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Spanish mackerelPeak seasonBar · Virginia
Wolf Trap
37.40°N · 76.19°W · Bar · Chesapeake Bay from Windmill Point to New Point Comfort VA
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 9 AM · Spanish mackerel
- Now
- 723 PM EDT
- Best window
- 3-4 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.0 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Wolf Trap 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 · 3 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
94Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.7 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
87Wind: 10 kt ENEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
75Water temp: 79°F, primeLight: OvercastSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 2.3 ftSeason & habitat · Spanish mackerel
Species seasonality
84Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: 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
Wolf Trap
- Depth
- 20-25 ftSlope
- Structure
- Bar · Inner · Semi-exposedBar · slope
- 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 Wolf Trap
Wolf Trap is a bar in Chesapeake Bay from Windmill Point to New Point Comfort VA, Virginia. Depth is 20-25 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bar, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are Spanish mackerel, little tunny and summer flounder. It is peak season now for Spanish mackerel, little tunny, summer flounder and spot, and shoulder season for bluefish, black sea bass, king mackerel and Atlantic croaker. Spanish mackerel peak from July through September. Little tunny peak from September through October. Summer flounder peak from June through September.
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.
- 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.
- Summer flounder
- Summer flounder lie half-buried on sand and shell bottom and ambush bait along channel edges, inlet bars and ocean reefs, from a few feet deep in back bays to about 100 feet offshore. Drift with the tide and bounce a bucktail tipped with a squid or fish strip along the bottom. The bigger fish move to ocean reefs and wrecks in late summer, so follow them out.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Horn Harbor79
Bay · 5.3 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 79
- Spanish mackerel 76
- Sheepshead 74
10 kt ENEH 6:41 PM · 2.7 ftL 1:18 AM · 0.6 ft
- Winter Harbor74
Bay · 3.6 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 74
- Sheepshead 69
- Red drum 68
10 kt ENEH 6:56 PM · 1.9 ftL 1:48 AM · 0.6 ft
- Mill Point73
Cape · 5.3 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 73
- Spot 70
- Spanish mackerel 69
10 kt ENEH 6:41 PM · 2.7 ftL 1:18 AM · 0.6 ft
- Sage Point55
Cape · 6.3 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 55
- Spot 53
- Spanish mackerel 51
10 kt ENEH 8:34 PM · 1.4 ftL 3:20 AM · 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.
