back on the scene since they became legal again last week, but most folks will be chasing other species.
According to the folks at Ocean’s East 2, the Spanish mackerel fishing along the coast of Virginia Beach is still good, although the red tide draping the oceanfront over the past few days is making the action more sporadic.
Plenty of tailor bluefish are also around.
Lots of sharks are showing in local waters, so these toothy critters are becoming a targeted species lately. Several varieties of sharks such as sand tigers, hammerheads, black tips, and spinners are sniffing out chum slicks along coastal waters. Some of these fish are pushing to over 6-feet.
Croaker are a good bet in the lower Bay, and bigger fish are moving in. Many fish are ranging to over a pound, but a few 3-pounders are also in the mix. The deeper areas north of the 3rd Island and near the 1st Island of the CBBT, the Little Creek jetties, Back River Reef and the Cell are good places to try. Anglers fishing in Oyster are still filling coolers with nice croaker from the back waters.
Spot are hitting within Rudee, Lynnhaven and Little Creek Inlets on bloodworms, as well as at the Little Island Fishing Pier.
Nice sized sea mullet are available near the Concrete Ships and off the oceanfront lately.
Puppy drum are still a sure thing within Lynnhaven Inlet, although most are undersized.
Speckled trout encounters were on the rise in Lynnhaven and Rudee last week, with nicer specks responding on the Poquoson Flats, Back River, the Bayside and seaside creeks on the Eastern Shore and the Elizabeth River.
Tarpon sightings and hook-ups on the Eastern Shore are always hush-hush, but scattered releases and a barrage of sightings are keeping a handful of anglers interested.
Deep dropping action is still good. Boats running out to investigate the Canyon edges are still scoring with big blueline tilefish, grouper, blackbellied rosefish and nice sea bass. Amberjack are still available on several wrecks and around the southern towers. They are also available at the Chesapeake Light Tower, but not in great numbers.
Bluewater anglers are experiencing scattered billfish action lately, but hopefully this will pick back up. According to Captain Russ Kostinas, skipper of the “Top Notch” out of The Fishing Center, most of the billfish action is coming from the 400 to the 500-line in anywhere from 30 to 50 fathoms. Plenty of bailer sized dolphin are around, and a decent wahoo bite is going on at the Fingers in 25 to 35 fathoms, where the “Waterman” had a good day with four nice wahoo from this area recently.
For more information, go to www.drjball.com.
Dr. Julie Ball is the I.G.F.A. representative for Virginia Beach, VA. For information, go to www.drjball.com.
