Waterlands

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King mackerelShoulder season

Cape · Virginia

Tue Point

37.23°N · 76.39°W · Cape · Chesapeake Bay from New Point Comfort to Little Creek VA

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Best score today · 11 AM · King mackerel

61/100Good
Now
4612 PM EDT
Best window
12-1 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing0.9 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 12 PM · now

Time12PNOW
Score46Good
Tide0.9 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.5 kn · toward ENE
Wind16 kn NEgusts 28 · steady
Sea stateModerate3.2 ft · 4 s
Air temp67°Mild
WeatherOvercast100% chance of rain
Water78°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for King mackerel 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 King mackerel is best here

Shoulder season for King mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder

King mackerel season by week of the year. Shoulder season for King mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

King mackerel in Virginia

Spot profile

Tue Point

Depth
1-5 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonKing mackerel

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 Tue Point

Tue Point is a cape in Chesapeake Bay from New Point Comfort to Little Creek VA, Virginia. Depth is 1-5 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Thorofare

    Channel · 1.7 mi

    60
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 60
    • Summer flounder 59
    • Black sea bass 57

    16 kt NEL 1:41 PM · 0.6 ftH 7:58 PM · 2.6 ft

  • Green Point

    Cape · 1.8 mi

    60
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 60
    • Bluefish 53
    • Spanish mackerel 53

    16 kt NEL 1:29 PM · 0.6 ftH 7:43 PM · 2.6 ft

  • Sandy Point

    Cape · 2.2 mi

    56
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 56
    • Bluefish 51
    • Spot 50

    16 kt NEL 1:29 PM · 0.6 ftH 7:43 PM · 2.6 ft

  • Monday Creek

    Gut · 3.2 mi

    53
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 53
    • Red drum 50
    • Sheepshead 50

    16 kt NEL 1:23 PM · 1.2 ftH 7:29 PM · 2.8 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.