Waterlands

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Little tunnyPeak season

Cape · Virginia

Black Point

37.20°N · 76.73°W · Cape · James River from Jamestown to the James River Bridge

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Best score today · 9 AM · Little tunny

74/100Great
Now
5711 PM EDT
Best window
11 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing2.1 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 11 PM · now

Time11PNOW
Score57Good
Tide2.1 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind12 kn NEgusts 23 · steady
Air temp67°Mild
WeatherOvercast94% chance of rain
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

Black Point

Depth
2-7 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · 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 Black Point

Black Point is a cape in James River from Jamestown to the James River Bridge, Virginia. Depth is 2-7 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are spot, little tunny and red drum. It is peak season now for spot, little tunny, red drum and scup, and shoulder season for Atlantic croaker, bluefish, striped bass and spotted seatrout. Spot peak from August through October. Little tunny peak from September through October. Red drum peak in May and from September through October.

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.
Red drum
Redfish feed on shallow grass flats, oyster bars and marsh edges, often in 1 to 4 feet of water, and drop into channels, deep holes and tidal creeks when the water turns very hot or cold. Work a live shrimp under a popping cork or a soft plastic along the grass line on a rising tide, then fish creek mouths and drains as the tide falls. Bull reds over 30 inches school in the surf, passes and jetties in late summer and fall, where cut mullet or a live crab on the bottom is the standard approach.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • The Thorofare

    Channel · 0.6 mi

    74
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 74
    • Atlantic croaker 64
    • Red drum 62

    12 kt NEL 4:23 AM · 0.7 ftH 10:11 AM · 2.2 ft

  • Goose Hill Channel

    Channel · 1.0 mi

    72
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 72
    • Atlantic croaker 63
    • Red drum 61

    12 kt NEL 4:20 AM · 0.6 ftH 10:03 AM · 2.1 ft

  • Lower Point

    Cape · 1.2 mi

    68
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 68
    • Little tunny 58
    • Red drum 57

    12 kt NEL 4:20 AM · 0.6 ftH 10:03 AM · 2.1 ft

  • Drewry Point

    Cape · 3.1 mi

    66
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 66
    • Little tunny 57
    • Red drum 56

    12 kt NEL 4:20 AM · 0.6 ftH 10:03 AM · 2.1 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.