Waterlands

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King mackerelShoulder season

Bar · Virginia

Goffs Bar

37.81°N · 76.27°W · Bar · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA

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Best score today · 9 AM · King mackerel

73/100Great
Now
3510 PM EDT
Best window
10 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
High1.2 ft

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

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14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Thu · 78

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 10 PM · now

Time10PNOW
Score35Fair
Tide1.2 ftHigh
CurrentSlack0.0 kn
Wind13 kn NEgusts 25 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.6 ft · 4 s
Air temp65°Mild
WeatherOvercast80% chance of rain
Water76°FObserved

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 today

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When King mackerel is best here

Shoulder season for King mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder

King mackerel season by week of the year. Shoulder season for King mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

King mackerel in Virginia →

Spot profile

Goffs Bar

Depth
10-15 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bar · Inner · Semi-exposedBar · 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 Goffs Bar

Goffs Bar is a bar in Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA, Virginia. Depth is 10-15 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bar, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

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 →
  • Taskmakers Creek

    Bay · 1.3 mi

    65
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 65
    • Scup 62
    • Atlantic croaker 53

    13 kt NEL 4:32 AM · 0.3 ftH 10:26 AM · 1.1 ft

  • Ingram Bay

    Bay · 1.4 mi

    65
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 65
    • Scup 58
    • Atlantic croaker 53

    13 kt NEL 4:29 AM · 0.3 ftH 10:26 AM · 1.1 ft

  • Fleeton Point

    Cape · 0.9 mi

    60
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 60
    • Scup 57
    • Little tunny 49

    13 kt NEL 4:32 AM · 0.3 ftH 10:26 AM · 1.1 ft

  • Cockrell Point

    Cape · 1.6 mi

    60
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 60
    • Scup 57
    • Little tunny 49

    13 kt NEL 4:32 AM · 0.3 ftH 10:26 AM · 1.1 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.