Frank Marble, Sandbridge

As October rolls in the big red drum start rolling out. Look for large schools on the surface exiting the Bay. Anglers surf fishing along Sandbridge have been successful, mostly at night. Frank Marble beached two at 48 inches and several over 40.  A number of release citations have been recorded by Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle recently. George Kotarides 48 inches, Jonathan Guion 48 inches, Joe Jacobs 47 ½ inches, Joe Jacobs 47 ½ inches, Dee Smith 52 inches, Dee Smith 52 inches, Joe Sudduth 48 inches, Charles G Sudduth III 50 inches, Morgan Stroh 47 inches, Donald Gelinas 49 inches, Abigail Kelley 49 inches, Abigail Kelley 47 inches, Robert Kelley 47 inches, David R. Oden 46 ½ inches, Charles Doriguzzi 48 inches and Ethan Doriguzzi 53 inches.

Ocean Pearl Charters

The spanish mackerel have been larger and plentiful the past couple of weeks. Long Bay Pointe registered several nice ones for Virginia State Citation Awards. Jack Limroth released three at 28, 29 and 30 inches. Alex Gallardo Perez weighed a 5 lb. 11 oz. and a 4 lb. 8 oz. fish. Jack Limroth weighed a 7 lb. and a 4 lb. 14 oz. fish. And Cardelario Gallardo a 4 lb. 5 oz. and a 4 lb. 3 oz. fish.

Paige II Charters

The speckled trout bite is picking in Rudee Inlet, Lynnhaven Inlet, Little Creek Inlet, the James River, Elizabeth River, the Hampton/Poquoson area, areas around the Rappahannock River. Amos H. Chang registered a 24-inch speckled release. Look for Puppy Drum in the same areas.

The Sheepshead are still feeding at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, the Monitor Merrimac Bridge Tunnel and on Bay reefs. Evan Rossen weighed a 11 lb. 2 oz. sheepshead last week.

Spot are available from the Rappahannock River to the oceanfront.

Some flounder are being caught on ocean structures.

Lots of seabass are being caught on ocean wrecks.

High Hopes Charters

Offshore boats are finding wahoo, mahi, yellowfin tuna and blue and white marlin.

Deep droppers are catching tilefish. Captain David Wright on the High Hopes has been catching blueline tiles and an occasional tuna or white marlin. The Rudee Tours headboats are targeting black sea bass, triggerfish, flounder and bluefish on their Full-Day Fishing Trips and tilefish on their 17-Hour Deep Drop Trips.

Puppy drum, speckled trout, rockfish and spot are in the local inlets.

Recently Shawn Sawyer and his buddy Jason won the Lynnhaven Puppy Drum Round Up tournament. They caught over 60 redfish and lost some big ones. Their longest fish was 30 inches.

Anglers are encountering large red drum in the Bay schooling on the surface.

Bay cobia are starting to move toward the mouth of the Bay as they prepare to exit. Look for them near the surface, often time swimming under a school of rays. Capture season closes September 15th.

The CBBT is still holding nice sheepshead. Josh Ledoux caught a 11lb. 2 oz. sheepshead, Mike Harrison a 11 lb. 1 oz. and Robert Critcher a 10 lb. 15 oz. fish.

Nice keeper flounders have been caught recently. Captain Craig Paige on the Paige II has been putting his guest on some nice flatties.

Spot are widespread, from the Rappahannock River to the oceanfront. Some yellow bellies are up to 14 inches long.

The marlin bite has been outstanding. Charters have also been catching yellow fin tuna and mahi.

On Saturdays the Rudee Tours headboats are targeting black sea bass, triggerfish, flounder and bluefish on their Full-Day Fishing Trips and tilefish on their 17-Hour Deep Drop Trips.

Nice Spanish on the Ocean Pearl

Summer is winding down; the kids are back in school and the college football season is here. Anglers are looking forward to cooler temps and lots of migrating fish. We’ll be posting our fishing report twice a month, from now until March, most likely on the 1st and 15th.

