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CobiaShoulder seasonChannel · Virginia
South Auxiliary Channel
36.98°N · 76.12°W · Channel · Chesapeake Bay from Little Creek VA to Cape Henry VA including the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 9 AM · Cobia
- Now
- 286 AM EDT
- Best window
- 8-11 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding2.7 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when South Auxiliary Channel scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 6 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
52Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.5 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
12Gusts over the limit · capped at 35Wind: 20 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
47Seas over the limit · capped at 30Water temp: 77°F, primeLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 4.7 ftSeason & habitat · Cobia
Species seasonality
40Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
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.
Source: VMRC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Cobia is best here
Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
South Auxiliary Channel
- Depth
- 30-60 ftDrop-off
- Structure
- Channel · Inner · Semi-exposedChannel · drop-off
- 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 South Auxiliary Channel
South Auxiliary Channel is a channel in Chesapeake Bay from Little Creek VA to Cape Henry VA including the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, Virginia. Depth is 30-60 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads channel, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are black sea bass, king mackerel and scup. It is peak season now for scup, sheepshead, Spanish mackerel and summer flounder, and shoulder season for black sea bass, king mackerel, Atlantic croaker and bluefish. Black sea bass peak from May through June and from October through November. Scup peak from June 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.
- 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.
- 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
- Little Creek Channel67
Channel · 4.5 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 67
- Scup 62
- Atlantic croaker 58
12 kt NEL 12:38 PM · 0.8 ftH 6:57 PM · 3.0 ft
- Desert Cove67
Bay · 4.5 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 67
- Scup 64
- Atlantic croaker 54
12 kt NEL 12:38 PM · 0.8 ftH 6:57 PM · 3.0 ft
- North Auxiliary Channel35
Channel · 0.3 mi
Top: Black sea bassShoulder season- Black sea bass 35
- King mackerel 35
- Scup 35
20 kt NEL 12:29 PM · 0.7 ftH 6:49 PM · 3.0 ft
- Lynnhaven Roads35
Bay · 4.2 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerShoulder season- Atlantic croaker 35
- Black sea bass 35
- Bluefish 35
20 kt NEH 7:08 AM · 2.4 ftL 1:07 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.