Waterlands

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BluefishPeak season

Cape · North Carolina

Stumpy Point

35.76°N · 75.99°W · Cape · Alligator River

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Best score today · 6 AM · Bluefish

80/100Great
Now
559 AM EST
Best window
5-8 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Low0.2 ft

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

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24-hour conditions

Saturday, Nov 7 · 6 AM

Time6A
Score71Great
Tide0.3 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.3 knmodeled · toward NE
Wind6 kn Wgusts 9 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.3 ft · 6 s
Air temp53°Cool
WeatherClear9% cloud
Water66°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Bluefish is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with NCDMF before you keep a fish.

Source: NCDMF · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Bluefish is best here

Peak season for Bluefish · 8 more weeks at peak

Bluefish season by week of the year. Peak season for Bluefish · 8 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Bluefish in North Carolina →

Spot profile

Stumpy Point

Depth
2-8 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonBluefish

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 Stumpy Point

Stumpy Point is a cape in Alligator River, North Carolina. Depth is 2-8 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 25 species here; the best right now are little tunny, weakfish and black sea bass. It is peak season now for little tunny, weakfish, black sea bass and bluefish, and shoulder season for spot, Atlantic croaker, black drum and summer flounder. Little tunny peak from October through November. Weakfish peak from October through November. Black sea bass peak from March through April and from October through November.

Tackle & technique

Bluefish
Bluefish travel in size-sorted schools and feed where tide pushes bait past structure: inlet mouths, rips, shoal edges and the surf line, mostly in water shallower than 60 feet. Look for birds and breaking bait and cast metal or poppers into it, or soak cut bunker or mullet on the bottom from the beach. Use a short wire or heavy leader because their teeth cut light line.
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.
Weakfish
Weakfish hold along channel edges, grass beds, oyster bars and bridge shadows in bays and sounds, usually in 5 to 40 feet of water, and feed hardest at dawn, dusk and after dark. Swim soft plastics or bucktails slowly near the bottom, or drift peeler crab and bloodworms. They have soft mouths, so keep the drag light and the pressure steady.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • The Straits

    Channel · 4.3 mi

    75
    Top: WeakfishPeak season
    • Weakfish 75
    • Spotted seatrout 71
    • Southern flounder 70

    7 kt NEL 10:13 AM · 0.3 ftH 4:22 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Orange Point

    Cape · 3.7 mi

    74
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 74
    • Bluefish 66
    • Weakfish 66

    7 kt NEL 10:13 AM · 0.3 ftH 4:22 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Grapevine Bay

    Bay · 4.7 mi

    71
    Top: WeakfishPeak season
    • Weakfish 71
    • Little tunny 70
    • Southern flounder 68

    7 kt NEL 10:13 AM · 0.3 ftH 4:22 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Cypress Point

    Cape · 3.8 mi

    64
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 64
    • Weakfish 57
    • Black sea bass 56

    7 kt NEH 3:55 PM · 0.5 ftL 10:19 PM · 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.