Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report: Stripers, Trout, and Tautog Thrive in Fall Conditions

Good morning anglers, this is Artificial Lure with your Chesapeake Bay, Virginia, fishing report for Tuesday, October 28th, 2025. Another classic fall morning’s greeted us here on the Bay. Sunrise came at 7:24 and you’ll have good light right through to sunset at 6:11. The weather’s cool and calm to start: morning temps in the low 50s inching up to the mid-60s as the day wears on, with light winds shifting northeast and a chance for increasing chop this afternoon, so if you’re heading out, be smart and plan to beat those building winds before late afternoon. According to the latest forecast from the National Weather Service, Small Craft conditions could develop as wind picks up, especially later in the day. Tidal action matters today. Down at Virginia Beach and the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, the tide was low at 6:23 a.m., rising for a 12:53 p.m. high at 3.6 feet, and dropping again for a 7:29 p.m. low. Tidal coefficients are on the low side (just 34–41 throughout the day), meaning moderate current—fish structure, rips, and edges to find that concentrated bite. Here's what’s hot around the bay: Speckled trout and puppy drum keep lighting up the inlets and rivers, especially in Lynnhaven and Rudee where the water’s riding a sweet 62 degrees. Out at the Bay Bridge Tunnel—the pilings and islands are a classic fall target zone and they’re living up to their name, with solid red drum reported by Captain Craig Page on the Paige II. Rockfish (striped bass) are heating up all over. Fish to the new slot are holding along deep edges off Cape Henry and the CBBT; early birds have been catching by jigging white and chartreuse paddle tails or working bucktails with Gulp! trailers. The outgoing tide seems best right now, especially around the artificial reef sites. Tautog are making a strong showing this week at inshore wrecks and bridge structure—anglers dropping green crabs and fiddler crabs have had luck sticking nice fish. Offshore, headboats are running successful trips for black sea bass on the deeper reefs, though watch your timing to avoid running aground at low tide near the inlets. Bait-wise, you can’t go wrong right now with: - 4–6" white or chartreuse soft plastic paddletails on ½ to 1 oz jig heads for stripers - Gulp! swimming mullets and 5" Bass Kandy Delights in "electric chicken" for trout and slot stripers - Green crabs and fiddlers for tautog on structure - Cut bunker or chicken for blue catfish in the tidal rivers Live spot, mullet, or peanut bunker are still turning big stripers if you can drift them near bridge pilings or channel edges. Hot spots to try today: - **Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel (CBBT) 1st Island** for red drum, big trout, and tautog—work jigs and crabs tight to the structure. - **Lynnhaven and Rudee Inlets** for puppy drum, speckled trout, and mixed slot stripers on paddle tails during moving water. - **Cape Henry to Cape Charles channel edges** drifting baits or jigging plastics for stripers and late spot. This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.