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King mackerelShoulder season

Bay · Virginia

Cod Harbor

37.81°N · 75.99°W · Bay · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA

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Best score today · 9 AM · King mackerel

86/100Epic

Now: 618 AM EDT
Best window: 8-10 AMHigh slack
Tide now: Flooding1.2 ft ▲

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

Notify me when Cod Harbor scores 75+

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

14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: today · 86

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 8 AM · now

DRAG OR TAP AN HOUR

Time8ANOW

Score61Good

Tide1.2 ft ▲Flooding

CurrentFlood0.6 kn · toward NNE

Wind8 kn NNEgusts 14 · steady

Sea stateLight chop0.7 ft · 3 s

Air temp74°Warm

WeatherOvercast85% cloud

Water78°FObserved

MON · SEP 21

TUE · SEP 22

NOW

10A

11A

12P

10P

11P

12A

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0.5

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0.8

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105

136

148

159

158

147

157

179

2011

2112

2213

2112

2012

1911

179

169

179

1710

1811

1912

0.9

0.8

0.7

0.8

0.9

1.0

1.1

1.2

1.4

1.7

1.9

2.0

1.9

1.8

1.7

39%

33%

79°

78°

79°

78°

79°

78°

Hour

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.

Always check with VMRC ↗Fishing license ↗

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

Peak
Shoulder
Off
Not here
This week

King mackerel in Virginia →

Spot profile

Cod Harbor

Depth: 1-8 ftFlat bottom
Structure: Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · 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 Cod Harbor

Cod Harbor is a bay in Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA, Virginia. Depth is 1-8 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 Spanish mackerel. It is peak season now for spot, scup, Spanish mackerel and sheepshead, and shoulder season for Atlantic croaker, spotted seatrout, cobia and king mackerel. Spot peak from August through October. Scup peak from June through October. 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.
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

View all on map →

Mailboat Harbor
Bay · 1.1 mi
85
Top: SpotPeak season
- Spot 85
- Scup 75
- Red drum 73
8 kt NNEH 8:36 AM · 1.2 ftL 2:54 PM · 0.3 ft
Tangier North Channel
Channel · 1.4 mi
82
Top: SpotPeak season
- Spot 82
- Scup 74
- Atlantic croaker 73
8 kt NNEH 8:36 AM · 1.2 ftL 2:54 PM · 0.3 ft
Whale Point
Cape · 0.3 mi
76
Top: SpotPeak season
- Spot 76
- Scup 68
- Little tunny 67
8 kt NNEH 8:36 AM · 1.2 ftL 2:54 PM · 0.3 ft
West Point
Cape · 1.6 mi
76
Top: SpotPeak season
- Spot 76
- Scup 69
- Little tunny 67
8 kt NNEH 8:36 AM · 1.2 ftL 2:54 PM · 0.3 ft

Open in the tide map

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.