Waterlands

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Red drumPeak season

Bay · Virginia

Stingaree Point Cove

37.48°N · 75.66°W · Bay · Chesapeake Bay from Little Creek VA to Cape Henry VA including the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel

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Best score today · 7 AM · Red drum

62/100Good
Now
306 AM EDT
Best window
6 AM-12 PMEbb tide
Tide now
High3.9 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 6 AM · now

Time6ANOW
Score30Fair
Tide3.9 ftHigh
Current0.5 knmodeled · toward SSW
Wind17 kn NEgusts 27 · steady
Sea stateRough4.8 ft · 7 s
Air temp66°Mild
WeatherOvercast38% chance of rain
Water72°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Red drum 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 Red drum is best here

Peak season for Red drum · 4 more weeks at peak

Red drum season by week of the year. Peak season for Red drum · 4 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Red drum in Virginia

Spot profile

Stingaree Point Cove

Depth
5-9 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Outer · ExposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonRed drum

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 Stingaree Point Cove

Stingaree Point Cove is a bay in Chesapeake Bay from Little Creek VA to Cape Henry VA including the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, Virginia. Depth is 5-9 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, outer water and exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

Red drum
Redfish feed on shallow grass flats, oyster bars and marsh edges, often in 1 to 4 feet of water, and drop into channels, deep holes and tidal creeks when the water turns very hot or cold. Work a live shrimp under a popping cork or a soft plastic along the grass line on a rising tide, then fish creek mouths and drains as the tide falls. Bull reds over 30 inches school in the surf, passes and jetties in late summer and fall, where cut mullet or a live crab on the bottom is the standard approach.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Quinby Inlet

    Bay · 1.0 mi

    62
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 62
    • Little tunny 50
    • Spanish mackerel 48

    17 kt NEL 12:07 PM · 0.6 ftH 6:39 PM · 4.7 ft

  • Revel Island Cove

    Bay · 1.0 mi

    59
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 59
    • Little tunny 45
    • Spanish mackerel 43

    17 kt NEL 12:07 PM · 0.6 ftH 6:39 PM · 4.7 ft

  • Sandy Island Channel

    Channel · 1.8 mi

    59
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 59
    • Summer flounder 44
    • Sheepshead 43

    17 kt NEL 12:07 PM · 0.6 ftH 6:39 PM · 4.7 ft

  • The Swash

    Gut · 2.1 mi

    59
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 59
    • Summer flounder 45
    • Sheepshead 43

    17 kt NEL 12:07 PM · 0.6 ftH 6:39 PM · 4.7 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.