Mobjack Bay and Rivers

[cwoods]

Starting next Friday, I am renting a house in Mobjack for a week. I would appreiciate any information on what what fish are available now.

[Ware Fisher]

It'll be better in the Fall, but you can search out specks and puppy drum in usual haunts.

I can recommend two local guides if you want to start your week with their experience and then set out on your own.

There are good public ramps on the Ware and the East Rivers.

[toddkfly]

Specks, puppy drum, croaker and flounder are still around. Try the specks very early in the am with jigs/flies etc on the grass flats then try throwing some jigs around drop offs, docks and you can catch just about anything. Have a great trip.

[cwoods]

Ware Fisher and toddkfly,

Thanks for your replies. My wife likes to bottom fish and spot are her favorite fish. We usually fish the MD section of the Bay. Large spot have been non existent there this year. Have you caught any large spot in your area?

Also, where does one lookfor flounder in Mobjack. It lacks the kind of steep drop offs and structure that I usually fish on for flounder.

Chuck Woods

[Ware Fisher]

I can't say the Mobjack is an area known for large spot, especially in the summer. From the dock I've been catching plenty of small spot for use as flounder bait but nothing big enough for eating. Where are you renting the place? There are some areas I would try. For flounder, I would go out by the New Point Comfort Lighthouse and fish the dropoff into the mouth of Mobjack Bay. There's also a fishing reef built by the VMRC that you could drift & slow troll around. If your boat's big enough, I would journey out of Mobjack to look for keeper flounder.

[toddkfly]

There are some subtle humps and drop offs at the mouths of a few of the rivers that enter Mobjack where the flatties will hang. If you can run a bit, the artificial reefs nearby are productive. Also, there is usually a great tide line outside the mouth of Mobjack, especially on the ebb. You will probably run across some schools of bait nearby and with them with be the spaniards. Throw some gotcha plugs or small spoons (cast or trolled) when you run into this and you'll be glad you did.

[cwoods]

Just returned from my trip. Bottom fishing was terrible. Tried for flounder on numerous drop offs from New Port Comfort, York Spit, to North River. Caught only 2 shorts. Took a few days to locate them, but we did get some keeper specs and a lot of puppy drum. Used live minnows; artificials did not work well.

Crabbing was decent.

Beautiful week in a beautiful place.

Thanks to all for your replies.

[cwoods]

Should also mention that I caught a 24" cobia. The fish hit a 4" Berkley pogie that was hanging over the side of the boat while I repositoned the boat over a drop off.

The previous day, at York Spit, a 30+ inch cobia followed my boat with his nose up to a minnow bucket that was hanging off the back of the boat. My partner got out the landing net and almost netted this cobia.