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Atlantic croakerShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker69
- Spot69
- Spotted seatrout69
- Red drum68
- Southern flounder61
- Weakfish61
- Florida pompano58
- Bluefish55
- Black drum53
- Black sea bass52
- Little tunny50
- Gag grouper48
- Summer flounder48
- Striped bass47
- Red snapper45
- Sheepshead44
- Crevalle jack36
- Atlantic tarpon35
- King mackerel35
- Red grouper35
- Gray triggerfish34
- Greater amberjack34
- Gray snapper33
- Cobia27
- Spanish mackerel24
Best score today · 7 AM · Atlantic croaker
- Now
- 6910 PM EST
- Best window
- 11 PM-12 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- High0.3 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Deep Gut scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions
Friday, Nov 13 · 4 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
99Tide: EbbingWind & pressure
ECMWF
99Wind: 4 kt ENEPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
92Water temp: 66°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Near a majorSeason & habitat · Atlantic croaker
Species seasonality
63Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: Out of range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
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 today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Atlantic croaker is best here
Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 3 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Deep Gut
- Depth
- About 1 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · 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 Deep Gut
Deep Gut is a bay in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is about 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 25 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and spotted seatrout. It is peak season now for spotted seatrout, red drum, southern flounder and weakfish, 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. Spotted seatrout peak from September 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.
- 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.
- Spotted seatrout
- Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Turnagain Bay69
Bay · 0.4 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerShoulder season- Atlantic croaker 69
- Spot 69
- Spotted seatrout 69
5 kt ENEL 2:44 AM · 0.3 ftH 8:48 AM · 0.3 ft
- Hog Point69
Cape · 0.7 mi
Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season- Spotted seatrout 69
- Red drum 68
- Atlantic croaker 64
5 kt ENEL 2:44 AM · 0.3 ftH 8:48 AM · 0.3 ft
- Big Gut69
Bay · 0.7 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerShoulder season- Atlantic croaker 69
- Spot 69
- Spotted seatrout 69
5 kt ENEL 2:44 AM · 0.3 ftH 8:48 AM · 0.3 ft
- Tump Gut69
Bay · 0.9 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerShoulder season- Atlantic croaker 69
- Spot 69
- Spotted seatrout 69
5 kt ENEL 2:44 AM · 0.3 ftH 8:48 AM · 0.3 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.