Article by VMRC - Saltwater Review
Chincoteague
According to Donna, at Captain Bob’s, flounder is still the main catch in Chincoteague. The Four Mouths and Queen’s Sound are still the main producing areas. Buoys 7 and 9 (at the Four Mouths) are still harboring some decent-size flounder, as well as the deep holes in Cockle Creek. The Chincoteague Channel catch has slowed; however, fishing near Buoy 20 has been productive. Small black sea bass and snapper bluefish are also in the area. There have been rumors of croaker catches from the surf, as well as kingfish. Dogfish have been reported as well. Offshore, staff reports mako mania. The Parking Lot and the Lumpy Bottom will almost guarantee a mako shark bite. Yellowfin tuna are being caught near the offshore Canyons. At the wrecks, anglers have been maxing out on black sea bass with a few large flounder mixed in.
Wachapreague
Staff at Captain Zed’s reports that flounder fishing is still great. Fish are showing up in good numbers, even though there are about 20 throwbacks to every keeper. The croaker have not arrived yet, but anglers are catching kingfish. Offshore, anglers reported yellowfin tuna, dolphin, and plenty of bluefish.
Cape Charles
Cobia have been biting really well, according to staff at Chris’ Bait and Tackle. Large cobia have been coming in from the Latimer Shoals area. Flounder are biting well around Oyster (especially when the water is clear). There are also reports of good flounder catches around the Cell. Spadefish have been biting around the 3rd and 4th islands and the high rise of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. There are also rumors of croaker in the area.
Captain Ray Cardone, of Cherrystone, reported that nice flounder were in the area. He has also seen plenty of croaker and grey trout, along with a nice 43-inch release red drum. There were also reports of cobia near Latimer Shoals.
Lower Bay/Bridge Tunnel
A citation flounder release was reported from Cobb’s Marina last week (26 ¾ inches caught on June 14). Overall, staff reports slow fishing in the area.
Staff at Sunset Boating Center reported small flounder at the Hampton Bar. Staff also noted that the fish seem to be coming in later than usual this year.
Kathy, at Wallace’s Bait and Tackle, reported that anglers are catching cobia in the area. Numerous flounder have been coming in from the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. Spadefish have just shown up at the tunnel as well. A few speckled trout are biting in the Back River area.
According to staff at the York River Fishing Center, anglers are catching keeper-sized flounder at the Gloucester Point Pier. Croaker are still plentiful in the area as well. There were no reports of cobia in the area yet, but staff are expecting to see them soon. Last week, a 5-pound, 8-ounce citation-sized speckled trout was caught in the Ware River.
Ken Neill, of the Peninsula Anglers Club and IGFA representative, contributed the following:
Warmer water east of the Norfolk Canyon provided good dolphin and billfish action this week. Closer to shore, bluefin tuna have been caught around 26-Mile Hill, though the most recent reports have hoards of bluefish making tuna catching a challenge.
Spadefish are at the Chesapeake Light Tower though they have not been easy to catch unless you are fishing with a spear gun. A few have been caught up in the bay around the Cell and Wolftrap Light, but they are not the big ones that should be there now. The high rise area of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel has probably been the best spadefish spot so far.
The flounder bite seems to get better every day. The area around 36A, Dead Man’s Hill, the Cell to Buoy 42, and the normal flounder holes along the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel have all been producing some nice flounder.
Spanish mackerel are available along the oceanfront and throughout the lower bay. Large red drum continue to roam over and around the shoals in the vicinity of Fisherman’s Island.
Black drum are being caught around the 2nd and 3rd islands of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. Cobia anglers are having success both by chumming and sight-fishing. It is shaping up to be a very good cobia year.
Dr. Julie Ball, IGFA International Representative for Virginia Beach, reports:
The saltwater action is still heating up along the Virginia coast and should continue to improve as we progress into the summer. Cobia still holds the most interest. Most cobia hunters are content, with many boats returning to the dock with nice fish. Areas off of Hampton, from north of the Rock Pile to Buckroe Beach, are producing fish, while the Nine-Foot Shoal and Latimer Shoal areas are also good locations for chummers lately. Cobia continue to cruise along the surface near the mouth of the Bay, with most boats spotting double-digit numbers of fish in an outing.
