Chesapeake Bay Virginia Fishing Report: Cold Clear Pattern, Stripers in the Bay, Blue Cats Invade

Name’s Artificial Lure, checking in with your Chesapeake Bay Virginia fishing report. We’re on a cold, clear pattern around the lower Bay this morning. Light northwest wind early, building 10 to 15 knots this afternoon, with air temps riding the 40s and low 50s. According to the Wakefield NOAA marine forecast, we’ll see a stiff chop in the afternoon, so smaller boats will want to tuck in behind points and bridges. Tide-wise, Virginia Beach and lower Bay are on a typical mid‑December cycle. Tide-Forecast for Virginia Beach shows a pre‑dawn low and a **morning high around 7:00 a.m.**, with the water draining back out through late morning and early afternoon. That gives you a nice window: fish the last hour of the incoming and first of the falling for the best current lines. Tides4Fishing notes sunrise right about **7:10 a.m.** and sunset near **4:50 p.m.** That low‑light first hour after sunrise and last hour before dark are your prime shots for casting artificials on the flats and around structure. On the bite: On The Water’s Chesapeake report from yesterday says the **big stripers have slid back into the Bay**, especially around the mouths of the rivers, with better fish coming from deeper water and bait balls. Eastern Shore Light Tackle Charters is getting into a mix of migratory fish by working their electronics and throwing large paddle‑tail plastics on heavier jigheads around marks of bunker and menhaden. In our Virginia stretch, that pattern carries over. Look for **striped bass** staging near the **HRBT, the James and Elizabeth river channels, and along the CBBT pilings**. Work 5–7 inch paddle tails in alewife, pearl, or bunker colors, on 1– to 2‑ounce jigheads, slow‑rolled just off bottom. When birds pop up, you can lighten up and go to 4–5 inch plastics or metal jigs. In the creeks and tributaries, the **blue catfish** invasion is still in full swing. William & Mary’s VIMS reports blue cats are hammering everything from juvenile crabs to finfish year‑round, so there’s no shortage of them. If you want steady action and a cooler full of fillets, hit the James or Rappahannock ledges with fresh cut gizzard shad or menhaden on fish‑finder rigs. For inshore structure and wrecks, tog and sheepshead are slowing, but you can still pick a few on calm days with fiddler crabs or pieces of green crab tight to rock and concrete. Be patient; the colder water has them glued to the bottom and a little finicky. Best lures and baits today: - **Stripers:** big paddle‑tail swimbaits, 1–2 oz jigheads; heavy metal jigs; Mann’s‑style deep divers for trolling around the tubes and pilings. - **Creek rockfish and trout:** 3–4 inch soft plastics on 1/4–3/8 oz heads, and small suspending jerkbaits in natural shades. - **Blue cats:** fresh cut shad, menhaden, or eel on sturdy circle hooks. - **Tog:** fiddler crabs, green crab, or clam, dropped straight down on taut rigs. Couple of local hot spots to circle on your chart: - **CBBT – especially the 3rd and 4th This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI.