Waterlands

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Striped bassShoulder season

Cape · Virginia

Point of Marsh

36.91°N · 76.50°W · Cape · James River from JRB to HRBT, Including the Elizabeth River

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Best score today · 11 AM · Striped bass

66/100Great
Now
489 AM EDT
Best window
10 AM-1 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing3.0 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 9 AM · now

Time9ANOW
Score48Good
Tide3.0 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentSlack0.0 kn
Wind15 kn NEgusts 27 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.1 ft · 4 s
Air temp67°Mild
WeatherOvercast94% chance of rain
Water79°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Striped 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 Striped bass is best here

Shoulder season for Striped bass · 1 more week at shoulder

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

Striped bass in Virginia

Spot profile

Point of Marsh

Depth
2-10 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonStriped 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 Point of Marsh

Point of Marsh is a cape in James River from JRB to HRBT, Including the Elizabeth River, Virginia. Depth is 2-10 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 scup. It is peak season now for spot, little tunny, scup and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for bluefish, striped bass, Atlantic croaker and black sea bass. Spot peak from August through October. Little tunny peak from September through October. Scup peak from June through October.

Tackle & technique

Striped bass
Striped bass feed where moving tide pushes bait past structure: inlets, points, jetties, bridge pilings and rips in the surf, usually in 2 to 40 feet of water. Fish dawn, dusk and night hardest, casting plugs, bucktails and soft plastics or drifting live bunker and eels, and chunk bait on the bottom in current. In midsummer the larger fish drop deeper or feed mostly after dark.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Batten Bay

    Bay · 1.4 mi

    67
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 67
    • Scup 61
    • Spanish mackerel 58

    15 kt NEL 2:06 PM · 0.6 ftH 8:22 PM · 3.0 ft

  • Winall Point

    Cape · 0.4 mi

    60
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 60
    • Red drum 59
    • Little tunny 57

    15 kt NEL 2:10 PM · 0.6 ftH 8:17 PM · 3.5 ft

  • Pike Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    60
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 60
    • Little tunny 57
    • Scup 54

    15 kt NEL 2:10 PM · 0.6 ftH 8:17 PM · 3.5 ft

  • Great Shoal

    Bar · 1.5 mi

    60
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 60
    • Spanish mackerel 58
    • Little tunny 55

    15 kt NEL 2:10 PM · 0.6 ftH 8:17 PM · 3.5 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.