Waterlands

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BluefishPeak season

Cape · North Carolina

Deep Ditch Point

36.00°N · 75.68°W · Cape · Croatan and Roanoke Sounds

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 6 PM · Bluefish

80/100Great
Now
679 AM EST
Best window
3-7 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding1.5 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 9 AM · now

Time9ANOW
Score67Great
Tide1.5 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.1 knmodeled · toward W
Wind8 kn NEgusts 17 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.1 ft · 5 s
Air temp65°Mild
WeatherOvercast100% cloud
Water62°FObserved

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

Deep Ditch Point

Depth
1-4 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 Deep Ditch Point

Deep Ditch Point is a cape in Croatan and Roanoke Sounds, North Carolina. Depth is 1-4 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, black sea bass and bluefish. It is peak season now for little tunny, black sea bass, bluefish and gag grouper, and shoulder season for striped bass, spot, Atlantic croaker and sheepshead. Little tunny peak from October through November. Black sea bass peak from March through April and from October through November. Bluefish peak from March through April and from November through December.

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.
Black sea bass
Black sea bass hold tight to wrecks, reefs, rock piles and jetties, from 15 feet inshore in late spring to well over 100 feet on offshore wrecks in late fall. Anchor or drift right over the structure and fish a two-hook high-low rig with squid or clam, or bounce a small jig on the bottom. The biggest males sit on the highest relief.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Mann Point

    Cape · 1.8 mi

    75
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 75
    • Red drum 74
    • Black sea bass 70

    8 kt NEH 1:23 PM · 3.9 ftL 8:06 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Colington Creek

    Gut · 1.8 mi

    75
    Top: Black sea bassPeak season
    • Black sea bass 75
    • Weakfish 75
    • Red drum 72

    8 kt NEH 1:27 PM · 3.8 ftL 8:07 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Buzzard Bay

    Bay · 0.1 mi

    71
    Top: WeakfishPeak season
    • Weakfish 71
    • Black sea bass 70
    • Little tunny 70

    8 kt NEH 1:27 PM · 3.8 ftL 8:07 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Bens Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    69
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 69
    • Black sea bass 63
    • Bluefish 62

    8 kt NEL 10:17 AM · 0.2 ftH 4:58 PM · 0.5 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.