Deep Sea Fishing Virginia Beach
When you're ready to leave the shallow waters behind and chase the big boys offshore, Captain Tim Watters knows exactly where to find them. His 53-foot Ricky Scarborough cuts through Virginia Beach waters like butter, carrying up to six anglers to the kind of deep water fishing spots that separate weekend warriors from serious fishermen. This isn't your typical pier fishing trip – we're talking about real blue water action where cobia cruise the structure, tuna crash bait balls, and marlin hunt in the deep. Cast & Blast Fishing Charters has built a reputation on putting anglers on fish, and Captain Tim's local knowledge runs as deep as the waters we fish.
What to Expect on the Water
Your day starts early at the Virginia Beach marina, where Captain Tim briefs you on the plan while the boat gets loaded with ice and bait. The ride out varies depending on where the fish are biting – sometimes we're fishing in 60 feet, other days we're running 20 miles offshore to find the temperature breaks where pelagics hunt. The 53-foot Ricky Scarborough handles the Atlantic swells with ease, giving you a stable platform whether you're fighting a bull red drum or working a tuna to the boat. Captain Tim reads the water like a book, watching for birds, temperature changes, and bait activity that signal feeding fish below. You'll spend the day rotating between different techniques – from live baiting structure for cobia to high-speed trolling for billfish. The boat's equipped with quality tackle, but feel free to bring your favorite rods if you want to land that fish of a lifetime on your own gear.
Trolling and Bottom Techniques
Virginia Beach offshore fishing demands versatility, and Captain Tim switches tactics based on what's biting and where we find the fish. Trolling makes up a big chunk of our day – we'll pull spreads of ballyhoo, cedar plugs, and lures through temperature breaks and along current edges where tuna and marlin feed. When we mark fish on the bottom machine or find structure holding cobia, we switch to live bait and chunk bait presentations. The boat carries a good selection of circle hooks, weights, and leaders sized for everything from flounder to blue marlin. Captain Tim handles the technical stuff like reading the fish finder and adjusting the spread, but he'll teach you to read the signs too – how birds diving means bait fish below, why that temperature change on the GPS matters, and how to tell when a fish is about to eat your bait. Bottom fishing here means dropping baits around wrecks, reefs, and structure in 40 to 120 feet of water, where drum, flounder, and other species hold tight to cover.
Species You'll Want to Hook
Cobia are the crown jewel of Virginia Beach fishing, and these brown sharks of the shallows get big here – really big. During peak season from April through October, we see fish from 30 pounds up to monsters pushing 60 pounds or more. Cobia cruise around structure, buoys, and even follow rays in shallow water, making them perfect sight-fishing targets. They fight like freight trains and taste even better on the dinner table. What makes cobia special here is how they respond to live bait – watching a 50-pound cobia eat a live eel or blue crab never gets old.
Albacore tuna show up in good numbers during summer months, typically running from 15 to 40 pounds in our waters. These silver bullets hit trolled baits hard and make screaming runs that'll test your drag settings. Albacore prefer cooler water, so we often find them along temperature breaks 15 to 30 miles offshore. They're excellent table fare and put up a fight that'll leave your arms sore. The key to consistent albacore fishing is finding the right water temperature – usually where warmer inshore water meets cooler offshore currents.
Spanish mackerel might not be the biggest fish in the ocean, but they make up for size with pure aggression and numbers. These torpedo-shaped speedsters hit small spoons, jigs, and trolled baits with authority, often coming in schools that keep multiple anglers busy at once. They're perfect for beginning anglers to cut their teeth on, and smoked Spanish mackerel is hard to beat. Look for them around structure and temperature breaks from spring through fall.
Blackfin tuna are the smaller cousins of yellowfin, but don't let their size fool you – these 10 to 25-pound fish fight like they're twice their weight. Blackfins school up tight and respond well to chunking, live bait, and small trolled lures. They're excellent sashimi fish and perfect for anglers who want tuna action without the marathon fights of bigger species. We typically find blackfins around temperature breaks and structure in 60 to 200 feet of water.
Summer flounder, or fluke, are Virginia Beach's premier bottom fish, with doormat-sized fish over 8 pounds caught regularly in our waters. These flatfish are ambush predators that bury in sand near structure, waiting to attack passing baitfish. Flounder fishing requires patience and the right technique – we drift live minnows, squid strips, and bucktails near structure and wrecks. The fight isn't spectacular, but landing a 6-pound fluke makes for great photos and better eating.
Blue marlin represent the ultimate offshore challenge – billfish that can exceed 400 pounds and test every aspect of your tackle and technique. Virginia Beach sits in prime marlin territory during summer months, when these apex predators follow warm water currents and baitfish concentrations. Marlin fishing means trolling big baits, heavy tackle, and being ready for the fight of your life when one shows up behind the spread. Most anglers release marlin, but the experience of fighting a fish that big stays with you forever.
Redfish, or red drum, come in two distinct varieties in