Waterlands

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Black sea bassShoulder season

Cape · Virginia

Ferry Point

37.85°N · 76.35°W · Cape · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA

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Best score today · 9 AM · Black sea bass

74/100Great
Now
489 PM EDT
Best window
9 PM-12 AMHigh slack
Tide now
Flooding1.3 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 9 PM · now

Time9PNOW
Score48Good
Tide1.3 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind13 kn NEgusts 25 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.6 ft · 4 s
Air temp68°Mild
WeatherOvercast83% chance of rain
Water75°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Black sea bass 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 Black sea bass is best here

Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder

Black sea bass season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Black sea bass in Virginia

Spot profile

Ferry Point

Depth
10-20 ftSlope
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · slope
Season
Shoulder seasonBlack sea bass

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 Ferry Point

Ferry Point is a cape in Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA, Virginia. Depth is 10-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

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, striped bass, black sea bass and Atlantic croaker. Scup peak from June through October. Spot peak from August through October. Little tunny peak from September through October.

Tackle & technique

Black sea bass
Black sea bass hold tight to wrecks, reefs, rock piles and jetties, from 15 feet inshore in late spring to well over 100 feet on offshore wrecks in late fall. Anchor or drift right over the structure and fish a two-hook high-low rig with squid or clam, or bounce a small jig on the bottom. The biggest males sit on the highest relief.
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

  • Horn Harbor

    Bay · 0.5 mi

    66
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 66
    • Scup 64
    • Sheepshead 58

    13 kt NEH 10:21 PM · 1.4 ftL 4:55 AM · 0.7 ft

  • Rogue Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    59
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 59
    • Spot 59
    • Little tunny 57

    13 kt NEH 10:21 PM · 1.4 ftL 4:55 AM · 0.7 ft

  • Glebe Point

    Cape · 1.0 mi

    59
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 59
    • Spot 59
    • Little tunny 57

    13 kt NEH 10:21 PM · 1.4 ftL 4:55 AM · 0.7 ft

  • Eagle Point

    Cape · 1.2 mi

    58
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 58
    • Spot 57
    • Little tunny 56

    13 kt NEH 10:21 PM · 1.4 ftL 4:55 AM · 0.7 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.