Waterlands

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Red drumPeak season

Cape · Virginia

York Point

37.17°N · 76.39°W · Cape · Chesapeake Bay from New Point Comfort to Little Creek VA

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Best score today · 6 PM · Red drum

76/100Great
Now
708 PM EDT
Best window
10 PM-12 AMFlood 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 · 8 PM · now

Time8PNOW
Score70Great
Tide0.9 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.4 kn · toward ENE
Wind6 kn SSWgusts 9 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.9 ft · 3 s
Air temp80°Warm
WeatherClear5% cloud
Water81°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.

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Red drum is best here

Peak season for Red drum · 5 more weeks at peak

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

Red drum in Virginia

Spot profile

York Point

Depth
2-10 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · 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 York Point

York Point is a cape in Chesapeake Bay from New Point Comfort to Little Creek VA, Virginia. Depth in the nearest water is 2-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are red drum, little tunny and Spanish mackerel. It is peak season now for red drum, little tunny, Spanish mackerel and spot, and shoulder season for striped bass, spotted seatrout, Atlantic croaker and bluefish. Red drum peak in May and from September 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.
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.
Spanish mackerel
Spanish mackerel school along beaches and around inlets, jetties, piers and bridge-tunnel structures, and along tide rips in 5 to 40 feet of water once the water climbs above about 68 degrees F. Troll small spoons or cast metal jigs and retrieve fast, or look for birds diving on bait and cast into the school. FWC calls for a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader because their teeth cut light line.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Cabin Creek

    Gut · 0.6 mi

    78
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 78
    • Spot 69
    • Spotted seatrout 64

    6 kt SSWL 9:01 PM · 0.8 ftH 2:35 AM · 2.0 ft

  • Thorofare

    Channel · 2.9 mi

    77
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 77
    • Spot 71
    • Summer flounder 66

    6 kt SSWL 9:13 PM · 0.8 ftH 2:50 AM · 2.0 ft

  • Hunts Point

    Cape · 1.0 mi

    70
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 70
    • Spot 65
    • Little tunny 64

    6 kt SSWL 9:13 PM · 0.8 ftH 2:50 AM · 2.0 ft

  • Green Point

    Cape · 2.5 mi

    70
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 70
    • Little tunny 64
    • Spanish mackerel 64

    6 kt SSWL 9:01 PM · 0.8 ftH 2:35 AM · 2.0 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.