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Summer flounderPeak seasonFlat · Virginia
Ludlow Flats
36.85°N · 76.30°W · Flat · James River from JRB to HRBT, Including the Elizabeth River
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 10 AM · Summer flounder
- Now
- 488 AM EDT
- Best window
- 9 AM-1 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- High3.0 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Ludlow Flats 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 · 8 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
14Tide: High slackCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
60Wind: 12 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
67Water temp: 80°F, warmLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 2.3 ftSeason & habitat · Summer flounder
Species seasonality
83Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Summer flounder 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 Summer flounder is best here
Peak season for Summer flounder · 1 more week at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Ludlow Flats
- Depth
- 15-45 ftSlope
- Structure
- Flat · Inner · ProtectedFlat · slope
- Season
- Peak seasonSummer flounder
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 Ludlow Flats
Ludlow Flats is a flat in James River from JRB to HRBT, Including the Elizabeth River, Virginia. Depth is 15-45 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads flat, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are spot, scup and red drum. It is peak season now for spot, scup, red drum and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for Atlantic croaker, black sea bass, bluefish and king mackerel. Spot peak from August through October. Scup peak from June through October. Red drum peak in May and from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Town Point Reach68
Channel · 0.6 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 68
- Scup 60
- Atlantic croaker 58
12 kt NEL 1:46 PM · 0.6 ftH 8:03 PM · 3.3 ft
- Port Norfolk Reach68
Channel · 1.2 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 68
- Scup 63
- Atlantic croaker 58
12 kt NEL 1:46 PM · 0.6 ftH 8:03 PM · 3.3 ft
- Lamberts Point65
Cape · 2.4 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 65
- Spot 62
- Little tunny 53
12 kt NEL 1:30 PM · 0.6 ftH 7:58 PM · 3.0 ft
- Hospital Point63
Cape · 0.4 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 63
- Spot 62
- Little tunny 51
12 kt NEL 1:46 PM · 0.6 ftH 8:03 PM · 3.3 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.
