Waterlands

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ScupPeak season

Channel · Virginia

Town Point Reach

36.84°N · 76.30°W · Channel · James River from JRB to HRBT, Including the Elizabeth River

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Best score today · 11 PM · Scup

72/100Great
Now
4912 PM EDT
Best window
10 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.1 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 12 PM · now

Time12PNOW
Score49Good
Tide1.1 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.2 kn · toward NNW
Wind13 kn NEgusts 25 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.4 ft · 4 s
Air temp69°Warm
WeatherOvercast100% chance of rain
Water80°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Scup 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 Scup is best here

Peak season for Scup · 5 more weeks at peak

Scup season by week of the year. Peak season for Scup · 5 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Scup in Virginia

Spot profile

Town Point Reach

Depth
15-45 ftSlope
Structure
Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · slope
Season
Peak seasonScup

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 Town Point Reach

Town Point Reach is a channel in James River from JRB to HRBT, Including the Elizabeth River, Virginia. Depth is 15-45 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are spot, black sea bass and sheepshead. It is peak season now for spot, sheepshead, summer flounder and red drum, and shoulder season for black sea bass, Atlantic croaker, weakfish and king mackerel. Spot peak from August through October. Black sea bass peak from May through June and from October through November. Sheepshead peak from July through September.

Tackle & technique

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.
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.
Black sea bass
Black sea bass hold tight to wrecks, reefs, rock piles and jetties, from 15 feet inshore in late spring to well over 100 feet on offshore wrecks in late fall. Anchor or drift right over the structure and fish a two-hook high-low rig with squid or clam, or bounce a small jig on the bottom. The biggest males sit on the highest relief.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Port Norfolk Reach

    Channel · 1.6 mi

    68
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 68
    • Black sea bass 63
    • Sheepshead 62

    13 kt NEL 1:46 PM · 0.6 ftH 8:03 PM · 3.3 ft

  • Lambert Bend

    Bend · 2.8 mi

    67
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 67
    • Summer flounder 64
    • Black sea bass 63

    13 kt NEL 1:30 PM · 0.6 ftH 7:58 PM · 3.0 ft

  • Ludlow Flats

    Flat · 0.6 mi

    64
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 64
    • Spot 62
    • Summer flounder 59

    13 kt NEL 1:46 PM · 0.6 ftH 8:03 PM · 3.3 ft

  • Hospital Point

    Cape · 0.5 mi

    63
    Top: Black sea bassShoulder season
    • Black sea bass 63
    • Little tunny 62
    • Spot 62

    13 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.