This educational fishing event is open to all levels, whether you have never fished before or have been fishing your entire life—or anywhere in between.
Registration opens August 1. Sign up to receive a reminder email.
Why Do We Hold This Event?
When an estuary loses almost all its keystone oyster reefs like the Chesapeake Bay has, the change causes fundamental damage to water quality and habitat for fish, crabs, and other creatures.
What has the Bay lost? We know from surveys performed in the late 1800s that hundreds of acres of naturally occurring oyster reefs were found in the Lower Bay. These reefs were home to abundant populations of popular reef fish like speckled trout, black sea bass, and red drum.
Due to the combined effects of decades of over harvesting, habitat destruction, poor water quality, and disease, the population of oysters and reefs in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries are an estimated one percent of historic levels.
However, in recent years, multiple partners have been restoring oyster reefs in local Virginia rivers. The return of these habitats means a return of healthy populations of popular reef fish—and that means more fish to angle for!
Virginia Rod & Reef's goal is to show the community—especially kids and teens—how fun fishing can be, how oyster reefs contribute to great angling, and to inspire lifetime anglers who love their local waterways.
