Hampton Roads, Virginia
Find your water.
Your next cast starts here. Find fishing spots, know your species, and plan around the tide. A free Seven Casts field guide to Hampton Roads and coastal Virginia.
Planning outlook
Sandbridge Beach surf
- Acquiring NOAA predictions, station 8639428
- Requesting the NWS hourly forecast
- Computing the day's light
- Fishing spots
- 24 fishing places
- Species
- 79 species guides
- Rigs
- 28 rig setups
- Coverage
- 11 cities, 14 waters
Conditions
Today on the Atlantic front.
NOAA's predicted tide over the day's light, with the hours where moving water, light, calm wind, and a low rain chance overlap. Hover or drag to read any minute. An instrument, not a catch forecast.
- Acquiring NOAA tide predictions, station 8639428
- Requesting the NWS hourly forecast
- Computing sunrise, sunset, and civil twilight
Water
Every spot on one chart.
24 public access points from Williamsburg to Sandbridge, plotted on reviewed positions — several at the NOAA station that represents that water. Filter the list and the chart follows.
Species
A field guide to the fish you'll actually meet.
79 species guides, organised by the water they live in, with field marks, the pairs anglers confuse, seasons, tackle, rigs, and where each is documented.
Tactics
Rigs, drawn.
28 setups drawn from one kit of hooks, sinkers, swivels, floats, and baits. Every schematic assembles a part at a time; every part is named.
Season
What the year looks like here.
Each species' own season record, laid across the twelve months. Typical presence on this coast — not a forecast, not a report.
| Species | J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Red Drum | ||||||||||||
| Speckled Trout | ||||||||||||
| Striped Bass | ||||||||||||
| Flounder | ||||||||||||
| Cobia | ||||||||||||
| Spanish Mackerel | ||||||||||||
| Bluefish | ||||||||||||
| Croaker | ||||||||||||
| Spot | ||||||||||||
| Sheepshead | ||||||||||||
| Tautog | ||||||||||||
| Black Drum |
March – May
Spring
Water warms, bait returns, and shallow water comes alive.
June – August
Summer
Long days, early mornings, and the widest species mix of the year.
September – November
Fall
The most consistent stretch of the year for many anglers.
December – February
Winter
Fewer species, bigger opportunities, and full parking lots nowhere.
Knowledge
Everything between the parking lot and the plate.
Short, sourced guides written for this coast: how to start, how to read the water, how to rig, what to carry, and how to cook what you keep.
- Learn to fishReading tides, the surf, structure and current, staying safe, fishing with kids.
- Rigs & setupsDrawn, assembled part by part, with when to use each and what goes wrong.
- GearRod class, line, leader, tackle, bait, and safety by fishing situation. No brands.
- Water to tableSimple preparations with safe temperatures and market-fish substitutions.
- GlossaryThe words of the guide, defined plainly, with why each matters here.