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CobiaShoulder seasonBay · Virginia
Island Bay
37.80°N · 75.77°W · Bay · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 9 AM · Cobia
- Now
- 455 PM EDT
- Best window
- 5-7 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.2 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Island Bay 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 · rolling from now
Conditions · 5 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
53Tide: FloodingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
38Wind: 17 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
77Water temp: 75°F, primeLight: Late afternoonSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 2.0 ftSeason & habitat · Cobia
Species seasonality
56Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Cobia 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 Cobia is best here
Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Island Bay
- Depth
- 3-5 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonCobia
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 Island Bay
Island Bay is a bay in Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA, Virginia. Depth is 3-5 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 red drum. It is peak season now for scup, spot, red drum and summer flounder, and shoulder season for bluefish, weakfish, Atlantic croaker and black sea bass. Scup peak from June through October. Spot peak from August through October. Red drum peak in May and from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- Cobia
- Cobia cruise inlets, beaches, buoys, wrecks and the backs of rays in 5 to 100 feet of water. On calm, sunny days sight-cast bucktails or live eels to fish near the surface. Otherwise anchor up-current of structure, chum, and fish live eels, crabs or menhaden near the bottom.
- 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
- The Thorofare62
Channel · 1.2 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 62
- Spot 61
- Summer flounder 59
17 kt NEH 9:47 PM · 2.3 ftL 4:17 AM · 1.0 ft
- Custis Cove62
Bay · 1.7 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 62
- Spot 60
- Spanish mackerel 59
17 kt NEH 9:47 PM · 2.3 ftL 4:17 AM · 1.0 ft
- Rainy Point61
Cape · 0.7 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 61
- Scup 57
- Spot 55
17 kt NEH 9:47 PM · 2.3 ftL 4:17 AM · 1.0 ft
- Canoedas Point61
Cape · 1.6 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 61
- Scup 57
- Spot 55
17 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.