UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
Atlantic croakerShoulder seasonCape · Maryland
Booby Point
39.29°N · 76.38°W · Cape · Chesapeake Bay from Pooles Island to Sandy Point MD
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 8 AM · Atlantic croaker
- Now
- 4412 PM EDT
- Best window
- 3-9 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.0 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Booby Point scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 12 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
33Tide: FloodingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
90Wind: 7 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
77Water temp: 77°F, primeLight: OvercastSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.8 ftSeason & habitat · Atlantic croaker
Species seasonality
43Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Atlantic croaker is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with Maryland DNR before you keep a fish.
Source: Maryland DNR · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Atlantic croaker is best here
Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Booby Point
- Depth
- 1-8 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonAtlantic croaker
NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 3.4 m grid. Depths are feet below NAVD 88, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.
About this spot
Fishing Booby Point
Booby Point is a cape in Chesapeake Bay from Pooles Island to Sandy Point MD, Maryland. Depth is 1-8 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are little tunny, scup and spot. It is peak season now for little tunny, scup, spot and red drum, and shoulder season for bluefish, spotted seatrout, weakfish and black sea bass. Little tunny peak from September through October. Scup peak from June through October. Spot peak from August through October.
Tackle & technique
- Atlantic croaker
- Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
- Little tunny
- Little tunny travel fast in schools that pin bait against inlets, points, jetties and tide rips, usually within a few miles of shore and often in less than 60 feet. Stay off the school's path, wait for it to surface within range, and cast small metal or epoxy jigs with a fast retrieve. When fish stay down, troll small feathers along bait edges and color changes to find them.
- Scup
- Scup school over hard and mixed bottom, rock piles, mussel beds, piers and jetties, usually in 10 to 60 feet of water. Fish a high-low rig with small hooks and squid or clam strips on the bottom, and chum with clam to hold a school under the boat. If nothing bites within 15 minutes, move to the next piece of structure.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Hawk Cove61
Bay · 2.0 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 61
- Scup 60
- Red drum 59
7 kt NEH 3:37 PM · 1.1 ftL 9:12 PM · 0.8 ft
- Hawthorn Cove60
Bay · 2.6 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 60
- Scup 57
- Red drum 55
7 kt NEH 5:44 PM · 1.0 ftL 11:18 PM · 0.5 ft
- Wells Point57
Cape · 0.6 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 57
- Spot 56
- Red drum 55
7 kt NEH 3:37 PM · 1.1 ftL 9:12 PM · 0.8 ft
- Balliston Point57
Cape · 1.3 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 57
- Spot 56
- Red drum 55
7 kt NEH 3:37 PM · 1.1 ftL 9:12 PM · 0.8 ft
Scores and forecasts are for planning only and can be wrong. Conditions on the water change fast; check the marine forecast before you go. Regulations change during the season, so confirm limits and closures with Maryland DNR before you keep a fish.
