Virginia Saltwater Fishing

For many anglers, Spring flounder fishing along the Eastern Shore of Virginia is an annual event that marks the beginning of the saltwater fishing year. As waters warm, flounder enter and begin to feed in the inlets, creeks and coastal bays of the region.  A few flounder sometimes arrive in March but the main thrust of fish is usually in April, with the surge of incoming fish continuing into May.

Spring time flounder fishing success in Virginia is dictated factors such as by wind, water temperature and water clarity. A basic rule of thumb is that flounder start biting when water temperatures reach 50 degrees, with the best springtime fishing usually in water between 60 and 70 degrees.

Experienced flounder anglers seek conditions when the tide will be high in the mid morning thru afternoon hours. The theory is that the cold ocean water comes in and flows up onto the flats were the sun can warm it a significant amount in just a few hours. When the tide changes, warmer water flows into the channels, triggering the flounder to feed aggressively. This phenomenon doesn’t always happen but when conditions are right, flounder fishing can be excellent.

Top baits for spring fishing include several of the natural prey species of summer flounder. These include frozen silversides, live minnows, squid strips and fresh cut strips of fish if available. Favorite fish for making cut strip baits include small croakers, perch, bluefish or other suitable fish. Finding these species in the early season is not easy, but some anglers set aside catches of early season fish specifically for use as flounder strip baits.

Related Links

How to Clean and Fillet Flounder

Virginia Fishing Guides

2010 may shape up to be a good year for flounder fishing in Virginia. After a harsh winter, anglers have had several days of mild weather in the early season. Catches of flounder along Virginia’s eastern shore came as early as the second weekend in March. More mild weather is expected to improve catches as the season progresses.

The Virginia Marine Resources Commission has voted to lower the size limit for flounder this year.  The new regulations set the new size limit at 18.5 inches, down from 19 inches, but reduce the bag limit from five to four flounder per day for the rest of the year.

In Virginia’s Potomac River tributaries the minimum size limit, closed season, and possession limit will be the same as established by PRFC for the mainstem Potomac River.

The VMRC has voted on flounder size regulations for the 2010 season.  The new regulations set the flounder size limit at 18.5 inches, with a creel limit decreased to four fish per day, with no mid-season closure.

VMRC also voted to reduce the daily limit of six weakfish to one fish a day for recreational anglers, and to reduce the commercial harvest to 100 pounds per day or trip, whichever is longer. These actions were taken in order to meet mandated Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission harvest reductions.  The reductions were a result of data that shows the species has been highly depleted on a coastwide basis. The catch reductions will take effect May 1, 2010.

When cleaning fish it’s important to decide if you will scale or skin the fish as well as choosing to fillet the fish or simply gut and remove the head, tail and fins. Smaller fish may not be suited for filleting but most larger fish can easily be filleted in order to provide high quality boneless meals. Skinning the fish and trimming any dark meat can further raise the quality of your meal.

Prior to filleting fish, select the proper knives and check their edge. Sharpen and clean the blade if needed. For very large fish, a thick blade may be necessary to cut the skin. Once the tough outer skin is cut, it may be necessary to switch to a flexible fillet knife. Never use a knife to scale fish, instead use a fish scaler or an old kitchen knife that is dull and no longer useful for cutting.

To fillet fish, first scale the fish well (if using the skin-on method) and rinse thoroughly. Lay the fish out flat and make a cut along the top side of the fish, from the head to the tail. Follow the skeleton, cutting as close to the bones as possible. Make vertical cut just behind the gills, angled to match the gill plate. Continue slicing downward, working from top to bottom until the fillet is free from the carcass. Repeat the process for the remaining side of the fish.

If the fish will be skinned, lie the fillet down flat, skin side down. Using a SHARP fillet knife, make a cut from the tail section towards the front using a slicing motion. Continue working forward, parallel to the skin. A clean skinning process should not be wasteful, but will leave a thin layer of dark meat on the skin.

Fish should always be kept cold! Store fish in an iced cooler and clean them right away after your trip. Fillets will be best if rinsed, placed in zipper bags and placed back on ice immediately after cleaning.

For small panfish, filleting may not be practical. Just as with filleted fish, scaling is the first step of the process. While holding the fish firmly with one hand, use the tool to remove all scales. You must run the scaler or knife from tail to head in order to get the scales off. The skin should be smooth when all scales are gone.

Next, cut the fish’s head off. make the cut at the back of the fish’s gills. Cut through at this point. Make a cut from the belly back to the vent, avoiding all organs. Remove all organs, saving the roe if any is found. Cut off the tail and fins. Rinse the fish and place on ice immediately.

Don’t want to waste anything? You can use kitchen shears and remove the gills from the head, then rinse the head, skeleton, skin and scraps of dark meat for use in making a delicious fish stock. Any parts not used can be added to a compost pile. Fish scraps are excellent sources of minerals and other nutrients for your garden.

Vacuum bags are an excellent choice if you plan to freeze part of your catch. Vacuum bags work by removing air from freezer storage bags. You simply place your food in the freezer bag, seal the bag, and use the vacuum tool to air from the bag. Removing excess air cuts down on freezer burn.

