Waterlands

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CobiaShoulder season

Cape · Virginia

North Point

37.64°N · 76.31°W · Cape · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA

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Best score today · 8 AM · Cobia

76/100Great
Now
451 PM EDT
Best window
5-10 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing0.7 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 1 PM · now

Time1PNOW
Score45Good
Tide0.7 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.3 kn · toward ESE
Wind7 kn NEgusts 15 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.0 ft · 2 s
Air temp79°Warm
WeatherOvercast98% cloud
Water80°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

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.

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Cobia is best here

Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder

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

Cobia in Virginia

Spot profile

North Point

Depth
1-4 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · 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 North Point

North Point is a cape in Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA, Virginia. Depth in the nearest water is 1-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are little tunny, spot and Spanish mackerel. It is peak season now for little tunny, spot, Spanish mackerel and red drum, and shoulder season for bluefish, striped bass, Atlantic croaker and spotted seatrout. Little tunny peak from September through October. Spot peak from August through October. Spanish mackerel peak from July through September.

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.
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.
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

  • Rappahanncock Spit

    Bar · 3.2 mi

    64
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 64
    • Little tunny 62
    • Spot 61

    6 kt NEL 1:35 PM · 0.7 ftH 8:08 PM · 1.5 ft

  • Antepoison Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    63
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 63
    • Spot 62
    • Spanish mackerel 60

    7 kt NEL 1:35 PM · 0.7 ftH 8:08 PM · 1.5 ft

  • Deep Hole Point

    Cape · 2.0 mi

    63
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 63
    • Spanish mackerel 61
    • Spot 61

    6 kt NEL 1:35 PM · 0.7 ftH 8:08 PM · 1.5 ft

  • Bluff Point

    Cape · 3.3 mi

    63
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 63
    • Spot 62
    • Spanish mackerel 60

    7 kt NEL 1:35 PM · 0.7 ftH 8:08 PM · 1.5 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.