The anglers above caught their limit of keeper flounder and were back at the dock by 11 AM. There is some awesome fishing happening now on the Eastern Shore. Boats are finding big fish in the channels and bays near Wachapreague, known as the “Flounder Fishing Capital of the World.”
Flounder fishing is not only good on the Eastern Shore, but also in the lower Bay. You can find them in shallow water near grass beds or drop-offs, or deep around the CBBT. A squid and minnow combo is a classic bait, but you can also use live spot or strips of bluefish or flounder belly. The biggest flounder caught so far this season was a 6 lbs. 15 oz. doormat by Steven Matthews near Watts Island.
Another fish that’s showing up in the Bay near Cape Charles is the black drum. These fish can get huge, and they bite well in May. You can catch them on clam baits or jigs.
May kicks off Virginia’s world-class red drum fishing. More giant reds are caught in the lower Chesapeake Bay than anywhere else.
If you prefer smaller drum, you can find pups and a few speckled trout in local inlets, Little Creek, Lynnhaven and Rudee.
Sheepshead are another fish that have arrived in the Chesapeake Bay. These fish are hard to hook, but they are delicious to eat. You can catch them on crab baits near pilings or rocks.
The Virginia Beach Pier and surf are also producing some nice fish. You can catch red or black drum and speckled trout on cut bait or lures. You might also hook into a bluefish or a croaker.
Tautog fishing remains good in the Bay and offshore. These fish are found near wrecks or reefs, and they love crabs or clams.
OBX
Fishing remains excellent on the Outer Banks, from the surf to the gulf stream. Yellowfin tuna, dolphin, wahoo, king mackerel, and even sailfish are biting offshore. Dolphin catches have been great this week.
Drum of all sizes are plentiful in the surf, especially at Buxton Point and Oregon Inlet. Sea mullet, bluefish, black drum, and puffers are also common.
The piers have sea mullet, trout, puppy drum, black drum, bluefish, puffers, and some huge stripers.
Sheepshead are showing up at the Bonner Bridge Pier. Use live fiddler crabs for them.
Red drum and trout catches are still good on the sound side, along with black drum, bluefish, and flounder.
Freshwater
At Lake Orange, Darrell Kennedy of Angler’s Landing (540- 672-3997) reports water temperatures in the mid to upper 60s. The lake is clear with bass and crappie finishing up their spawn and are now feeding aggressively. Bass can be caught throwing a little bit of everything – topwater baits in lowlight, and soft plastics during midday. Crappie are being caught on live minnows in brush in 8 to 10 ft. depths. A few walleye were caught this week with harness rigs tipped with nightcrawlers. Some catfish have been caught on chicken livers on the northern end of the lake. The sunfish should start to spawn anytime now.
On the larger lakes, the bass and crappie spawn is over, but fish remain in shallow water. The smallmouth rivers are high and stained after heavy rains.