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Spotted seatroutShoulder seasonBay · Virginia
Back Cove
37.90°N · 75.73°W · Bay · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 AM · Spotted seatrout
- Now
- 526 PM EDT
- Best window
- 6 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.3 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Back Cove scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 6 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
73Tide: FloodingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
13Wind: 14 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
81Water temp: 75°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.4 ftSeason & habitat · Spotted seatrout
Species seasonality
66Season: ShoulderHabitat: Structure unmappedDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Spotted seatrout is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with VMRC before you keep a fish.
Source: VMRC · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Spotted seatrout is best here
Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Back Cove
- Depth
- 2-4 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonSpotted seatrout
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 Back Cove
Back Cove is a bay in Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA, Virginia. Depth is 2-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are spot, scup and little tunny. It is peak season now for spot, scup, little tunny and sheepshead, and shoulder season for bluefish, weakfish, Atlantic croaker and black sea bass. Spot peak from August through October. Scup peak from June through October. Little tunny peak from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- Spotted seatrout
- Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
- Spot
- Spot school over mud and sand in bays, tidal creeks and channels and around piers and bridges, generally in less than 25 feet of water. Fish a two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and bits of bloodworm or shrimp, and move until you find a school. In fall the biggest fish run out of the sounds past piers and inlets, and the bite can go all day.
- Scup
- Scup school over hard and mixed bottom, rock piles, mussel beds, piers and jetties, usually in 10 to 60 feet of water. Fish a high-low rig with small hooks and squid or clam strips on the bottom, and chum with clam to hold a school under the boat. If nothing bites within 15 minutes, move to the next piece of structure.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Drum Bay69
Bay · 0.8 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 69
- Scup 68
- Little tunny 63
14 kt NEH 9:58 PM · 2.6 ftL 4:54 AM · 0.9 ft
- Scarborough Point67
Cape · 0.3 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 67
- Scup 63
- Spot 63
14 kt NEH 9:58 PM · 2.6 ftL 4:54 AM · 0.9 ft
- North Point67
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 67
- Scup 63
- Spot 63
14 kt NEH 9:58 PM · 2.6 ftL 4:54 AM · 0.9 ft
- Long Point66
Cape · 1.6 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 66
- Scup 62
- Spot 61
14 kt NEH 9:58 PM · 2.6 ftL 4:54 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.