Virginia Beach Deep Sea Fishing Charters

The waters around Virginia Beach is a haven for deep sea anglers. In fact, it provides the best saltwater fishing of all the mid-Atlantic fishing spots. Deep Sea fishing or wreck fishing as it is sometimes called, is fishing the historic shipwrecks off the coast of Virginia Beach. If your a history buff we can chat about these shipwrecks and even tell you their present day condition as Capt. Tom has been Scuba Diving on most of the shipwrecks here.  

You can also choose inshore fishing in the Chesapeake Bay, around the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Complex, in tidal creeks and rivers, over shallow flats, or in deep channels. The Bay also has numerous wrecks and other forms of bottom structure, which are great places to catch fish. 

 The third type of Virginia Beach fishing is offshore, which includes deep sea or deep drop fishing over and around wrecks and scattered debris. The Chesapeake Light Tower, thirteen miles offshore, is another amazing fishery. If you want to fish really deep water, there are the Norfolk Canyon and the famous Gulf Stream.

When fishing in the winter, it’s all about the rockfish, tautog, speckled trout and puppy drum inshore. While going out deep sea fishing on the shipwrecks its about the Black Sea Bass.

Early spring include flounder, sea bass, and tautog out on the shipwrecks for deep sea fishing. By the middle of the spring season, the black drum move into the Chesapeake Bay, with most being found in the Bay’s northern region. As the water warms, the drum will find a home at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Complex. Some of these fish are real brutes! Although the big ones aren’t good to eat, they’re a lot of fun to catch.

At the end of April or the beginning of May, reds are available, including some hefty individuals. Redfish are often landed at night, and they’re great table fare. Anglers can usually catch the reds until the middle of October. Offshore, dolphin fish begin showing up, especially around towers. In late spring, huge schools of Atlantic spadefish can be found in the Bay and at the Chesapeake Light Tower. These beautiful fish can be tricky to catch because of their small mouths, but they put up an admirable battle once hooked. Because of their sheer numbers, spadefish are great targets for beginners. Starting about May, mako sharks show up offshore. These are very exciting fish to tangle with. They’ll often jump, leap, and tail-walk like a billfish.

In early summer, the amberjack, cobia, and king mackerel show up. Fish for them around the Chesapeake Light Tower and around bottom structure like man made reefs and wrecks. In the summer, panfish like croaker and whiting are easy to catch.

Tuna usually show up in mid-June and can be found off the coast of Virginia Beach near underwater canyons and deep trenches.

Late summer is a great time to catch tautog, triggerfish, and sea bass. These fish species love underwater structure, so fish for them around towers and wrecks.

In the fall, the stripers begin moving into the Chesapeake Bay and its inlets and rivers. People come from all over to try their luck at landing a trophy rockfish. Inshore you will also find speckled trout and puppy drum. This is also a great time on the shipwrecks for Black Sea bass and tautog. Mid to late November all the way through to January is Bluefin Tuna season. Sometimes these guys can be as close as 3mi from the beach. 

Now all you need to do is decide what type of fish you want to catch, mark your calendar, and book passage with one of the top Virginia Beach fishing charters.