Waterlands

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Little tunnyPeak season

Cape · Virginia

North Point

37.90°N · 75.71°W · Cape · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA

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Best score today · 8 AM · Spot

75/100Great
Now
661 PM EDT
Best window
6-11 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.4 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
Score66Great
Tide1.4 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentSlack0.2 kn
Wind5 kn NEgusts 15 · building
Sea stateCalm0.4 ft · 3 s
Air temp81°Warm
WeatherOvercast93% cloud
Water79°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Little tunny 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 Little tunny is best here

Peak season for Little tunny · 5 more weeks at peak

Little tunny season by week of the year. Peak season for Little tunny · 5 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Little tunny in Virginia

Spot profile

North Point

Depth
1-6 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonLittle tunny

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 is 1-6 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, Atlantic croaker, black sea bass 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

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.
Spanish mackerel
Spanish mackerel school along beaches and around inlets, jetties, piers and bridge-tunnel structures, and along tide rips in 5 to 40 feet of water once the water climbs above about 68 degrees F. Troll small spoons or cast metal jigs and retrieve fast, or look for birds diving on bait and cast into the school. FWC calls for a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader because their teeth cut light line.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Rock Gut

    Gut · 1.1 mi

    74
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 74
    • Red drum 71
    • Sheepshead 67

    5 kt NEL 3:35 PM · 0.8 ftH 9:31 PM · 2.4 ft

  • Drum Point

    Cape · 1.2 mi

    68
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 68
    • Spot 67
    • Spanish mackerel 63

    5 kt NEL 3:14 PM · 0.8 ftH 9:32 PM · 2.4 ft

  • South Point

    Cape · 0.7 mi

    66
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 66
    • Spot 65
    • Spanish mackerel 62

    5 kt NEL 3:20 PM · 1.1 ftH 9:09 PM · 2.5 ft

  • Scarborough Point

    Cape · 1.0 mi

    66
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 66
    • Spot 65
    • Spanish mackerel 62

    5 kt NEL 3:20 PM · 1.1 ftH 9:09 PM · 2.5 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.