Coastal Fishing Reports

Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, January 15 Update:

The brief warm up to start the new year made for some great fishing weather. Scott Lenox from Fish In OC reported that he was able to get in on an excellent offshore trip last week during the warmer weather.  He reports that it was one of the best days of bottom fishing he has ever had. They fished in 130’ out of the Ocean City Inlet and started their day with a great tautog bite. They used green crabs and white leggers on bottom sweeper jigs to catch a limit of fish. There were some big fish in the mix, and he broke his personal best tautog twice. First with a 25”, 10-pound, 12-ounce fish, then beating that with another going just over 30” and weighing 15 pounds, 12 ounces. After having fun with the tog, their crew decided to drop down some bucktails with teasers to see if there were any flounder around. Sure enough, they found plenty biting and put together a limit of flatties up to 26”. That’s an incredible day of winter bottom fishing on the ocean.

We had a few reports of some good tuna fishing along the Eastern Shore of Virginia this week. One reader checked in after heading offshore out of Chincoteague. They ran 40 miles south but hooked into and landed a big tuna just 12 miles offshore. Sea Hawk Sports Center reported several giant bluefin tuna that were brought to dock this week. These included a few weighing between 450 and 650 pounds.  The commercial giant bluefin tuna subquota has been reached and exceeded, so commercial fishermen aboard vessels with an Atlantic Tunas General category or Highly Migratory Species Charter/Headboat permit may not retain, possess, or land large medium or giant Atlantic bluefin tuna through March 31st, 2026. This closure does not affect recreational anglers.

Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, January 8 Update:

The mid-winter lulls have set in, as fishing opportunities are limited, and the colder weather doesn’t help with the motivation to get out on the water. However, there is some good news for coastal anglers in Virginia. The Virginia Marine Resources Commission announced that it will be opening a special recreational black sea bass season from February 1st through the 28th this year. There are special permitting and reporting requirements, so if you are interested in participating, make sure to visit the VMRC Reporting Fact Sheet for more information. The bite was very good in December, so the fishing should be good this February, with a serious shot at some trophy fish. Tautog will likely be out at many of the offshore wreck and reef sites as well. Chasin Tides Charters was out recently and caught several nice tautog, up to 16 pounds. They also had a surprise keeper flounder go in the box.

Now that the recreational and commercial bluefin tuna seasons are back open, many boats have been heading offshore from Maryland and Virginia to chase down these ocean giants. Most of the action has been south, along the Eastern Shore of Virginia, down to Virginia Beach. We did have a report from a reader who went out searching for bluefin off the coast of Ocean City recently. They found some blitzing tuna thanks to gannets giving away their location and proceeded to catch three fish between 30” and 60” while casting paddletails and plugs on heavy duty spinning gear. Fish In OC reports that the anglers checking in with them are giving mixed reports. It seems that the fish are spread out with a mix of smaller fish and bigger fish around. They saw one fish over 60” last weekend and a handful of smaller fish at the docks this week. Down in Virginia Beach, Oceans East Bait and Tackle reports are similar. Fish are spread out, and boats are working hard for their bites, but there have been some giants landed. Most of the fish are anywhere from 20 to 50 miles offshore. Heading to the offshore grounds in search of tuna this time of year is like a hail mary. You may come home empty-handed, but if you hook up, it could be one of the most impressive catches of your life.

Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, January 1 Update:

Happy New Year folks! We hope that everyone has made one of their resolutions to get out and fish more in 2026. It has been very cold this week, and the wind has been relentless, so not much fishing is going on. While the weather has been keeping many boats in port recently, a couple readers who snuck out off the VA coast recently reported having luck on tautog plus a few flounder. Fish In OC reports that the crew of the Ocean Princess had a very successful last sea bass trip with anglers bringing in nice sized sea bass with some bluefish and tautog in the mix as well.

As of the start of the New year, the bluefin tuna regulations have reverted to their default limits. This means that there are now great opportunities to target these ocean brutes. Recreational anglers with a HMS permit and charter vessels fishing recreationally can keep one bluefin tuna measuring between 27” and 73” in curved fork length per vessel per day or per trip. Additionally, you are allowed one trophy bluefin tuna measuring over 73” per vessel per year as long as the regional trophy subquota remains available. The general category for commercial fishing has a default retention limit of one trophy bluefin tuna that is 73” or larger per vessel per day or per trip. These limits could be adjusted based on quotas, so make sure to check the regulations frequently. For the most current details head to the official NOAA Fisheries Atlantic Highly Migratory Species (HMS) website.