Waterlands

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Black sea bassShoulder season

Cape · Virginia

Sandy Point

37.44°N · 75.81°W · Cape · Chesapeake Bay from Little Creek VA to Cape Henry VA including the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel

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Best score today · 10 AM · Black sea bass

64/100Good
Now
468 AM EDT
Best window
8 AM-12 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing3.9 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 8 AM · now

Time8ANOW
Score46Good
Tide3.9 ft ▼Ebbing
Current0.6 knmodeled · toward SSW
Wind16 kn NEgusts 26 · steady
Sea stateRough4.5 ft · 7 s
Air temp66°Mild
WeatherOvercast41% chance of rain
Water71°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Black sea bass is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with VMRC before you keep a fish.

Source: VMRC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Black sea bass is best here

Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder

Black sea bass season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Black sea bass in Virginia

Spot profile

Sandy Point

Depth
Under 1 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonBlack sea bass

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 Sandy Point

Sandy Point is a cape in Chesapeake Bay from Little Creek VA to Cape Henry VA including the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, Virginia. Depth is under 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are little tunny, scup and striped bass. It is peak season now for little tunny, scup, summer flounder and sheepshead, and shoulder season for striped bass, bluefish, black sea bass and king mackerel. Little tunny peak from September through October. Scup peak from June through October. Striped bass peak from April through May and from October through December.

Tackle & technique

Black sea bass
Black sea bass hold tight to wrecks, reefs, rock piles and jetties, from 15 feet inshore in late spring to well over 100 feet on offshore wrecks in late fall. Anchor or drift right over the structure and fish a two-hook high-low rig with squid or clam, or bounce a small jig on the bottom. The biggest males sit on the highest relief.
Little tunny
Little tunny travel fast in schools that pin bait against inlets, points, jetties and tide rips, usually within a few miles of shore and often in less than 60 feet. Stay off the school's path, wait for it to surface within range, and cast small metal or epoxy jigs with a fast retrieve. When fish stay down, troll small feathers along bait edges and color changes to find them.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Cedar Point

    Cape · 2.3 mi

    63
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 63
    • Scup 59
    • Red drum 58

    16 kt NEL 12:54 PM · 0.8 ftH 7:13 PM · 5.2 ft

  • Great Machipongo Channel

    Channel · 2.5 mi

    61
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 61
    • Summer flounder 54
    • Sheepshead 53

    16 kt NEL 12:54 PM · 0.8 ftH 7:13 PM · 5.2 ft

  • The Ramshorn

    Channel · 2.8 mi

    61
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 61
    • Summer flounder 54
    • Sheepshead 53

    16 kt NEL 12:54 PM · 0.8 ftH 7:13 PM · 5.2 ft

  • Short Prong

    Gut · 2.8 mi

    61
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 61
    • Summer flounder 54
    • Sheepshead 53

    16 kt NEL 12:54 PM · 0.8 ftH 7:13 PM · 5.2 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 VMRC before you keep a fish.