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Greater amberjackShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker68
- Spot68
- Red drum67
- Atlantic tarpon66
- Crevalle jack66
- Summer flounder64
- King mackerel63
- Southern flounder63
- Spotted seatrout63
- Black drum59
- Gray snapper58
- Florida pompano55
- Cobia54
- Weakfish54
- Spanish mackerel52
- Black sea bass51
- Gag grouper51
- Gray triggerfish51
- Red snapper51
- Red grouper50
- Sheepshead49
- Greater amberjack46
- Little tunny46
- Bluefish35
Best score today · 7 AM · Greater amberjack
- Now
- 463 PM EDT
- Best window
- 4-8 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding0.3 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Deer Creek 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 · 3 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
41Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.3 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 9 kt EPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
77Water temp: 79°F, primeLight: OvercastSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.5 ftSeason & habitat · Greater amberjack
Species seasonality
40Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Greater amberjack is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with NCDMF before you keep a fish.
Source: NCDMF · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Greater amberjack is best here
Shoulder season for Greater amberjack · 9 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Deer Creek
- Depth
- About 1 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Estuary · Inner · ProtectedEstuary · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonGreater amberjack
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 Deer Creek
Deer Creek is a bay in Alligator River, North Carolina. Depth is about 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads estuary, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and red drum. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, red drum and Atlantic tarpon, and shoulder season for black drum, Florida pompano, cobia and weakfish. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Red drum peak from August through November.
Tackle & technique
- Greater amberjack
- Amberjack school around wrecks, oil rigs, towers and high-relief reefs in 60 to 250 feet, often suspended well above the bottom. Drop a live blue runner or work a heavy jig through the school, then pump hard, because a big AJ runs straight back into the structure. Heavy conventional gear with 50 to 80 pound line is standard.
- 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.
- 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
- Hooker Gut69
Gut · 0.8 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 69
- Spot 66
- Atlantic tarpon 65
10 kt ENEH 9:03 PM · 0.5 ftL 3:21 AM · 0.4 ft
- Deep Bay68
Bay · 1.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 68
- Spot 68
- Crevalle jack 66
9 kt EH 9:03 PM · 0.5 ftL 3:21 AM · 0.4 ft
- Liehue Gut68
Gut · 1.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 68
- Spot 65
- Atlantic tarpon 65
10 kt ENEH 9:03 PM · 0.5 ftL 3:21 AM · 0.4 ft
- Northeast Prong65
Bay · 1.0 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 65
- Spot 65
- Crevalle jack 64
10 kt ENEH 9:03 PM · 0.5 ftL 3:21 AM · 0.4 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 NCDMF before you keep a fish.