When a blue water boat hoists up white flags with a blue fish it means that a blue marlin has been caught. Blue flags with a white fish indicate a white marlin. The upside-down flags show that a fish was caught and released and how many.
Currently, boats coming back to Virginia Beach have lots of flags flapping in the breeze. The white marlin bite is red hot.
This is prime time for billfish as water temps drop from the 70s to the low 60s. This seasonal shift, driven by cooler air and reduced solar heating, sets the stage for prime fishing conditions as oxygen-rich waters spark increased activity among key species, especially marlin.
Inshore, schools of baitfish like menhaden are now concentrating in the cooling waters, drawing predatory fish and boosting catch rates. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel and bay reefs are hotspots right now, producing solid catches of flounder, sheepshead, red drum, black drum, and tautog. Flounder fishing is particularly good at this time, with growing numbers reported both inside the bay and in local inlets and rivers. Cobia are making their exit from the bay, offering anglers one last chance to hook these powerful fighters before they head offshore. Surf fishermen at Sandbridge are encountering large schools of migrating red drum feeding in the surf.
In the tributaries’, speckled trout are stealing the show, with anglers having success with shrimp baits and a variety of artificial lures. In addition, nice sized spot are tugging on lines with blood worms, adding lots of action for those fishing from docks and area piers.
OBX
At Nags Head and the northern beaches, the weather has been iffy. Early this week, things began to settle down and piers reported both bluefish and red drum, both of which species like rougher seas.
Offshore it’s gone from famine to feast in the last week as boats are returning with limits of Mahi and multiple releases
