Waterlands

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Spotted seatroutShoulder season

Cape · Virginia

Rum Point

37.87°N · 76.01°W · Cape · Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA

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Best score today · 1 AM · Spotted seatrout

70/100Great
Now
306 PM EDT
Best window
6-7 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding0.6 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 6 PM · now

Time6PNOW
Score30Fair
Tide0.6 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentSlack0.0 kn
Wind18 kn NEgusts 28 · steady
Sea stateModerate3.0 ft · 4 s
Air temp70°Warm
WeatherOvercast44% chance of rain
Water78°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Spotted seatrout 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 Spotted seatrout is best here

Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 1 more week at shoulder

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

Spotted seatrout in Virginia

Spot profile

Rum Point

Depth
1-3 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonSpotted seatrout

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 Rum Point

Rum Point is a cape in Chesapeake Bay from Smith Point to Windmill Point VA, Virginia. Depth is 1-3 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 bluefish. It is peak season now for little tunny, spot, Spanish mackerel and scup, and shoulder season for bluefish, black sea bass, striped bass and king mackerel. Little tunny peak from September through October. Spot peak from August through October. Bluefish peak in May and from October through November.

Tackle & technique

Spotted seatrout
Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
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

  • Goose Harbor

    Bay · 0.9 mi

    63
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 63
    • Sheepshead 60
    • Spanish mackerel 59

    18 kt NEH 9:58 PM · 1.6 ftL 4:33 AM · 0.2 ft

  • Fishing Gut

    Bay · 2.6 mi

    62
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 62
    • Spot 60
    • Red drum 57

    18 kt NEH 9:58 PM · 1.6 ftL 4:33 AM · 0.2 ft

  • Tangier North Channel

    Channel · 3.0 mi

    62
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 62
    • Spot 61
    • Sheepshead 59

    18 kt NEH 9:58 PM · 1.6 ftL 4:33 AM · 0.2 ft

  • West Point

    Cape · 3.0 mi

    62
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 62
    • Scup 57
    • Bluefish 56

    18 kt NEH 9:58 PM · 1.6 ftL 4:33 AM · 0.2 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.