Coastal Fishing Reports

Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, September 12 Update:

The summer crowds have thinned out and the cooler air signals the arrival of fall, which will bring several great fishing opportunities to our coast. Dave Moore from Shark Whisperers checked in last weekend to let us know that the big rigs have remained relatively quiet recently, but there are some decent sized pompano, spot, and kingfish in the surf at Assateague, plus some flounder in the mix. We did hear a repot from one angler who managed to catch a 45” bull red while fishing at night. The skate and rays were plentiful, but weeding through them was worth it for a trophy red. In the OC inlet, meanwhile, sheepshead are heating up. The striped bandits have been hanging around the rock jetties at the mouth of the inlet. Sand fleas and other crab baits have worked best to tempt them. Fishing the rock jetties can be challenging without getting snagged, so many anglers will use bottom sweeper jigs, dropper loop rigs, or even a float to cast baits close to the rocks without getting snagged.

September usually brings the arrival of king mackerel off the Virginia Beach oceanfront. There have been a few landed so far, but we did not hear any new reports this week. Virginia Beach Sport Fishing reports that the false albacore bite turned on in the nearshore waters, though the bluefish and Spanish mackerel bite has been quieter. They had reports from a few charters fishing the nearshore waters who said that there are plenty of small mackerel around, but the bigger ones have been lacking. Captain Monty Hawkins of the Morning Star reported decent fishing last week out of Ocean City. On one trip, Monty and his crew enjoyed steady fishing for sea bass, though a lot were shorties. With enough time and bait, many of his anglers were close to a limit around mid-day, but the bite dropped out. The afternoon provided small croaker, bluefish, and some flounder. Offshore waters have provided a good marlin bite this month. Reports have rolled in from the Wilmington down to the Norfolk with better reports between the Norfolk and Washington.

Coastal Mid-Atlantic Fishing Report, September 5 Update:

There are a lot of great bites still firing off as fall is knocking on our doorstep. A reader checked in after fishing from the surf at Assateague. They report that the bite has been pretty good in the mornings and almost all the fish he caught this week were extremely close to shore. A high low bucktail rig with Gulp! mullet teaser has been effective for catching flounder when the surf isn’t crazy rough, but they have all been on the small size (between 10-14 inches). One morning, they almost had a quadruple double with two flounder, kingfish, pompano, and one spot that blew the streak. They were all on a high low rig with Fishbites, sand flea flavor seemed to get the most bites. It sounds like there is something to catch for everyone in the surf right now.

Fish In OC had several good reports this week, including one from the Spring Mix II who had six white marlin releases. Sea Hawk Sports Center reports that the deep blue waters of the Atlantic have provided a good white marlin bite from the Poorman’s Canyon to the Washington Canyon. They also mentioned that the yellowfin and mahi action has improved recently. For those anglers looking to take home plenty of fillets, the blueline tilefish bite has remained good in depths of 300’ to 400’. In the nearshore waters, flounder and sea bass have been the primary target. The crews aboard the Fish Bound had some great trips this week with boat limits of both species. Fishing around the Ocean City inlet has been good for several species, but the highlight has been sheepshead. Charter boats and recreational anglers have been enjoying a great sheepshead bite recently with fish over 10 pounds landed this week. Inshore bottom fishing has also produced spot, croaker, tautog, flounder, and sea trout. Now is a great time to visit the seaside and cast a line.