Although drum catches are overshadowed by the cobia interest, reds are still available on the Nine-Foot Shoal and along Fisherman’s Island, especially around Buoy 10, where crabs and peelers are still the bait of choice. Most of the black drum hook-ups are coming from the four artificial islands of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, where casters are picking at fish on bucktails and Storm Lures. This action is slowing some as the waters warm.
The flounder scene is still holding steady within the lower Bay this week. A few doormats are coming from Oyster, the Cell area, off of Kiptopeke, and near the four islands of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. Anglers are finding luck working jigs and live bait around the pilings and the tubes of the tunnel, as well as drifting strip baits and minnows along drop-offs and channels. Lower Bay inlets are also producing keeper flatties, with some fish pushing over 24 inches near the Lesner Bridge (within Lynnhaven Inlet) this week.
Spadefish action is hit and miss around the Chesapeake Light Tower, the Cell, and Wolftrap Light. A few fish ranging around 6 pounds are coming from the high rise and the 3rd and 4th islands of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. Some lower Bay wrecks are also providing some spadefish action lately. Sheepshead are also available along the bridge’s structure and on lower Bay wrecks, along with triggerfish.
If Spanish mackerel is your pleasure, these fish are making a showing along the ocean front and near the mouth of the Bay. Todd at Bayside Bait and Tackle reports that some nice sized Spanish mackerel around 20 inches are hitting trolled Drone and Clark spoons off Cape Henry right now. We hope to see their close cousin, the king mackerel, make its debut soon.
Small croaker and tailor bluefish are hitting at the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel, while croaker are also biting off Ocean View and around the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. Speckled trout and puppy drum are still available within the lower Bay inlets and within the backwaters of Mobjack Bay.
Nice black sea bass are hitting on a few wrecks and structures about 30 miles offshore. Deep droppers working the Canyon edges are finding some decent numbers of deepwater species, such as blueline tilefish and grouper. Catches of golden tilefish and blackbelly rosefish are coming from water deeper than 50 fathoms.
While an area of warmer water made a brief showing off the coast, few boats made the run. A few gaffer-dolphin and billfish rewarded those who did. Several boats looking for bluefin tuna did not find any tuna, but large sharks were happy to oblige those crews fishing on some of the inshore sea mounds.
Outer Banks, NC
Offshore fishing out of Nags Head continues to be hot with dolphin and tuna being caught in large numbers. Tuna species included yellowfin, blackfin, bigeye, and skipjack. Bonito, wahoos, and king mackerel were also being caught, although not as readily, and bottom fishermen were producing black sea bass, triggerfish, vermillion snapper, and snowy grouper.
Striped bass were being caught approximately 10 miles offshore, and the artificial reefs produced black drum, sheepshead, triggerfish, blueline tilefish, and tautog.
Nearshore, pier and surf fishermen had good runs of bluefish along with Spanish mackerel, spot, sea mullet, flounder, black drum, pompano, and red drum south of Avon. Inshore fishermen still have flounder and speckled trout on their minds. Trout were around the bridges in the sounds, and flounder were haunting the shallows in the inlet. Croaker were scattered throughout the area. A few striped bass were being reported at Mann’s Harbor.
South of Oregon Inlet, large pompano have been the target of many anglers. Bluefish were being caught around Avon and Ramp 38, and sheepshead were around the jetties. Spanish mackerel were also around Ramp 38. Sea mullet were being caught around Ramps 38 and 43.
Offshore fishing out of Cape Hatteras has produced slow billfishing over the past week. Dolphin and tuna catches have been good, with many people catching their limits. Inshore fishing has seen good runs of Spanish mackerel and bluefish. The cobia bite was also still productive.
