Waterlands

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Little tunnyPeak season

Bar · Virginia

Sewells Point Spit

36.97°N · 76.32°W · Bar · James River from JRB to HRBT, Including the Elizabeth River

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Best score today · 4 AM · Little tunny

65/100Great
Now
624 AM EDT
Best window
4-10 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding1.5 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 4 AM · now

Time4ANOW
Score62Good
Tide1.5 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.3 kn · toward W
Wind11 kn NEgusts 22 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.1 ft · 4 s
Air temp71°Warm
WeatherOvercast47% 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.

Source: VMRC · synced yesterday

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

Sewells Point Spit

Depth
6-10 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bar · Inner · Semi-exposedBar · 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 Sewells Point Spit

Sewells Point Spit is a bar in James River from JRB to HRBT, Including the Elizabeth River, Virginia. Depth is 6-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bar, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are spot, little tunny and Spanish mackerel. It is peak season now for spot, little tunny, Spanish mackerel and red drum, and shoulder season for bluefish, striped bass, black sea bass and Atlantic croaker. Spot peak from August through October. Little tunny peak from September through October. Spanish mackerel peak from July through September.

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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Entrance Reach

    Channel · 0.7 mi

    71
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 71
    • Red drum 63
    • Sheepshead 62

    11 kt NEH 7:24 AM · 2.6 ftL 1:35 PM · 0.6 ft

  • Hampton Roads

    Channel · 1.8 mi

    71
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 71
    • Red drum 64
    • Sheepshead 63

    11 kt NEH 7:23 AM · 2.6 ftL 1:26 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Hampton Bar

    Bar · 1.9 mi

    64
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 64
    • Bluefish 61
    • Spanish mackerel 61

    11 kt NEH 7:24 AM · 2.6 ftL 1:35 PM · 0.6 ft

  • Old Point Comfort

    Cape · 2.0 mi

    63
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 63
    • Spot 63
    • Black sea bass 60

    11 kt NEH 7:24 AM · 2.6 ftL 1:35 PM · 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.