Spanish mackerel fishing picked up in the Bay again last week. Crystal clear water and lots of nice size fish jumping. Thomas Herrera earned a state citation for a 28″ fish. He also registered a 43″ jack crevalle release and a 96″ bull shark release.

Good sheepshead fishing is continuing around the pilings of the CBBT. Long Bay Pointe recently weighted a number of nice fish. Matthew Green had a 12 lb. 1 oz., Tom Turley a 10 lb. 4 oz. and Robert Perez a 10 lb. 12 oz.

There’s still plenty of cobia in the Bay and along the oceanfront. Look for them under any large school of rays you spot. The large red drum bite has been steady also. George Spangler registered a 54″ red drum release and a 54″ cobia release. Chris Sadler had a 50″ cobia release, Chadwick Hayes a 52″ cobia release, Erick Simon a 52″ cobia release and Stephen Koffman a 51″ and 60″ cobia release.

The puppy drum bite has been excellent inside many of the inlets and rivers. There’s been a few nice flounder caught. Luke Rhoades weighted a 8 lb. 8 oz. flounder.

Good catches of croaker, bluefish and sea mullet are being had in the bay. The Cell area has been good. Spot action should pick up in the rivers. The big yellow belly run should occur before long.

The Virginia Beach Fishing Pier is reporting small spot, roundhead and an occasional ribbon fish or spanish mackerel.

Swordfish on the High Hopes

Offshore trollers are finding yellowfin tuna, mahi, marlin and swordfish. Deep droppers are catching tilefish. Inshore ocean wrecks are holding seabass and flounder.

Virginia Beach Pier Spadefish

The Spanish mackerel bite picked up between 2nd and 3rd islands of the CBBT last week . Some bluefish were mixed in.

This is king mackerel season along the oceanfront, look for some smokers to show up at the scales.

The Flounder bite is still good on ocean wrecks and has been increasing at the CBBT.

Cobia are starting to exit the Bay. Look for them near channel buoys and along the oceanfront.

The sheepshead are still biting along the CBBT.

Spot number are picking up in the Bay and along the oceanfront.

The Virginia Beach Fishing Pier is seeing spot, roundhead, pompano, rays, spades, small blues, small flounder, and puppy drum. One angler reported seeing a rear manatee swimming close by, pretty neat!

Inlets and bay tributaries are holding speckled trout and puppy drum. The best trout and drum fishing is September through November.

Deep droppers catching tilefish

Deep droppers are catching mostly tilefish. Rudee Tours runs trips, but you need to book early. Their website shows most trips sold out in advance.

The offshore boats are finding yellowfin tuna and wahoo action is picking up. This is peak billfish season, Blues, whites, and sailfish catches are on the rise.  81 Teams fished the Virginia Beach Billfish Tournament last week. Cash awards totaling $785,250 were handed out.

Final Standings

TOP 10 TEAMS

# BOAT CAPTAIN POINTS
1 Seven Jimmy Hardee 700 points
2 Katherine Anne Backlash Davis 630 points
3 Mama C Rob Mahoney 560 points (on time)
4 Bullwinkle Dan Spencer 560 points
5 Builder’s Choice Brent Gaskill 420 points

BILLFISH DAILY

DAY BOAT CAPTAIN POINTS
1-1st Katherine Anne Backlash Davis 490 points
1-2nd Builder’s Choice Brent Gaskill 280 points
2-1st Bullwinkle Dan Spencer 350 points (on time)
2-2nd Seven Jimmy Hardee 350 points
3-1st Seven Jimmy Hardee 350 points
3-2nd Electric Bill Mark McDevitt 280 points

GAMEFISH DIVISION

SPECIES BOAT ANGLER WEIGHT
TOP DOLPHIN Tuna Teaser Chance Price 22.5 lbs.
TOP TUNA Cotton Picker Thomas Bennett 74.2 lbs.
TOP WAHOO Evelyn Kennedy Paul Michael 22.8 lbs.

