Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report: Late Summer Bluefish, Reds, and Stripers Bite Across the Bay

This is Artificial Lure checking in with your Chesapeake Bay, Virginia fishing report for Wednesday, September 10th, 2025, and folks, it’s feeling every bit like mid-September out on the water. Sunrise hit at 6:34 AM and we’re looking for sunset this evening around 7:33 PM. Tides are running on the higher side this week thanks to a persistent onshore flow—wakefields from the National Weather Service report elevated water levels, with minor tidal flooding possible at high tide, especially along vulnerable shorelines. Today you’ll find high tides peaking early and again at dusk; low tides will fall around mid-morning and mid-afternoon, so time your surf casting and kayak launches accordingly. Weather-wise, expect partly cloudy skies and comfortable late-summer temps, but keep an eye on those breezes from the east—they’ll add that rolling chop in exposed areas but make for great drift conditions over grass flats and oyster bars. The late summer fishery’s firing on multiple cylinders: inshore, anglers are reporting **good catches of bluefish, slot-sized red drum, sheepshead, and Spanish mackerel**. Hatteras Harbor’s recent reports, which often echo what we see just north in the lower Bay, say Spanish macks are still snapping, and bluefish are tireless all along open stretches. With flounder season open, some fine flatfish have come in for those working deeper drop-offs and channel edges. Out in the main stem and near bridges like the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, **cobia** and **sheepshead** are coming in strong—with anglers dropping live fiddler crabs and chunked peeler crab tight to piling shadows for those sheeps! Spanish macks remain best targeted on a fast troll with small, shiny Clarkspoons matched to No. 1 or No. 2 planers. High-tides and current breaks are money for throwing Gotcha plugs, silver spoons, and glass minnow jigs around Point Lookout and the mouth of the York. September is prime time for chasing **striped bass (rockfish)** with schoolies showing up around sunrise and sunset — the bite is best on moving water at dawn and dusk. The local charter scene from Chesapeake Beach down past Goodwin Island is finding keepers working soft plastics—think 5-inch paddle tails in chartreuse or pearl—plus topwater action on walk-the-dog baits like Zara Spooks as the sun’s just peeking up. With the 2018 class entering the slot, ASMFC has been warning of changing regs, so check current slot limits before you keep a fish. On the bait front: live alewives and menhaden are unbeatable for stripers and blues, but cut mullet and squid remain staples for blues, reds, and the occasional big croaker. For flounder, bucktail jigs tipped with strip bait or Gulp! swimming mullet have been the ticket around structure and channel ledges. Two hot spots for today: - **Fox Islands and Piankatank River Mouth:** The combination of grass beds, oyster shell, and current has made this area a powerhouse for reds, flounder, and speckled trout lately. Small popping co This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.