Waterlands

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Red drumPeak 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 · Red drum

65/100Great
Now
481 AM EDT
Best window
3-10 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Low0.8 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 1 AM · now

Time1ANOW
Score48Good
Tide0.8 ftLow
CurrentEbb0.3 kn · toward NE
Wind10 kn NEgusts 22 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.0 ft · 4 s
Air temp72°Warm
WeatherOvercast47% chance of rain
Water79°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Red drum 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 Red drum is best here

Peak season for Red drum · 4 more weeks at peak

Red drum season by week of the year. Peak season for Red drum · 4 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Red drum in Virginia

Spot profile

Sewells Point Spit

Depth
6-10 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bar · Inner · Semi-exposedBar · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonRed drum

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

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.
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

  • Entrance Reach

    Channel · 0.7 mi

    61
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 61
    • Red drum 60
    • Summer flounder 55

    10 kt NEL 1:25 AM · 0.6 ftH 7:24 AM · 2.6 ft

  • Hampton Roads

    Channel · 1.8 mi

    59
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 59
    • Red drum 57
    • Summer flounder 55

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

  • Hampton Bar

    Bar · 1.9 mi

    59
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 59
    • Bluefish 56
    • Little tunny 56

    10 kt NEL 1:25 AM · 0.6 ftH 7:24 AM · 2.6 ft

  • Old Point Comfort

    Cape · 2.0 mi

    58
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 58
    • Red drum 55
    • Bluefish 54

    10 kt NEL 1:25 AM · 0.6 ftH 7:24 AM · 2.6 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.