Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

CobiaShoulder season

Bar · Virginia

Nautilus Shoal

37.06°N · 75.93°W · Bar · Chesapeake Bay from Little Creek VA to Cape Henry VA including the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 11 PM · Cobia

52/100Good
Now
271 PM EDT
Best window
11 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Low0.9 ft

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

Notify me when Nautilus Shoal scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Mon · 81

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 1 PM · now

Time1PNOW
Score27Fair
Tide0.9 ftLow
CurrentEbb1.5 kn · toward SE
Wind20 kn NEgusts 34 · steady
Sea stateRough6.2 ft · 7 s
Air temp71°Warm
WeatherOvercast98% chance of rain
Water77°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 VMRC before you keep a fish.

Always check with VMRC ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: VMRC · 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 Virginia →

Spot profile

Nautilus Shoal

Depth
10-20 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Shoal · Outer · ExposedShoal · 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 Nautilus Shoal

Nautilus Shoal is a bar in Chesapeake Bay from Little Creek VA to Cape Henry VA including the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, Virginia. Depth is 10-20 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads shoal, outer water and exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are bluefish, king mackerel and little tunny. It is peak season now for little tunny, red drum, scup and sheepshead, and shoulder season for bluefish, king mackerel, spotted seatrout and weakfish. Bluefish peak in May and from October through November. Little tunny peak 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.
Bluefish
Bluefish travel in size-sorted schools and feed where tide pushes bait past structure: inlet mouths, rips, shoal edges and the surf line, mostly in water shallower than 60 feet. Look for birds and breaking bait and cast metal or poppers into it, or soak cut bunker or mullet on the bottom from the beach. Use a short wire or heavy leader because their teeth cut light line.
King mackerel
Kings roam from beaches and pier ends out to reefs, wrecks and ledges in 40 to 200 feet, usually feeding in the upper half of the water column. Slow-troll live menhaden, blue runners or cigar minnows on a light wire stinger rig, or pull spoons and ribbonfish past bait schools. Look for clean green water above 68 F with bait and birds on it.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →
  • Smith Island Inlet

    Bay · 3.4 mi

    35
    Top: BluefishShoulder season
    • Bluefish 35
    • Atlantic croaker 30
    • Cobia 30

    20 kt NEH 6:56 PM · 4.2 ftL 1:51 AM · 0.9 ft

  • Fishermans Inlet

    Bay · 4.1 mi

    35
    Top: BluefishShoulder season
    • Bluefish 35
    • Atlantic croaker 30
    • Cobia 30

    20 kt NEH 6:51 PM · 3.5 ftL 1:07 AM · 0.8 ft

  • Blackbeards Creek

    Bay · 4.1 mi

    32
    Top: BluefishShoulder season
    • Bluefish 32
    • Atlantic croaker 30
    • Little tunny 30

    20 kt NEH 6:56 PM · 4.2 ftL 1:51 AM · 0.9 ft

  • Wise Point

    Cape · 4.7 mi

    32
    Top: BluefishShoulder season
    • Bluefish 32
    • Little tunny 30
    • Red drum 30

    20 kt NEH 6:51 PM · 3.5 ftL 1:07 AM · 0.8 ft

Open in the tide map

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 VMRC before you keep a fish.