Mid-Atlantic · ChartNav curated ground
Wilmington Canyon
Classic Delmarva canyon troll and chunk grounds — tuna, marlin and mahi on the temperature breaks.
What's biting here — right now
Prime water for Chub Mackerel & Common Thresher Shark — 70°F on top, water moving now.
Today's bite
4:45 PM – 8:35 PM · dusk bite
Days ahead
Today
ROUGH
wind 19 kt
Sun
ROUGH
seas 6.1 ft
Mon
ROUGH
wind 20 kt
Tue
ROUGH
wind 19 kt
Wed
OK
wind 12 kt
In season (Oct)
SST 70°F in the prime band (63–75°F prime)
Charted 221 ft suits this species (49–656 ft ideal)
Temperature break nearby (1.8°C across ~15 nm)
Small metals or sabikis around bait balls on the edge — a late-summer arrival that draws everything bigger.
In season (Oct)
SST 70°F in the prime band (59–70°F prime)
Charted 221 ft suits this species (98–1312 ft ideal)
Temperature break nearby (1.8°C across ~15 nm)
Slow-trolled bait or a chum slick where bait stacks on a break — they stun with the tail, so hook-ups run tail-first.
In season (Oct)
SST 70°F in the prime band (63–72°F prime)
Charted 221 ft suits this species (131–1640 ft ideal)
Temperature break nearby (1.8°C across ~15 nm)
Chum slick on temperature breaks near bait concentrations.
In season (Oct)
SST 70°F workable (55–68°F prime)
Charted 221 ft suits this species (131–3280 ft ideal)
Temperature break nearby (1.8°C across ~15 nm)
They find the chum slick on their own — circle hooks and a wire bite leader, then let them go.
In season (Oct)
SST 70°F workable (72–84°F prime)
Charted 221 ft suits this species (197–4920 ft ideal)
Temperature break nearby (1.8°C across ~15 nm)
In NOAA-designated Essential Fish Habitat
Troll skirted lures on blue-water edges, rips and canyon walls; chunk at night.
In season (Oct)
Bottom temp 64°F at 197 ft workable (64–82°F prime)
Charted 221 ft suits this species (66–295 ft ideal)
No charted structure within 250 m — scored cautiously (charts don't mark all hard bottom)
Small strong hooks tight to the structure — they bite short and shred a bait off a big hook.
In season (Oct)
SST 70°F in the prime band (63–73°F prime)
Charted 221 ft marginal for this species (16–131 ft ideal)
Temperature break nearby (1.8°C across ~15 nm)
Trolled small feathers or cast metals around bait; moving water.
In season (Oct)
SST 70°F in the prime band (64–73°F prime)
Charted 221 ft marginal for this species (16–131 ft ideal)
Temperature break nearby (1.8°C across ~15 nm)
Small metals or epoxy jigs cast to surface-feeding schools; fast retrieve.
In season (Oct)
Bottom temp 64°F at 197 ft in the prime band (46–68°F prime)
Charted 221 ft marginal for this species (26–131 ft ideal)
Better near structure or edges if you can find it
Bucktail + strip bait drifted over sand near channel edges and structure.
In season (Oct)
Bottom temp 64°F at 197 ft in the prime band (46–72°F prime)
Charted 221 ft marginal for this species (33–148 ft ideal)
No charted structure within 250 m — scored cautiously (charts don't mark all hard bottom)
Squid or clam on hi-lo rigs directly over wrecks, reefs and rockpiles.
Off-season here in Oct
SST 70°F in the prime band (59–72°F prime)
Charted 221 ft suits this species (82–656 ft ideal)
Temperature break nearby (1.8°C across ~15 nm)
Troll, chunk or jig where bait stacks on temperature breaks and ledges.
Bluefish29
In season (Oct)
SST 70°F in the prime band (64–75°F prime)
Charted 221 ft marginal for this species (7–98 ft ideal)
Metal lures or poppers through bait schools and birds; wire leader.
Live habitat-envelope scoring at this exact cell — SST, charted depth, charted structure and seabed, NOAA-designated habitat. The same engine and cards as tapping the spot in Fish mode.
Today's bite windows — moving water
Moving water right now — building
4:45 PM – 8:35 PM
peak 6:40 PM · ebb
peak 6:40 PM · ebb
11:26 PM – 2:37 AM
peak 1:02 AM · flood
peak 1:02 AM · flood
5:19 AM – 8:44 AM
peak 7:02 AM · ebb
peak 7:02 AM · ebb
Derived from the tide at Beach Haven Coast Guard Station — flow peaks near mid-tide, goes slack near high and low. No tidal-current station within 10 nm of this spot. Timing only — it never changes the habitat scores above.
The week ahead — full forecast
Drag the graph for any hour — wind, gusts, seas & period, rain, predicted current. The pale band around the wind line is model disagreement; the day chips carry the verdict and the number that caused it; the moons are real phases.
Sea state right now — every train
Combined
4.8 ft @ 6 s
from NE
Wind sea
4.4 ft @ 6 s
from NE
Swell 1
1.7 ft @ 11 s
from ESE · long-period groundswell
Swell 2
0.7 ft @ 5 s
from SSW
Swell 3
0.0 ft
Wind: NBM 2.5km direct (69 h) → GFS 0.25° direct (3 h) → Open-Meteo blend (96 h) · Waves: GFS-Wave 0.16° (12Z cycle), full train decomposition · Confidence band: GEFS ensemble spread · Bite windows: CO-OPS tidal predictions
Water temperature — last 10 weeks
2026-07-24 → 2026-10-02 · 69–80°F
Best months here
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Species in season by month for Mid-Atlantic (from the knowledge base). In season now: Atlantic Croaker, Black Drum, Black Sea Bass, Blueline Tilefish, Golden Tilefish, Northern Kingfish, Red Porgy, Scup (Porgy), Summer Flounder (Fluke), Tautog.
Other grounds in Mid-Atlantic
The Mud Hole
Summer Flounder (Fluke) · Black Sea Bass · Bluefish
Baltimore Canyon
Yellowfin Tuna · White Marlin · Bluefin Tuna
Chesapeake Light Tower
Cobia · Red Drum (Redfish) · Spanish Mackerel
Reuse welcome with attribution. Weekly regional report: Mid-Atlantic · Feed: RSS · all US grounds: /fishing.