Several types of bags and vacuum devices exist, ranging from inexpensive hand pumps to large models for bulk freezing. One of the most popular options is an economically priced, hand-held vacuum sealer which removes air from the specially designed food bags. To purchase a manual or electric vacuum pump and bags, shop online or visit major grocery stores and mass retailers. The average cost of a kit is very affordable and refills of quart or gallon size bags are available.

These pages have specific tutorials and other information on cleaning fish, shelllfish and other seafood:

Cleaning and Filleting Flounder

Cleaning and Filleting Tautog

Cleaning Black Drum Fish

Cleaning Scaling and Gutting Pan Fish

Fillet Knives and Other Kitchen Accessories

Freezing Fish and Other Seafood

Atlantic coast states from Massachusetts through Virginia have scheduled their hearings to gather public comment on Draft Addendum XX to Amendment 13 to the Interstate Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for Summer Flounder, Scup, and Black Sea Bass. The dates, times, and locations of the scheduled meetings follow. Please note that some states will also be conducting hearings on other ASMFC proposed species management actions.

Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries
September 30, 2009; 4:30 PM
Annisquam River Marine Fisheries Station
30 Emerson Avenue
Gloucester, Massachusetts
Contact:  Melanie Griffin at (617) 626-1528
* The meeting will begin with public comment related to Lobster Draft Addendum XV; comment will be gathered on Scup and Black Sea Bass Draft Addendum XX immediately following lobster

Rhode Island Division of Fish and Wildlife
October 1, 2009; 6:00 PM
URI, Narragansett Bay Campus, Corless Auditorium
215 South Ferry Road
Narragansett, Rhode Island
Contact: Jason McNamee at (401) 423-1943
* Public comment will also be gathered on Shad Draft Amendment 3 and Striped Bass Draft Addendum II

Connecticut Dept. of Environmental Protection
October 6, 2009; 7:00 PM
Marine Headquarters (Boating Education Center)
333 Ferry Road
Old Lyme, Connecticut
Contact: David Simpson at (860) 434-6043
* Public comment will also be gathered on Shad Draft Amendment 3 and Striped Bass Draft Addendum II

New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation

September 24, 2009; 7:00 PM
Marine Resources Headquarters
205 North Belle Mead Road, Suite 1
East Setauket, New York
Contact: Steve Heins at (631) 444-0435
* Public comment will also be gathered on Striped Bass Draft Addendum II

New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife
October 5, 2009; 7:00 PM
Marine Enforcement Office
Route 9, Mile Marker 51
Port Republic, New Jersey
Contact: Tom McCloy at (609) 292-7794

* Public comment will also be gathered on Shad Draft Amendment 3 (8:00 PM)

Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources
October 13, 2009; 5:30 PM
Tawes State Office Building, C1 Conference Room
580 Taylor Avenue
Annapolis, Maryland
Contact:  Carrie Kennedy at (410) 260-8235
* Public comment will also be gathered on Weakfish Draft Addendum IV

Virginia Marine Resources Commission

September 28, 2009; 6:00 PM
2600 Washington Avenue, 4th Floor
Newport News, Virginia
Contact: Jack Travelstead at (757) 247-2247
* Public comment will also be gathered on Shad Draft Amendment 3 and Striped Bass Draft Addendum II

Draft Addendum XX proposes changes to the transfer provisions for the commercial fisheries for both black sea bass and scup summer period (May 1-October 31) managed under the Commission’s plans.  The current FMP does not provide adequate guidance for Commission-only state-by-state quota management. As a practical matter, states routinely under harvest or slightly overharvest their state-specific allocations due to delays in reporting, inconsistencies in the data collection processes, unanticipated changes in catch rates, and implementation delays in trip limit changes or fishery closures. The FMP requires that each state deduct overages from the following year’s quota when they occur. The Draft Addendum proposes a process to reconcile quotas to address states’ unintended minor overages.

Specifically, the Draft Addendum proposes to establish clear policies and administrative protocols to guide the allocation of transfers from states with underages to states with overages. It also proposes to automatically reconcile a state’s overage in its entirety in a year where the coastwide quota or fishing period (e.g., scup summer period) quota was not exceeded. The proposed options would allow Commission staff to streamline and coordinate the transfers of quota as well as allow for quota transfers to reconcile overages after year’s end.

Fishermen and other interested groups are encouraged to provide input on Draft Addendum XX, either by attending public hearings or providing written comments.  Copies of Draft Addendum XX are available via the Commission’s website at www.asmfc.org under Breaking News.  Public comment will be accepted until 5:00 PM (EST) on October 9, 2009 and should be forwarded to Toni Kerns, Senior FMP Coordinator for Management, 1444 ‘Eye’ Street, NW, Sixth Floor, Washington, DC 20005; (202) 289-6051 (FAX) or at tkerns@asmfc.org (Subject line: Draft Addendum XX).

source: ASMFC press release