Way South Chesapeake Fishing Report, October 25, 2019 Update:
Anglers who managed to get out early in the week enjoyed some beautiful scenery, peppered with bends in their rod tips. Spanish mackerel and flounder fishing has dropped off a good bit, but the red drum and speckled trout bites have made up for it. Oceans East reported that specks are running strong in the Hampton area and around the HRBT. Most anglers are opting to use four-inch plastics and Gulp!s in white, chartreuse, and root-beer colors. They’ve been a super active fishery and should stick around for a little while longer. A few stripers have been mixed in around the structure, but not many.
We had a report from Todd of Ghost Drag fame of excellent slot red action jigging along the rocks of the islands at the CBBT on small spoons and four-inch plastics. He noted that keeping your jigs tight to the rocks was key, and if you weren’t ever snagging rocks you weren’t catching fish, so plan on losing lots of gear between hook-ups.
Bigger red drum are being caught jigging two-ounce spoons and seven-inch plastics along the channel edges and under working birds. They’ve been strewn throughout the region, and are often accompanied by bluefish.
Way South Chesapeake Fishing Report, October 18, 2019 Update:
Reports are a bit thin this week thanks to weather that kept a lot of boats off open water much of the time, but the red drum fishery is persisting in this neck of the woods, and Ocean’s East is reporting that when they can get out anglers jigging two-ounce spoons and seven-inch plastics along the channel edges and under working birds are enjoying a healthy catch. There are plenty of reports that stripers, bluefish, and Spanish mackerel are hanging out with red drum in the area as well, providing ample opportunity to get in with a variety of species. Tossing metal spoons through boiling baitfish has been a great way to entice the fish without feeding them chunks of plastic. Anglers looking to focus on the mackerel before they head south have been trolling the channel edges with small Drones, Clarks, and Hard Head Custom Baits spoons. They’re also landing bluefish, which have been chunky.
Around the CBBT, flounder fishing is still “eh” for anglers bouncing soft plastics and Gulp!s off bottom. Those who work at it are catching their dinner but flounder have been finicky on the whole. Fortunately, many guys are pulling up stripers when the flounder fail.
Thanks to the breezy conditions, many anglers who got out stayed close to home and pursued speckled trout. Thus far the fall run has been a good one especially in the Hampton area and around the HRBT, as well as up inside the inlets, and thus far it shows no signs of slowing up. While the bulk of the fish are on the small side (under 20-inches) an occasional larger fish shows up. Four-inch plastics and Gulp!s in white, chartreuse, and rootbeer colors are getting the job done. We also had a reader report success last week fishing fresh shrimp under a cork rig.
Way South Chesapeake Fishing Report, October 10, 2019 Update:
The red drum fishery has continued to pick up in the past week – when the winds allow – with Ocean’s East reporting that anglers jigging two-ounce spoons and seven-inch plastics along the channel edges and under working birds are getting in on a steady catch. When finding birds in this zone, along with the red drum there are plenty of reports that stripers, bluefish, and Spanish mackerel are in the mix. Tossing metal spoons through boiling baitfish has been a great way to entice them. Anglers looking to scoop up a few more mackerel as they head south have been trolling the channel edges with small Drones, Clarks, and Hard Head Custom Baits spoons. They’re also picking up some bluefish, perfectly portioned lunch-for-two size.
Around the CBBT, flounder fishing remains fair for anglers bounding soft plastics off bottom. Although most flounder haven’t been large, there are keepers are in the mix and a few very nice ones have popped up. Fishing for flatfish at the inlets has, by most reports, been as good or better. Better news from the inlets, along the shorelines (both east and west), the CBBT islands, and the HRBT is that a nice fall speck run continues. Hampton Correspondent Chuck Harrison got out last weekend and reported catching about 10 up to 21-inches, despite the breezy conditions. Four-inch soft plastic paddle tails, Gulp! shrimp or Jerk Shad, and fresh shrimp are all good bets for the specks.
Reports from the piers indicate that there’s also a bit of a fall run on for bottom fishermen. Spot and some croaker are feeding as they prepare to head south, and they’re quick to slurp down bloodworms and shrimp fished on bottom rigs. A few yellowfin sea trout have also showed up, and although most are small, some keepers have been caught as well.
Way South Chesapeake Fishing Report, October 4, 2019 Update:
Well, all the turbulence over striper regs may have put a damper on things but at least now the season's officially open and you can keep a fish between 20 and 36 inches inside the Bay (28 to 36 inches, outside the Chesapeake). There have been some striper around, too, with anglers slinging jigs and/or trolling in the lower James and at the CBBT catching a few within this size constraint. White and chartreuse soft plastics in the six-inch range on one-ounce heads are a good bet. There's also a topwater bite at daybreak and sunset, up inside the river. With cobia season now closed and more anglers pursuing different species – and finding them – it's not just all about the rockfish, though. A big development this week was in the red drum fishery, with better numbers (possibly because of more anglers targeting them) popping up by all accounts. The islands of the CBBT are holding fish, and they’re also being found under working birds and breaking fish by those jigging under the schools with one- to two-ounce metal spoons. Most of the breakers are blues, which is making jigging with plastics difficult unless you use Zmans, but some nice fish of that species are being saved for the cooler as well. Mackerel are still around too, though their dominance does seem to be waning. That’s no surprise after a few cool nights, however, there are still confirmed reports of Spanish all the way well up into Maryland waters clear to the Bay Bridge so this species should remain available at least for the next couple weeks.
Anglers working Gulp!s around the channel edges and drop-offs of the CBBT and in the inlets are finding some flounder, including some larger fish this week, but the numbers aren’t spectacular. Of more interest to many light-tackle anglers are the speckled trout – casting plastics (especially paddle-tails) in the four- to six-inch range in white and pink continues to produce excellent catches for anglers fishing Lynnhaven, the CBBT islands, the HRBT, and Poquoson. Fishing for specks is also on the up-swing on the Eastern side of the Bay, in the Cape Charles to Cherrystone zone. Average fish are running 14 to 18 inches with a few larger specimens popping up here and there and we did have a reader report (no photo documentation, tho) of a 24-incher.