Although considered by many to be the most underrated fishing location on the East Coast, Virginia Beach, Virginia, sits in one of the most strategic spots. Captains hailing from Virginia Beach, poised nearly equidistant between Ocean City, Maryland, and Oregon Inlet in North Carolina, often fish the storied grounds of each location on any given day. "Some days we fish among boats with Cape May and Ocean City on the transom and other days with our buddies out of Oregon Inlet," says Mike Standing of the charter boat Waterman.
Ease of access to the Atlantic (if you blink, you might run right by Rudee Inlet when departing from the Virginia Beach Fishing Center) and the local population of billfish represent the area's two main draws. Just last Labor Day, Carl Beale passed on some dove hunting to head out with his family on the 64-foot Viking SeaWolf. Trolling Norfolk Canyon, some 60 miles due east, SeaWolf released 22 white marlin before reluctantly cranking in the lines. They left the fish biting.
As far as numbers go, unofficial East Coast catch records rank Capt. Steve Richardson's catch in 1995 at the top of the list. Fishing the south wall of Norfolk, Richardson released 24 whites and three blues. "The day before, Charlie Griffin was fishing the Ladies Tournament out of Oregon Inlet," Richardson recalls. "The bite was so hot up here that he took his crew over the border, loaded up on whites and a 900-plus blue marlin."
On another epic trip back in 1981, Richardson found the whites balling bait and called in his brother Gary, who was fishing with anglers Ricky and Sue Haycox. After cranking the handles off all his tackle, Richardson scored 53 releases (not all of them on the troll). Gary stayed and finished the day with 106 releases casting into the throng. Not bad for a place that doesn't require a passport.
In late spring, migratory fish start riding in on the Gulf Stream and feed on the abundant bait emerging from the shallow-water estuaries such as Chesapeake Bay. As the stream moves west over the continental shelf and canyons, it creates a mix of ideal conditions for billfish. Mitchell A. Roffer, who runs Roffer's Ocean Fishing Forecasting Service (www.roffs.com) and has strong roots to Virginia Beach, says the Gulf Stream provides substantial temperature breaks and thus density changes, which act as another form of structure to concentrate bait and pelagics. "The area also has excellent bottom structure that provides habitat for the prey-predator interactions," he says, and the color changes that occur along the boundaries of the different water masses create ambush zones for blues and whites.
As far as tackle goes, it's fairly standard. Nearly everyone uses 20- to 30-pound gear, and most prefer pulling naked ballyhoo. A good portion of the local boats made the switch to circle hooks over the past few seasons, and though they grumble about it, they all break out some form of a dredge when they really want to rack up the releases. Other popular teasers include pink or green squid chains, or the latest craze, a Marlin X (www.marlin-x.com) teaser. Developed by Virginia Beach local Aaron Horning, the Marlin X looks just like a white marlin chasing bait, and it's light enough to run off a teaser reel. The swimming motion of this secret weapon is eerily realistic and will likely make the captain jump out of his chair at least once a day.
While often the main draw, white marlin aren't the only game in town. Blue marlin frequent the same waters as the whites, so boats keep a larger rigged mackerel or Ilander/horse-ballyhoo combo in the spread or waiting to be pitched on a 50 or 80. Other game-fish action includes some of the East Coast's most storied striped bass fishing inshore, while tuna, dorado and wahoo often save the day from spring well into late fall. Blackfin tuna seem to have made a comeback, arriving with the warmer waters. The first bluefin tuna caught this year was in early March, and the yellowfin weren't far behind. Bigeye tuna also make a showing, providing bragging rights for a lucky few. Sailfish move into the area when the warmer water arrives. (Can you say grand slam?) The best billfish action occurs from July through September. Blue marlin, white marlin, spearfish and swordfish can all appear in the mix.
Underrated? Perhaps. But when it's good, it's really good!
