Waterlands

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Spotted seatroutShoulder 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

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 8 AM · Spotted seatrout

59/100Good
Now
305 AM EDT
Best window
7-10 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding3.6 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 5 AM · now

Time5ANOW
Score30Fair
Tide3.6 ft ▲Flooding
Current1.1 knmodeled · toward SW
Wind17 kn NEgusts 27 · steady
Sea stateRough4.6 ft · 6 s
Air temp66°Mild
WeatherOvercast39% chance of rain
Water72°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Spotted seatrout 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 Spotted seatrout is best here

Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 1 more week at shoulder

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

Spotted seatrout in Virginia

Spot profile

Sandy Point

Depth
Under 1 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonSpotted seatrout

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, bluefish and striped bass. It is peak season now for little tunny, summer flounder, scup and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for bluefish, striped bass, black sea bass and king mackerel. Little tunny peak from September through October. Bluefish peak in May and from October through November. Striped bass peak from April through May and from October through December.

Tackle & technique

Spotted seatrout
Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Cedar Point

    Cape · 2.3 mi

    59
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 59
    • Red drum 59
    • Bluefish 55

    17 kt NEH 6:45 AM · 4.3 ftL 12:54 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Great Machipongo Channel

    Channel · 2.5 mi

    53
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 53
    • Summer flounder 53
    • Sheepshead 50

    17 kt NEH 6:45 AM · 4.3 ftL 12:54 PM · 0.8 ft

  • The Ramshorn

    Channel · 2.8 mi

    53
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 53
    • Summer flounder 53
    • Sheepshead 50

    17 kt NEH 6:45 AM · 4.3 ftL 12:54 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Short Prong

    Gut · 2.8 mi

    53
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 53
    • Summer flounder 53
    • Sheepshead 50

    17 kt NEH 6:45 AM · 4.3 ftL 12:54 PM · 0.8 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.