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King mackerelShoulder seasonBay · Virginia
Horn Harbor
37.86°N · 76.34°W · Bay · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 9 AM · King mackerel
- 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
Notify me when Horn Harbor scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions
Friday, Sep 25 · 5 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
78Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
89Wind: 10 kt NPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
89Water temp: 73°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 2.2 ftSeason & habitat · King mackerel
Species seasonality
55Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: Out of range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
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.
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
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Horn Harbor
- Depth
- 1-10 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · 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 Horn Harbor
Horn Harbor is a bay in Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA, Virginia. Depth is 1-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are spot, scup and sheepshead. It is peak season now for spot, scup, sheepshead and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for black sea bass, bluefish, Atlantic croaker and king mackerel. Spot peak from August through October. Scup peak from June through October. Sheepshead 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
- Ferry Point59
Cape · 0.5 mi
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
- Rogue Point59
Cape · 0.8 mi
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 Point59
Cape · 1.4 mi
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 Point58
Cape · 1.4 mi
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.