Waterlands

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CobiaShoulder season

Bay · Maryland

Cow Cove

38.24°N · 76.16°W · Bay · Chesapeake Bay from Drum Point MD to Smith Point VA

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Best score today · 2 AM · Cobia

75/100Great
Now
467 PM EDT
Best window
7 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding1.2 ft ▲

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 7 PM · now

Time7PNOW
Score46Good
Tide1.2 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind14 kn ENEgusts 25 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.8 ft · 4 s
Air temp67°Mild
WeatherOvercast57% chance of rain
Water73°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Cobia is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with Maryland DNR before you keep a fish.

Source: Maryland DNR · synced today

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Cobia is best here

Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder

Cobia season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Cobia in Maryland

Spot profile

Cow Cove

Depth
1-2 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonCobia

NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.

About this spot

Fishing Cow Cove

Cow Cove is a bay in Chesapeake Bay from Drum Point MD to Smith Point VA, Maryland. Depth is 1-2 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are scup, spot and red drum. It is peak season now for scup, spot, red drum and summer flounder, and shoulder season for bluefish, black sea bass, weakfish and Atlantic croaker. Scup peak from June through October. Spot peak from August through October. Red drum peak in May and from September through October.

Tackle & technique

Cobia
Cobia cruise inlets, beaches, buoys, wrecks and the backs of rays in 5 to 100 feet of water. On calm, sunny days sight-cast bucktails or live eels to fish near the surface. Otherwise anchor up-current of structure, chum, and fish live eels, crabs or menhaden near the bottom.
Scup
Scup school over hard and mixed bottom, rock piles, mussel beds, piers and jetties, usually in 10 to 60 feet of water. Fish a high-low rig with small hooks and squid or clam strips on the bottom, and chum with clam to hold a school under the boat. If nothing bites within 15 minutes, move to the next piece of structure.
Spot
Spot school over mud and sand in bays, tidal creeks and channels and around piers and bridges, generally in less than 25 feet of water. Fish a two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and bits of bloodworm or shrimp, and move until you find a school. In fall the biggest fish run out of the sounds past piers and inlets, and the bite can go all day.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Dicks Point

    Cape · 1.1 mi

    66
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 66
    • Scup 60
    • Bluefish 58

    14 kt ENEH 12:15 AM · 2.4 ftL 7:12 AM · 1.1 ft

  • Muddy Hook Cove

    Bay · 1.4 mi

    66
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 66
    • Spot 63
    • Little tunny 62

    14 kt ENEH 12:15 AM · 2.4 ftL 7:12 AM · 1.1 ft

  • Richland Cove

    Bay · 0.5 mi

    65
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 65
    • Spot 62
    • Little tunny 61

    14 kt ENEH 12:15 AM · 2.4 ftL 7:12 AM · 1.1 ft

  • Richland Point

    Cape · 0.7 mi

    65
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 65
    • Scup 59
    • Bluefish 57

    14 kt ENEH 12:15 AM · 2.4 ftL 7:12 AM · 1.1 ft

Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with Maryland DNR before you keep a fish.