The water temps are in the upper 50’s in Virginia and have passed 60 degrees on the Outer Banks.
Game on!
It’s April and the flounder bite is happening. Flounder are being caught by drifting live and natural baits on the bottom or trolling small bucktails dressed with strip baits, near the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. Some of the best early flounder action always comes from the seaside inlets on the Eastern Shore. They are also available in both Rudee and Lynnhaven inlets. Flounder average between 1 and 3 pounds. The Virginia State record is 17 pounds, 8 ounces; caught at Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel in 1971 by C.E. Cross.
Tautogs are on near shore underwater obstructions like wrecks and reefs. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel Islands are a great location. Togs like blue, fiddler or marsh crabs. Clams, whelk, and the newly packaged crab-flavored artificial bait made by Fishbites work as well.
The Virginia Beach Fishing Pier has already recorded its first red drum of the season. Captain Todd Beck, Knot Wish’n Charters has been picking some pups up in Rudee Inlet. And Long Bay Pointe Bait and Tackle has been reporting pups in Lynnhaven for a couple weeks.
OBX NC
Nice puppy drum and over-the-slot size fish are being caught on the beaches north of Oregon Inlet. Bluefish, sea mullet, blow toads, puppy drum, a few big drum and lots of sharks have been reported down south from Avon to Ocracoke.
Speckled trout and a few puppy drum are around the Manteo causeway Little Bridge area. Plenty of nice trout are available from long shoal and west. Closer to the inlet, puppy drum are beginning to show up.
Offshore, the boats are still releasing good numbers of Giant Bluefin with a few boats finding some smaller keeper size fish. Blackfin, king mackerel, and a few Wahoo have also been reported further south.