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King mackerelShoulder seasonBar · Maryland
Rock Point Shoal
39.17°N · 76.47°W · Bar · Chesapeake Bay from Pooles Island to Sandy Point MD
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 1 AM · King mackerel
- Now
- 426 PM EDT
- Best window
- 6-9 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.2 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Rock Point Shoal 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 · 6 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
37Tide: EbbingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
59Wind: 13 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
84Water temp: 74°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeason & habitat · King mackerel
Species seasonality
41Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for King mackerel 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 King mackerel is best here
Shoulder season for King mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Rock Point Shoal
- Depth
- 7-15 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Shoal · Inner · Semi-exposedShoal · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonKing mackerel
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 Rock Point Shoal
Rock Point Shoal is a bar in Chesapeake Bay from Pooles Island to Sandy Point MD, Maryland. Depth is 7-15 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads shoal, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are spot, little tunny and scup. It is peak season now for spot, little tunny, scup and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for bluefish, Atlantic croaker, black sea bass and spotted seatrout. Spot peak from August through October. Little tunny peak from September through October. Scup peak from June through October.
Tackle & technique
- King mackerel
- Kings roam from beaches and pier ends out to reefs, wrecks and ledges in 40 to 200 feet, usually feeding in the upper half of the water column. Slow-troll live menhaden, blue runners or cigar minnows on a light wire stinger rig, or pull spoons and ribbonfish past bait schools. Look for clean green water above 68 F with bait and birds on it.
- Spot
- Spot school over mud and sand in bays, tidal creeks and channels and around piers and bridges, generally in less than 25 feet of water. Fish a two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and bits of bloodworm or shrimp, and move until you find a school. In fall the biggest fish run out of the sounds past piers and inlets, and the bite can go all day.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Penwood Channel68
Channel · 1.8 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 68
- Scup 66
- Atlantic croaker 59
13 kt NEL 10:24 PM · 0.8 ftH 5:07 AM · 1.7 ft
- Brewerton Channel66
Channel · 1.3 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 66
- Spot 66
- Sheepshead 57
13 kt NEL 10:24 PM · 0.8 ftH 5:07 AM · 1.7 ft
- Cutoff Channel66
Channel · 2.0 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 66
- Spot 66
- Sheepshead 57
13 kt NEL 10:24 PM · 0.8 ftH 5:07 AM · 1.7 ft
- Rock Point63
Cape · 0.7 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 63
- Spot 59
- Scup 58
13 kt NEL 10:15 PM · 0.6 ftH 4:58 AM · 1.7 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.