Waterlands

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Summer flounderPeak 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 · 8 AM · Summer flounder

49/100Good
Now
351 AM EDT
Best window
8-10 AMEbb 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 AM · now

Time1ANOW
Score35Fair
Tide0.8 ftLow
CurrentEbb1.3 kn · toward SSE
Wind20 kn NEgusts 31 · steady
Sea stateRough5.2 ft · 6 s
Air temp71°Warm
WeatherOvercast67% chance of rain
Water78°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Summer flounder 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 Summer flounder is best here

Peak season for Summer flounder · 1 more week at peak

Summer flounder season by week of the year. Peak season for Summer flounder · 1 more week at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Summer flounder in Virginia

Spot profile

Latimer Shoal

Depth
10-20 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Shoal · Inner · Semi-exposedShoal · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonSummer flounder

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, little tunny and Spanish mackerel. It is peak season now for little tunny, Spanish mackerel, summer flounder and red drum, and shoulder season for bluefish, spotted seatrout, weakfish and king mackerel. Bluefish peak in May and from October through November. Little tunny peak from September through October. Spanish mackerel peak from July through September.

Tackle & technique

Summer flounder
Summer flounder lie half-buried on sand and shell bottom and ambush bait along channel edges, inlet bars and ocean reefs, from a few feet deep in back bays to about 100 feet offshore. Drift with the tide and bounce a bucktail tipped with a squid or fish strip along the bottom. The bigger fish move to ocean reefs and wrecks in late summer, so follow them out.
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.
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

  • Fishermans Inlet

    Bay · 2.4 mi

    37
    Top: BluefishShoulder season
    • Bluefish 37
    • Little tunny 35
    • Scup 35

    19 kt NEH 6:30 AM · 3.2 ftL 12:40 PM · 0.9 ft

  • Beach Channel

    Channel · 1.2 mi

    35
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 35
    • Summer flounder 35
    • Sheepshead 34

    20 kt NEH 6:51 AM · 2.7 ftL 12:53 PM · 0.7 ft

  • North Channel

    Channel · 1.3 mi

    35
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 35
    • Sheepshead 35
    • Spanish mackerel 35

    19 kt NEH 6:30 AM · 3.2 ftL 12:40 PM · 0.9 ft

  • Wise Point

    Cape · 1.9 mi

    35
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 35
    • Bluefish 34
    • Scup 34

    19 kt NEH 6:30 AM · 3.2 ftL 12:40 PM · 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.