White Marlin Action On The High Hopes

Offshore billfish action is heating up just in time for the local tournament season. Boats have been catching multiple white marlins and occasional blue marlins. Mahi mahi are being found around inshore seamounts like the hot dog and a few wahoo are being caught along with an occasional tuna. Swordfish are available to those targeting them.

Deep dropping on the Rudee Head Boats remains good for blueline tilefish, black bellied rosefish and golden tilefish. There should be good amberjack action around the south tower.

Sheepshead On The Healthy Grin

There have been excellent catches of sheepshead throughout the lower Chesapeake Bay. The CBBT has been producing a lot citation-sized fish this year.

Spadefish reports are coming mostly from the light tower lately.

Spanish Mackerel catches continue and should continue into September.

The Cobia bite remains outstanding. Look for them around buoys.

There have been big drum caught but this year’s bite hasn’t match past years ….. YET. The season runs through September.

Our rivers and inlets are holding some keeper flounder, puppy drum, trout, and spot.

The Virginia Beach Fishing Pier is reporting spot, roundhead, spades, a few blues and small flounders.

Look for large smoker kings to show up along the ocean front in numbers soon. One was recently caught near the CBBT.

Nice Red on the Healthy Grin

The outstanding fishing continues along the Virginia coast … with a lot of species available.

Large red drum schools are popping up around the CBBT islands and along the coast.

Captain Todd Beck, Knot Wisn’n guide service said the spanish mackerel and bluefish action slowed a bit last week. But ribbonfish are all along the oceanfront in 25 to 50 feet of water.

Anglers continue catching cobia throughout the bay and along the coast. Chumming and using live or cut bait is working well. When fish are spotted near the surface anglers are sight-casting to them.

Paige II Charters, Flounder

Flounder fishing is picking up steam. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel, bay and coastal wrecks, artificial reefs and inside Lynnhaven Inlet are good spots.

Look for spadefish around the CBBT islands and navigation buoys. Triggers and spades are hanging around coastal wrecks.

There’s a lot of LARGE sheepshead to be had along the CBBT.

Speckled trout numbers are decent throughout the lower bay and inlets. Connie at Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle said spot, croaker, flounder and puppy drum are biting inside the Lynnhaven Inlet.

Tarpon have shown up on the Eastern Shore in the barrier islands backwaters.

The Virginia Beach Fishing Pier reported roundhead, blues at the end of the pier and flounder in the surf zone.

High Hopes Charters, tuna and tiles

Our local offshore marlin tournaments should be great! Virginia bluewater action is fantastic right now.  Several crews retuned to Rudee Inlet flying plenty of laundry last week.  White and blue marlin, sailfish, spearfish and swordfish are showing in numbers. Dolphin and tuna are in the mix.

The 2021 White Marlin Open will be held from August 2nd through 6th in Ocean City, Maryland. Then comes the 32nd Alice Kelly Memorial Ladies Only Billfish Tournament on August 8. The 38th Pirates Cove Billfish Tournament takes place August 10 – 13 and Awards presentation on the 13th.. After that the tournament actions come to Rudee Inlet. The 17th annual Wine, Women and Fishing ladies-only event Aug. 14-15, followed by the 16th annual Virginia Beach Billfish Tournament on Aug. 18-21.

Offshore deep-droppers are catching limits of tilefish. Amberjacks (wreck donkeys) are at the towers.

Knot Wish’n Guide Service

Our July fishing has been great and it will only get better in August! The question this time of year is which species to target.

Typically, in August huge schools of red drum start surfacing daily in the lower Bay. As long as no one spooks them angers can sight cast them for hours some days.

Cobia are throughout the bay and along the oceanfront, sight casting is the most productive technique now.

Spanish mackerel should increase in numbers and size this month. The fish are scattered along the oceanfront from Sandbridge to Cape Henry, and in the bay all the way up to Reedville.

Ribbonfish are feeding near Cape Henry. Anglers are catching them on diving plugs.

