Waterlands

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Little tunnyPeak season

Bay · Virginia

Custis Cove

37.78°N · 75.74°W · Bay · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA

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Best score today · 9 AM · Little tunny

76/100Great
Now
626 PM EDT
Best window
6-7 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding1.4 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 6 PM · now

Time6PNOW
Score62Good
Tide1.4 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind18 kn NEgusts 28 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.0 ft · 3 s
Air temp70°Warm
WeatherOvercast44% chance of rain
Water75°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Little tunny 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 Little tunny is best here

Peak season for Little tunny · 5 more weeks at peak

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

Little tunny in Virginia

Spot profile

Custis Cove

Depth
1-4 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonLittle tunny

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 Custis Cove

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

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are scup, spot and little tunny. It is peak season now for scup, spot, little tunny and sheepshead, and shoulder season for bluefish, weakfish, Atlantic croaker and black sea bass. Scup peak from June through October. Spot peak from August through October. Little tunny peak from September through October.

Tackle & technique

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.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Island Bay

    Bay · 1.7 mi

    67
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 67
    • Spot 65
    • Red drum 62

    18 kt NEH 9:47 PM · 2.3 ftL 4:17 AM · 1.0 ft

  • Canoedas Point

    Cape · 1.2 mi

    66
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 66
    • Scup 61
    • Spot 60

    18 kt NEH 9:47 PM · 2.3 ftL 4:17 AM · 1.0 ft

  • Custis Point

    Cape · 0.3 mi

    65
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 65
    • Scup 61
    • Spot 60

    18 kt NEH 9:47 PM · 2.3 ftL 4:17 AM · 1.0 ft

  • Rainy Point

    Cape · 1.1 mi

    65
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 65
    • Scup 61
    • Spot 60

    18 kt NEH 9:47 PM · 2.3 ftL 4:17 AM · 1.0 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.