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Spanish mackerelPeak seasonBay · Virginia
Pocomoke Sound
37.86°N · 75.80°W · Bay · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 8 AM · Spanish mackerel
- Now
- 5012 PM EDT
- Best window
- 7 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing2.2 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Pocomoke Sound 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 · 12 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
52Tide: EbbingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
32Wind: 17 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
61Water temp: 69°F, coolLight: OvercastSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 2.2 ftSeason & habitat · Spanish mackerel
Species seasonality
80Season: PeakHabitat: Structure unmappedDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Spanish 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 Spanish mackerel is best here
Peak season for Spanish mackerel · 1 more week at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Pocomoke Sound
- Depth
- About 15 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak seasonSpanish 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 Pocomoke Sound
Pocomoke Sound is a bay in Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA, Virginia. Depth is about 15 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 little tunny. It is peak season now for scup, spot, little tunny and sheepshead, and shoulder season for bluefish, striped bass, Atlantic croaker and black sea bass. Scup peak from June through October. Spot peak from August through October. Little tunny peak from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- 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
- Drum Bay67
Bay · 4.3 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 67
- Spot 67
- Little tunny 62
13 kt NEL 5:05 PM · 0.8 ftH 10:41 PM · 2.6 ft
- Long Point64
Cape · 3.3 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 64
- Scup 60
- Spot 59
13 kt NEL 5:05 PM · 0.8 ftH 10:41 PM · 2.6 ft
- The Thorofare60
Channel · 3.8 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 60
- Spot 59
- Sheepshead 57
17 kt NEL 4:28 PM · 0.9 ftH 10:30 PM · 2.3 ft
- Guilford Flats59
Flat · 2.1 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 59
- Red drum 57
- Spot 57
17 kt NEL 5:16 PM · 0.6 ftH 10:55 PM · 2.7 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.