Waterlands

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Red drumPeak season

Cape · Virginia

Calf Pasture Point

37.67°N · 76.43°W · Cape · Rappahannock River from Urbanna to Windmill Point

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Best score today · 12 AM · Red drum

77/100Great
Now
676 AM EDT
Best window
5-11 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding1.1 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 6 AM · now

Time6ANOW
Score67Great
Tide1.1 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind2 kn NNWgusts 4 · building
Sea stateCalm0.4 ft · 3 s
Air temp71°Warm
WeatherPartly cloudy36% cloud
Water80°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

Calf Pasture Point

Depth
Under 1 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · 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 Calf Pasture Point

Calf Pasture Point is a cape in Rappahannock River from Urbanna to Windmill Point, Virginia. Depth in the nearest water is under 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are red drum, spot and little tunny. It is peak season now for red drum, spot, little tunny and summer flounder, and shoulder season for spotted seatrout, Atlantic croaker, bluefish and black sea bass. Red drum peak in May and from September through October. Spot peak from August through October. Little tunny peak from September through October.

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

  • Carter Cove

    Bay · 0.7 mi

    69
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 69
    • Spanish mackerel 64
    • Red drum 63

    2 kt NNWH 8:18 AM · 1.3 ftL 2:45 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Dead and Bones Cove

    Bay · 0.3 mi

    68
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 68
    • Red drum 67
    • Scup 61

    2 kt NNWH 8:18 AM · 1.3 ftL 2:45 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Bridge Cove

    Bay · 0.8 mi

    68
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 68
    • Red drum 67
    • Scup 61

    2 kt NNWH 8:18 AM · 1.3 ftL 2:45 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Sloop Landing Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    64
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 64
    • Little tunny 61
    • Spanish mackerel 60

    2 kt NNWH 8:18 AM · 1.3 ftL 2:45 PM · 0.8 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.