Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

SpotPeak season

Cape · Virginia

Bluff Point

37.67°N · 75.87°W · Cape · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 7 AM · Spot

75/100Great
Now
644 PM EDT
Best window
5 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding1.0 ft ▲

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

Notify me when Bluff Point scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

24-hour conditions

Sunday, Oct 4 · 9 AM

Time9A
Score80Great
Tide1.2 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.6 kn · toward WSW
Wind8 kn SWgusts 13 · steady
Air temp69°Warm
WeatherClear2% cloud
Water69°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Spot 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 Spot is best here

Peak season for Spot · 4 more weeks at peak

Spot season by week of the year. Peak season for Spot · 4 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Spot in Virginia

Spot profile

Bluff Point

Depth
1-4 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonSpot

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 Bluff Point

Bluff Point is a cape in Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA, Virginia. Depth is 1-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are spot, little tunny and red drum. It is peak season now for spot, little tunny, red drum and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for bluefish, Atlantic croaker, black sea bass and king mackerel. Spot peak from August through October. Little tunny peak from September through October. Red drum peak in May and from September through October.

Tackle & technique

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.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Buckland Gut

    Gut · 1.4 mi

    70
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 70
    • Red drum 66
    • Summer flounder 64

    11 kt ENEH 8:28 PM · 2.0 ftL 3:10 AM · 0.8 ft

  • Warehouse Point

    Cape · 1.3 mi

    64
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 64
    • Little tunny 62
    • Spanish mackerel 60

    11 kt ENEH 8:28 PM · 2.0 ftL 3:10 AM · 0.8 ft

  • West Point

    Cape · 1.3 mi

    64
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 64
    • Little tunny 62
    • Spanish mackerel 60

    11 kt ENEH 8:28 PM · 2.0 ftL 3:10 AM · 0.8 ft

  • Coffin Point

    Cape · 2.8 mi

    64
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 64
    • Little tunny 62
    • Red drum 59

    11 kt ENEH 8:28 PM · 2.0 ftL 3:10 AM · 0.8 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.