Virginia Beach Fishing, Heaven for the Angler

There is an old saying among fishing enthusiasts that God does not take away from your designated time on earth any time spent fishing. By the logic of that saying, a consistent angler could live to a very ripe old age and many fishing enthusiasts would prefer to do that living, or vacationing in Virginia Beach, an angler’s paradise. In fact, fishing has been a popular activity in Virginia Beach since the first English colonists landed at Jamestown in 1607. With hundreds of miles of beach in the area and the longest pleasure beach in the world (according to the Guinness Book of World Records), Virginia Beach is a place of pure vacation enjoyment.

The Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean converge at Virginia Beach, offering some of the best salt-water sport fishing found anywhere. By simply going to one of the many fishing piers or for the more adventurous by taking a boat out into the bay, you can fish in pursuit of whoppers. The types of fish available are numerous. Drum, speckled trout, bluefish, rockfish, spot, croaker, and founder are there in abundance and anxious to grab your bait. The waters of the Chesapeake Bay are warm and rich in food that numerous species of fish enjoy. Striped bass are so plentiful that Virginia Beach has the nickname the “Striped Bass Capital of the World.” Charter boats will get you out into the water and provide a great day of fishing. The captains of the charter boats are experienced anglers themselves. They will take an angler to the best parts of the bay, providing instructions on the best ways to catch the fish, and even providing fishing tackle, bait and ice to preserve the catch for you. Remember though that the Commonwealth of Virginia and the people of Virginia Beach are quite proud of the efforts they have made at conservation and making sure that the fish population will remain high for all of us to enjoy in the future. With that in mind, only keep the fish you intend to eat, releasing the others with only gentle handling to reproduce and make more fish for us all to enjoy catching in the future.

If fishing on a charter boat, the captain will provide the expertise needed to feel like Ernest Hemmingway, and licensing is a part of the charter boat fee. However, for the angler who wants to try pier fishing, no license is required. Just get yourself a good rod and reel and a bucket of bait and check out the many fine piers available. Fees are low, averaging $3 a person to come onto a fishing pier for the day to try your luck.

Freshwater fishing is good in Virginia Beach as well. You will find nearby lakes, reservoirs and ponds stocked full of largemouth bass, channel catfish. You will also find that southern sunfish known in some quarters as bluegill, but in the South, it is usually called brim, or bream. The cost of a freshwater fishing license is minimal, and the methods of freshwater fishing numerous as well. Fishing from the bank, watching a bobber on a lazy day while a minnow swims underneath to lure Mr. Bass, or casting a lead head jig, or top water lure will get the bigmouth bass to come out and play. For catfish enthusiasts, night fishing is always preferred, with baits ranging from worms to chicken livers and everything in between. One catfisherman swears by pieces of hotdogs, soaked in a sweet anise oil concoction one would expect to find in a candy maker’s factory. In addition, brim will bite a hook with almost anything on it, but many brim anglers swear by the flyrod and dry flies. Usually thought of as a trout-fishing rig, these sunfish enthusiasts live for a chance to dance a bluegill on the tip of a rod. Virginia Beach is truly an angler’s paradise.