Waterlands

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Spotted seatroutShoulder season

Bar · Virginia

Penniman Spit

37.28°N · 76.58°W · Bar · York River

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Best score today · 6 PM · Spotted seatrout

68/100Great
Now
372 AM EDT
Best window
5-8 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Low0.6 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 2 AM · now

Time2ANOW
Score37Fair
Tide0.6 ftLow
CurrentEbb0.5 kn · toward SE
Wind15 kn NEgusts 28 · steady
Air temp69°Warm
WeatherOvercast98% chance of rain
Water79°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Spotted seatrout 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 Spotted seatrout is best here

Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 1 more week at shoulder

Spotted seatrout season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Spotted seatrout in Virginia

Spot profile

Penniman Spit

Depth
2-4 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bar · Inner · Semi-exposedBar · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonSpotted seatrout

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 Penniman Spit

Penniman Spit is a bar in York River, Virginia. Depth is 2-4 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, Spanish mackerel and little tunny. It is peak season now for spot, Spanish mackerel, little tunny and red drum, and shoulder season for bluefish, striped bass, spotted seatrout and Atlantic croaker. Spot peak from August through October. Spanish mackerel peak from July through September. Little tunny peak from September through October.

Tackle & technique

Spotted seatrout
Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
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

  • Poley Point

    Cape · 0.3 mi

    48
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 48
    • Little tunny 45
    • Red drum 44

    15 kt NEH 8:11 AM · 2.6 ftL 2:06 PM · 0.6 ft

  • Green Point

    Cape · 1.8 mi

    48
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 48
    • Little tunny 44
    • Red drum 44

    15 kt NEH 8:11 AM · 2.6 ftL 2:06 PM · 0.6 ft

  • Blundering Point

    Cape · 2.4 mi

    48
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 48
    • Little tunny 45
    • Red drum 45

    15 kt NEH 8:11 AM · 2.6 ftL 2:06 PM · 0.6 ft

  • Powhatan Point

    Cape · 2.5 mi

    48
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 48
    • Little tunny 45
    • Red drum 44

    15 kt NEH 8:11 AM · 2.6 ftL 2:06 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.