Waterlands

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Red drumPeak season

Cape · Virginia

Bar Point

37.69°N · 76.48°W · Cape · Rappahannock River from Urbanna to Windmill Point

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Best score today · 9 AM · Red drum

74/100Great
Now
474 PM EDT
Best window
6 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Low0.7 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 4 PM · now

Time4PNOW
Score47Good
Tide0.7 ftLow
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind12 kn NEgusts 23 · steady
Air temp70°Warm
WeatherOvercast95% 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.

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

Bar Point

Depth
3-30 ftSlope
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · slope
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 Bar Point

Bar Point is a cape in Rappahannock River from Urbanna to Windmill Point, Virginia. Depth is 3-30 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

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

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Punches Cove

    Bay · 2.8 mi

    57
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 57
    • Spanish mackerel 54
    • Scup 52

    12 kt NEH 9:35 PM · 1.5 ftL 4:21 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Dead and Bones Cove

    Bay · 2.8 mi

    56
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 56
    • Red drum 54
    • Scup 51

    12 kt NEH 9:35 PM · 1.5 ftL 4:21 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Yankee Point

    Cape · 0.4 mi

    53
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 53
    • Spot 53
    • Spanish mackerel 48

    12 kt NEH 9:35 PM · 1.5 ftL 4:21 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Ball Point

    Cape · 1.2 mi

    53
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 53
    • Spot 53
    • Spanish mackerel 48

    12 kt NEH 9:35 PM · 1.5 ftL 4:21 AM · 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.