Chesapeake Bay Fishing Report: Late Summer Bite, Bait Schools, and Structure Hotspots

Good morning, anglers—Artificial Lure here, bringing you today’s Chesapeake Bay fishing report for August 13, 2025.

Conditions are shaping up classic for a late summer bite across the Virginia stretch of the Bay. According to the National Weather Service, we’ve got southwest winds steady at 5 to 10 knots, picking up to 10–15 knots in the afternoon and a one- to two-foot chop, so boaters should be comfortable with just a bit of roll. Expect clouds and a shot at afternoon showers or thunderstorms, so pack your rain gear if you’re making a run. The air’s thick and warm, but that’s what gets these Chesapeake predators fired up.

Sunrise came at 6:19 a.m. and sunset will be around 7:57 p.m., giving us a long day on the water. Watching the tides, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel saw low tide at 5:39 a.m., with the next high just before noon at 11:44 a.m. This means your best moving water for a morning bite is mid-morning and again as the tide drops out late afternoon. Plan to work structure or shallows as that incoming tide peaks and bigger fish slide in to feed.

Now, what’s been on the end of folks’ lines? Local pier and surf reports have seen king mackerel showing up with regular catches—one angler even landed a giant after a hard fight, while a king hit a live spot in short order right after[Wired2Fish]. Tarpon, though rare, have made an exciting appearance right off the pier. Bait schools are thick, bringing in predators and making live spot and mullet effective choices almost everywhere.

On the inshore shallows, perch fishing is going strong. TidalFish.com checked in with a solid haul of white perch using homemade spinnerbaits, especially in shallow water tight to shore[TidalFish]. Those same areas are holding good numbers of croaker and the occasional red drum. If you’re bottom-fishing, peel up a bit of soft crab or bloodworm to get steady action.

For the lure folks, soft plastics in chartreuse or white, 3–5 inch paddle tails fished near rock piles or pilings, have stirred up stripers and the larger bluefish still prowling the main channel edges. Topwater walkers at dawn are a must for speckled trout in grassy flats around Lynnhaven and the mouth of the York River—don’t be surprised if a big striper blows up on it as well.

Hot spots? You can’t go wrong drifting the CBBT islands and pilings—the first and second islands have been holding mackerel, big bluefish, and flounder this week. The mouth of the Rappahannock remains reliable, and the piers at Buckroe and Ocean View are giving up a mixed bag with early morning and dusk best. For shore-bound anglers, Harris Creek flats near Hampton have delivered solid perch and puppy drum.

A quick heads-up: There’s been an uptick in shark activity, especially around schools of bait and when targeting big drum or mackerel, so use heavier leaders and don’t dally getting your catch in.

Best baits this week: live spot, cut bunker, bloodworms, and soft crab. As for lures, you can’t beat a midsize paddletail or bucktail jig near structure, with a spinner or popper for dawn and dusk action.

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