Waterlands

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Red snapperShoulder season

Bar · North Carolina

Catfish Point

34.61°N · 76.54°W · Bar · Neuse and Bay Rivers

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 6 PM · Red snapper

76/100Great
Now
516 AM EST
Best window
11 AM-7 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.0 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions

Saturday, Nov 14 · 8 AM

Time8A
Score60Good
Tide3.4 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.8 kn · toward ESE
Wind7 kn NNEgusts 11 · steady
Air temp65°Mild
WeatherOvercast98% cloud
Water71°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Red snapper 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 Red snapper is best here

Shoulder season for Red snapper · 25 more weeks at shoulder

Red snapper season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Red snapper · 25 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Red snapper in North Carolina →

Spot profile

Catfish Point

Depth
4-9 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonRed snapper

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 Catfish Point

Catfish Point is a bar in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 4-9 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, bluefish and striped bass. It is peak season now for little tunny, bluefish, black sea bass and Florida pompano, and shoulder season for striped bass, summer flounder, black drum and Atlantic croaker. Little tunny peak from October through November. Bluefish peak from March through April and from November through December.

Tackle & technique

Red snapper
Red snapper school over rigs, wrecks, artificial reefs and natural ledges, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Anchor or drift over the structure, chum, and drop cut or live cigar minnows, sardines or squid on circle hooks, using as little weight as the current allows. Federal rules require circle hooks with natural bait in the Gulf and a descending device or venting tool on board.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Barden Inlet

    Channel · 1.8 mi

    77
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 77
    • Weakfish 73
    • Bluefish 72

    9 kt NEL 6:46 AM · 0.9 ftH 1:05 PM · 4.4 ft

  • Wreck Point

    Cape · 0.2 mi

    70
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 70
    • Bluefish 65
    • Black sea bass 62

    14 kt NEL 6:46 AM · 0.9 ftH 1:05 PM · 4.4 ft

  • Cape Point

    Cape · 2.2 mi

    68
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 68
    • Bluefish 66
    • Striped bass 61

    14 kt NEH 1:02 PM · 4.1 ftL 7:34 PM · 0.5 ft

  • Lookout Bight

    Bay · 0.4 mi

    67
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 67
    • Bluefish 65
    • Red drum 64

    14 kt NEL 6:46 AM · 0.9 ftH 1:05 PM · 4.4 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.