Waterlands

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Little tunnyPeak season

Bar · Virginia

Latimer Shoal

37.13°N · 76.00°W · Bar · Chesapeake Bay from New Point Comfort to Little Creek VA

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Best score today · 9 PM · Little tunny

50/100Good
Now
3012 PM EDT
Best window
8 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing0.8 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 12 PM · now

Time12PNOW
Score30Fair
Tide0.8 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb1.0 kn · toward SSE
Wind20 kn NEgusts 31 · steady
Sea stateRough5.6 ft · 6 s
Air temp68°Warm
WeatherOvercast94% chance of rain
Water77°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Little tunny 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 Little tunny is best here

Peak season for Little tunny · 5 more weeks at peak

Little tunny season by week of the year. Peak season for Little tunny · 5 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Little tunny in Virginia

Spot profile

Latimer Shoal

Depth
10-20 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Shoal · Inner · Semi-exposedShoal · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonLittle tunny

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 Latimer Shoal

Latimer Shoal is a bar in Chesapeake Bay from New Point Comfort to Little Creek VA, Virginia. Depth is 10-20 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads shoal, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are bluefish, black sea bass and king mackerel. It is peak season now for little tunny, red drum, scup and sheepshead, and shoulder season for bluefish, black sea bass, king mackerel and striped bass. Bluefish peak in May and from October through November. Black sea bass peak from May through June and from October through November.

Tackle & technique

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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Beach Channel

    Channel · 1.2 mi

    41
    Top: Black sea bassShoulder season
    • Black sea bass 41
    • Bluefish 35
    • Striped bass 34

    20 kt NEL 12:53 PM · 0.7 ftH 7:11 PM · 3.0 ft

  • North Channel

    Channel · 1.3 mi

    35
    Top: Black sea bassShoulder season
    • Black sea bass 35
    • Bluefish 35
    • Striped bass 35

    20 kt NEL 12:40 PM · 0.9 ftH 6:51 PM · 3.5 ft

  • Wise Point

    Cape · 1.9 mi

    35
    Top: BluefishShoulder season
    • Bluefish 35
    • Striped bass 32
    • Black sea bass 31

    20 kt NEL 12:40 PM · 0.9 ftH 6:51 PM · 3.5 ft

  • Fishermans Inlet

    Bay · 2.4 mi

    35
    Top: BluefishShoulder season
    • Bluefish 35
    • Striped bass 33
    • Black sea bass 31

    20 kt NEL 12:40 PM · 0.9 ftH 6:51 PM · 3.5 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.