Waterlands

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Black sea bassShoulder season

Cape · Virginia

Rogue Point

37.85°N · 76.33°W · Cape · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA

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Best score today · 8 AM · Black sea bass

72/100Great
Now
405 AM EDT
Best window
7-10 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Low0.7 ft

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

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24-hour conditions

Sunday, Sep 27 · 9 AM

Time9A
Score66Great
Tide0.4 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.3 kn · toward NW
Wind7 kn NWgusts 19 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.6 ft · 3 s
Air temp61°Mild
WeatherMostly cloudy79% cloud
Water71°FBias corrected

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Black sea bass is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with VMRC before you keep a fish.

Source: VMRC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Black sea bass is best here

Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder

Black sea bass season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Black sea bass in Virginia

Spot profile

Rogue Point

Depth
3-20 ftSlope
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · slope
Season
Shoulder seasonBlack sea bass

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 Rogue Point

Rogue Point is a cape in Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA, Virginia. Depth is 3-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are little tunny, bluefish and scup. It is peak season now for little tunny, scup, spot and sheepshead, and shoulder season for bluefish, striped bass, black sea bass and weakfish. Little tunny peak from September through October. Bluefish peak in May and from October through November. Scup peak from June through October.

Tackle & technique

Black sea bass
Black sea bass hold tight to wrecks, reefs, rock piles and jetties, from 15 feet inshore in late spring to well over 100 feet on offshore wrecks in late fall. Anchor or drift right over the structure and fish a two-hook high-low rig with squid or clam, or bounce a small jig on the bottom. The biggest males sit on the highest relief.
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.
Bluefish
Bluefish travel in size-sorted schools and feed where tide pushes bait past structure: inlet mouths, rips, shoal edges and the surf line, mostly in water shallower than 60 feet. Look for birds and breaking bait and cast metal or poppers into it, or soak cut bunker or mullet on the bottom from the beach. Use a short wire or heavy leader because their teeth cut light line.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Horn Harbor

    Bay · 0.8 mi

    52
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 52
    • Spot 52
    • Sheepshead 49

    12 kt NEH 10:43 AM · 1.3 ftL 5:06 PM · 0.6 ft

  • Haynie Point

    Cape · 1.6 mi

    52
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 52
    • Scup 51
    • Bluefish 50

    12 kt NEH 10:26 AM · 1.1 ftL 4:43 PM · 0.3 ft

  • Ferry Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    51
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 51
    • Bluefish 49
    • Scup 47

    12 kt NEH 10:43 AM · 1.3 ftL 5:06 PM · 0.6 ft

  • Collins Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    47
    Top: BluefishShoulder season
    • Bluefish 47
    • Little tunny 47
    • Spot 46

    12 kt NEH 10:43 AM · 1.3 ftL 5:06 PM · 0.6 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.