By Dr. Ken Neill, III
The big rockfish are here and catches are good. It is looking like we are going to have a good bay season until it closes at the end of December. Whether a coastal fishery will develop remains to be seen. Good numbers of school-sized fish are pretty much everywhere. Anglers fishing in the York River at night this week reported shrimp swimming through the light and rockfish eating the shrimp. Fishing was like the good old days with rockfish being caught on every cast. School-sized fish are being caught in all of the rivers and in the middle bay area. Some large rockfish have been caught in the James and York Rivers, at the CBBT, and off of Cape Charles. Most of the really large rockfish have come from the Cut Channel area.
Some really nice speckled trout along with some puppy drum are being caught inside of Lynnhaven and Rudee Inlets. Tautog action is excellent at the CBBT. Fishing the ocean wrecks is producing good catches of sea bass, flounder and some big bluefish. Bluefish to over 19 pounds have been caught. Offshore bottom fishing is excellent for both golden and blueline tilefish. Jumbo sea bass are mixed in with the bluelines.
Tuna catches have been good out of Oregon Inlet where yellowfin, blackfin and some bigeye tuna are being caught. The bite has been north enough that some Virginia boats have made the run to get in on the action. Bluefin tuna should be out there somewhere. Places like the Fish Hook and Hot Dog would be likely locations for a bluefin encounter.
Tuesday, Tuesday was a dreary and soggy for most of the day. There was a big Drum bite at the point. Anglers caught Drum all through the day. Puppy Drum and Trout were caught in Buxton and Frisco.
Fishing was slow overall on Wednesday. A few Sea Mullet and Black Drum were reported in Buxton with Bluefish caught at the point. Frisco and Hatteras also had a few Bluefish. I have no report from the northern beaches. The shortage of fishermen is the main problem.
No report for offshore boats.
Hatteras Surf
Tuesday Fishing Report
12-06-2016, 08:35 PM
It was a little rainy today day a good day for Big Drum. Anthony Bryant caught and released four citation drum. One this morning and 3 this evening. Andrew Bell caught and released his first citation Drum last night 41 inches. There was about 20 Big Drum caught and released today and tonight. There are fishermen still out on the Point, which I am sure they are still catching. Dan the man just could not catch one so he is getting up early tomorrow morning and try again. Have a Great Day Fishing. Dede
Wednesday Fishing Report
Yesterday, 08:17 PM
The fishing was a little slow today. The Point had a 44 inch on the north side. Behind the motels some nice Sea Mullet and Black Drum. The south beach had Blue Fish. Ramp 44 had plenty of Blue Fish. Everyone hasn’t been here to report from the Point so maybe I will have more to report tomorrow. Have a Great Day Fishing. Dede
Hatteras Offshore
No boats fished on Tuesday or Wednesday due to inclement weather.
Freshwater
The rivers are in excellent shape but few are fishing due to chilly weather and the hunting season, naturally.
In the lakes, stripers are actively chasing schools of bait at Buggs, Anna, Gaston and Smith Mountain.
The put and take trout streams are full of water and are well-stocked with trout.
Chickahominy Lake
Fishing with Capt. Conway, Steve Novak and Richard Berry had 72 crappie. Tom Porter had 50 crappie, 1 pickerel, and 3 bass.
Potomac River
The fish are going a bit deeper, notes Capt. Chaconas.
Fish are beginning to move to deeper areas, but still in shallow grass and wood.
Water is staying in the upper 40s and fish are still active.
This is the time to start slowing down. Fish are still in grass and near wood, but are moving closer to drops. The best way to cover water is with a Lucky Craft Pointer 78 suspending jerkbait. Use 10-pound test GAMMA Edge fluorocarbon line and make long casts. Slight taps and long pauses usually work, but experiment. As for colors, try clown or baitfish patterns on sunny days and gold patterns when it’s a bit cloudy. These work best when the water is not muddy. At higher tides, try the larger Pointer 100.
Other slow presentations including splitshot and drop shot rigs can be worked around cover and close to drops. Small creature baits on 2/0 Mustad Mega Bite hooks tied to 8-pound Edge or with Edge as a leader tied to GAMMA Torque braid. With the rod tip down, drag and pause the split shot. For the drop shot, leave in one spot and shake. When contacting cover, leave there. Work down drops slowly. A spray of Jack’s Juice Bait Spray will keep fish holding on.
During the warmest part of the day, try spinnerbaits and small crankbaits around wood and remaining grass. Engage cover. Snap free and pause.
Capt. Steve Chaconas is a guide on the Potomac River info@nationalbass.com
