Waterlands

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Gag grouperPeak season

Gut · North Carolina

Cabs Creek

34.67°N · 76.59°W · Gut · Neuse and Bay Rivers

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 7 AM · Gag grouper

84/100Great
Now
533 AM EST
Best window
6-9 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding2.0 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions

Saturday, Nov 7 · 10 AM

Time10A
Score69Great
Tide1.5 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb1.3 kn · toward W
Wind6 kn NNWgusts 15 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.4 ft · 7 s
Air temp68°Warm
WeatherOvercast100% cloud
Water67°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Gag grouper 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 Gag grouper is best here

Peak season for Gag grouper · 8 more weeks at peak

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

Gag grouper in North Carolina →

Spot profile

Cabs Creek

Depth
1-3 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Estuary · Inner · Semi-exposedEstuary · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonGag grouper

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 Cabs Creek

Cabs Creek is a gut in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 1-3 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads estuary, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

Gag grouper
Gag hold on ledges, rock piles and wrecks, from 15 to 40 feet in the fall on Florida's Gulf coast out to 250 feet the rest of the year. Troll deep-diving plugs to find productive rocks, then anchor and drop or freeline live pinfish or pigfish on a strong circle hook. Keep the drag tight and turn the fish in the first few seconds or it will reach the rocks.
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

  • Shackleford Slue

    Channel · 1.2 mi

    72
    Top: Atlantic croakerShoulder season
    • Atlantic croaker 72
    • Spot 69
    • Weakfish 67

    8 kt ENEL 9:34 AM · 0.4 ftH 3:54 PM · 2.3 ft

  • Bottle Run Point

    Cape · 0.7 mi

    69
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 69
    • Bluefish 67
    • Black sea bass 65

    8 kt ENEH 4:11 AM · 1.6 ftL 10:38 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Bald Hill Bay

    Bay · 0.7 mi

    69
    Top: WeakfishPeak season
    • Weakfish 69
    • Atlantic croaker 68
    • Spot 68

    8 kt ENEH 3:55 AM · 1.6 ftL 10:41 AM · 0.4 ft

  • Back Sound

    Bay · 1.3 mi

    69
    Top: WeakfishPeak season
    • Weakfish 69
    • Atlantic croaker 68
    • Spot 68

    8 kt ENEH 3:55 AM · 1.6 ftL 10:41 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.