Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

Gag grouperShoulder season

Bay · North Carolina

Chadwick Bay

34.53°N · 77.37°W · Bay · Neuse and Bay Rivers

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 8 AM · Gag grouper

77/100Great
Now
564 PM EDT
Best window
4-11 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding2.9 ft ▲

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

Notify me when Chadwick Bay scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 4 PM · now

Time4PNOW
Score56Good
Tide2.9 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.2 knmodeled · toward WSW
Wind9 kn Egusts 18 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.2 ft · 5 s
Air temp82°Warm
WeatherOvercast69% chance of rain
Water82°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.

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Gag grouper is best here

Shoulder season for Gag grouper · 5 more weeks at shoulder

Gag grouper season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Gag grouper · 5 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Gag grouper in North Carolina

Spot profile

Chadwick Bay

Depth
2-5 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder 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 Chadwick Bay

Chadwick Bay is a bay in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 2-5 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and crevalle jack. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, crevalle jack and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel, black drum and gray triggerfish. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Crevalle jack peak from July through October.

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

  • Bumps Creek

    Gut · 0.7 mi

    77
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 77
    • Spot 72
    • Crevalle jack 71

    9 kt EH 5:33 PM · 3.3 ftL 11:58 PM · 0.6 ft

  • Roses Point

    Cape · 0.2 mi

    70
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 70
    • Atlantic croaker 69
    • Atlantic tarpon 68

    9 kt EH 5:33 PM · 3.3 ftL 11:58 PM · 0.6 ft

  • Swan Point

    Cape · 0.6 mi

    69
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 69
    • King mackerel 66
    • Spot 66

    9 kt EH 5:33 PM · 3.3 ftL 11:58 PM · 0.6 ft

  • Hatch Point

    Cape · 1.4 mi

    69
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 69
    • King mackerel 66
    • Spot 66

    9 kt EH 5:33 PM · 3.3 ftL 11:58 PM · 0.6 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.