Waterlands

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Black sea bassShoulder season

Gut · Virginia

White Perch Channel

37.20°N · 75.87°W · Gut · Chesapeake Bay from Little Creek VA to Cape Henry VA including the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel

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Best score today · 12 AM · Black sea bass

30/100Fair
Now
301 PM EDT
Best window
1 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Low0.8 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 1 PM · now

Time1PNOW
Score30Fair
Tide0.8 ftLow
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind32 kn NEgusts 41 · steady
Sea stateRough5.1 ft · 7 s
Air temp70°Warm
WeatherOvercast94% chance of rain
Water77°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.

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

White Perch Channel

Depth
Up to 4 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Channel · Inner · Semi-exposedChannel · 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 White Perch Channel

White Perch Channel is a gut in Chesapeake Bay from Little Creek VA to Cape Henry VA including the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, Virginia. Depth is up to 4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, black sea bass and little tunny. It is peak season now for little tunny, red drum, scup and sheepshead, and shoulder season for Atlantic croaker, black sea bass, spotted seatrout and weakfish. Atlantic croaker peak from June through August. Black sea bass peak from May through June and from October through November. Little tunny peak from September through October.

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.
Atlantic croaker
Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
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

  • Evans Creek

    Gut · 0.2 mi

    30
    Top: Atlantic croakerShoulder season
    • Atlantic croaker 30
    • Black sea bass 30
    • Little tunny 30

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

  • Main Ship Shoal Channel

    Channel · 0.7 mi

    30
    Top: Atlantic croakerShoulder season
    • Atlantic croaker 30
    • Black sea bass 30
    • Little tunny 30

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

  • Black Rock Channel

    Gut · 2.0 mi

    30
    Top: Atlantic croakerShoulder season
    • Atlantic croaker 30
    • Black drum 30
    • Black sea bass 30

    32 kt NEH 7:04 PM · 5.3 ftL 12:58 AM · 0.8 ft

  • Mink Island Bay

    Bay · 2.2 mi

    30
    Top: Atlantic croakerShoulder season
    • Atlantic croaker 30
    • Bluefish 30
    • Little tunny 30

    32 kt NEH 6:56 PM · 4.2 ftL 1:51 AM · 0.9 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.