Waterlands

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Atlantic croakerShoulder season

Gut · North Carolina

Caffeys Inlet (historical)

36.23°N · 75.77°W · Gut · Currituck Sound

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Best score today · 5 PM · Atlantic croaker

80/100Great
Now
7311 AM EST
Best window
3-7 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding2.7 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions

Thursday, Nov 5 · 8 AM

Time8A
Score75Great
Tide1.7 ft ▼Ebbing
Current0.1 knmodeled · toward N
Wind4 kn SSEgusts 7 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.8 ft · 6 s
Air temp66°Mild
WeatherOvercast100% cloud
Water64°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 NCDMF before you keep a fish.

Source: NCDMF · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Atlantic croaker is best here

Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 4 more weeks at shoulder

Atlantic croaker season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 4 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Atlantic croaker in North Carolina →

Spot profile

Caffeys Inlet (historical)

Depth
2-5 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Channel · Inner · Semi-exposedChannel · flat bottom
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 Caffeys Inlet (historical)

Caffeys Inlet (historical) is a gut in Currituck Sound, North Carolina. Depth is 2-5 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

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.
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.
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

  • Baums Creek

    Gut · 2.1 mi

    77
    Top: WeakfishPeak season
    • Weakfish 77
    • Black sea bass 75
    • Red drum 75

    6 kt NEH 1:28 PM · 3.7 ftL 8:05 PM · 0.5 ft

  • Pettys Pond

    Bay · 1.4 mi

    76
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 76
    • Spotted seatrout 74
    • Weakfish 73

    6 kt NEH 1:28 PM · 3.7 ftL 8:05 PM · 0.5 ft

  • Pine Island Bay

    Bay · 1.4 mi

    76
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 76
    • Spotted seatrout 74
    • Weakfish 73

    6 kt NEH 1:28 PM · 3.7 ftL 8:05 PM · 0.5 ft

  • Shoe Hole Bay

    Bay · 2.0 mi

    73
    Top: WeakfishPeak season
    • Weakfish 73
    • Little tunny 72
    • Black sea bass 71

    6 kt NEH 1:28 PM · 3.7 ftL 8:05 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.