Last week produced difficult fishing conditions with passing storms and rough seas offshore. Water temperatures cooled slightly which should improve this week’s catch.
Cobia are now in their spawning mode, but anglers having success setting up chum lines and fishing deeper waters. Some big boys came in over the rails last week.
As for other species, red drum are starting to show around Rudee Inlet and Broad Bay, with more reports coming in each day.
Flounder are still being caught around the inlets, beaches, and especially in the Lesner area.
The bluefish bite continues to be consistent with plenty of big fish being caught in the lower Bay and off the Virginia Beach coast.
Striped Bass are hanging around and even showing themselves during the daytime this week. Live croaker, spot, and mullet fished on a simple bottom rig have been producing good catches of larger fish around bridges, structure, and from the beach.
Sheepshead remain one of the most dependable bites around bridge structure and hard cover.
Spanish Mackerel are prowling the bay and ocean front. Trolled spoons are putting them in the boat for some serious eating.
The offshore flounder bite slowed slightly this week, including around the CBBT, but there are still quality fish being caught.
OBX
There has been a mix of fish caught this week including drum, blues, mullet, croaker and flounder – and of course sharks. The piers had blues and Spanish, plus a nice king mackerel, a sign of good things to come. The nearshore boats are finding Spanish, blues and drum. The offshore fishing is very good with plenty of Mahi along with some tuna and the billfish.
Freshwater
It’s the same-old, same-old in freshwater. Bass are in summer patterns and crappie are deep. The best fishing continues to be in tidal rivers – the James, Rapp, Chick and Potomac. Big blue catfish are going for cut bait and nighttime is best. Lake Anna stripers are biting well at first light.
