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Atlantic croakerShoulder season

Cape · Maryland

Navy Point

38.79°N · 76.22°W · Cape · Eastern Bay

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Best score today · 12 AM · Atlantic croaker

71/100Great
Now
493 PM EDT
Best window
10 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.6 ft ▼

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions

Saturday, Sep 26 · 7 AM

Time7A
Score54Good
Tide1.7 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.4 kn · toward NNE
Wind14 kn Ngusts 23 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.8 ft · 3 s
Air temp63°Mild
WeatherOvercast97% cloud
Water70°FBias corrected

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

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

Atlantic croaker season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Atlantic croaker in Maryland

Spot profile

Navy Point

Depth
3-15 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · slope
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 Navy Point

Navy Point is a cape in Eastern Bay, Maryland. Depth in the nearest water is 3-15 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are scup, spot and little tunny. It is peak season now for scup, spot, little tunny and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for bluefish, Atlantic croaker, striped bass and black sea bass. Scup peak from June through October. Spot peak from August through October. Little tunny peak from September 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.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Tide Mill Cove

    Bay · 0.7 mi

    67
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 67
    • Spot 67
    • Little tunny 56

    15 kt ENEL 8:18 PM · 0.8 ftH 2:43 AM · 2.2 ft

  • Cedar Point

    Cape · 3.4 mi

    63
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 63
    • Scup 60
    • Spot 59

    15 kt ENEL 7:33 PM · 1.0 ftH 1:58 AM · 2.3 ft

  • Deepwater Point

    Cape · 1.3 mi

    62
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 62
    • Spot 61
    • Little tunny 60

    15 kt ENEL 8:18 PM · 0.8 ftH 2:43 AM · 2.2 ft

  • Meetinghouse Point

    Cape · 3.8 mi

    59
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 59
    • Spot 57
    • Scup 56

    15 kt ENEL 7:33 PM · 1.0 ftH 1:58 AM · 2.3 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.