Flounder fishing is good. Fish in the 4-6 pounds range have been caught near the CBBT, the Cell and around wrecks.

Anglers jigging for flounder at the Triangle wrecks are also picking up black sea bass. Long Bay Pointe weighted this nice 7 pounder for Thomas Helfrich.

Spadefish are hanging around the CBBT, many ocean buoys and the Light Tower. Anglers are floating fresh clam morsels to them on small hooks. If they are not aggressively feeding, try putting some chum in the water.

OBX Tarpon

Several tarpon were caught off Outer Banks piers this week. They should also be feeding in Eastern Shore of Virginia backwaters by now.

Angler fishing from the Virginia Beach Fishing pier are catching a few blues, spot and roundhead.

Offshore deep-water bottom fishing is producing good numbers of tilefish.

This is peak blue water trolling season. Yellowfin tuna, dolphin and wahoo are off out coast.

Billfish action has picked up just in time for our local tournaments. The Virginia Beach Invitational Marlin Tournament was held over the weekend. Three crews each caught and released four marlins. The winner was decided by “time of catch”. The OUTLIER took first, the MAMA C got second and the FIRST LOOK took third. Top tuna, 53.9 pounds went to FREESTYLE. Top wahoo, 28.3 pounds was caught by the OUTLIER. Top Junior angler went to Colten Fulcher with 3 white marlin releases on the BACKLASH. Top Lady angler went to Denise Hall with 1 blue marlin release on the CAPT CHERYL. Congratulations to all!

Ocean Pearl Charters

This is peek fishing season in Virginia! ….. There’s a nice class of spanish mackerel available along the oceanfront, near the CBBT and as far north as the York Spit area. Charter boats are trolling small Drone or Clark spoons behind small planers.  Ocean Pearls Charters has been loading up on their morning and afternoon trips. Kaiden Hall weighed in a 4 lb. 6 oz. spanish mackerel at Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle.

Mr. Mark Taylor set this trip up on the High Hopes with Captain Wright for their father’s 85th birthday.

Dr Ken Neill said that the ribbonfish are plentiful and spanish mackerel are jumping all over. Taylor blues are mixed in with them. Captain Todd Beck, Knot Wisn’n Guide Service said they’ve had encounters with some big king mackerel but none have come tight.

Dr Ken Neill

Many are returning with spadefish limits. Look for spades around structures … like the Chesapeake Light Tower, ocean and bay buoys and the pilings of the CBBT. Spades fall to fresh clam. Slack tide is best when fishing the CBBT. Float a small piece on a small hook in front of them. Once sighted many anglers like chumming the fish up behind the boat. Some nice sheepshead are being caught along with the spades at the CBBT.

The Cobia bite in the bay remains strong. Most are being caught in chum slicks on live eels. Sighted on the surface cobia will hit just about anything you put in front of them. Live eels, spot, menhaden, mullet, large spoons, white buck tails, plastic eels, swimming plugs or cut bait. Keep a lookout for them around buoys and other structure, like the islands and pilings of the CBBT.

A number of anglers found large schools of red drum this week. Anglers are having success sight casting and bottom fishing. Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle has recorded a slew of release citations the past 2 weeks.

Paige II Charters

Flounder catches are on the increase. Some of the larger fish are being caught jigging bucktails tagged with strip baits or Gulps near the CBBT. Captain Craig Paige, Paige II Charters has been keeping his guest on the flounder.

Virginia Beach Pier and surf anglers are finding puppy drum, bluefish, spanish, flounder, croaker, sea mullet and small spot.

Tilefish of Rudee Tours deep drop trip

Look for seabass on offshore ocean wrecks and reefs. Tilefish are also available in the same areas. There should be plenty of amberjacks around the towers and on offshore structure. The Rudee Tours head boat has a number of 12 and 17 hour trips planned for July and August.

Offshore bluewater anglers are catching plenty of dolphin and tuna. Add to that a few big eye tuna, wahoo and swordfish. Our marlin bite is increasing. Offshore fishing is really good right now!