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CobiaShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker80
- Spot78
- Atlantic tarpon75
- Gray snapper71
- Red drum70
- Crevalle jack69
- Summer flounder68
- Black drum67
- Spotted seatrout67
- Southern flounder66
- Weakfish64
- King mackerel63
- Black sea bass62
- Red snapper60
- Sheepshead60
- Florida pompano56
- Gray triggerfish56
- Gag grouper55
- Red grouper55
- Spanish mackerel53
- Cobia50
- Greater amberjack50
- Little tunny50
- Bluefish35
Best score today · 4 AM · Cobia
- Now
- 504 AM EDT
- Best window
- 4-10 AMHigh slack
- Tide now
- Flooding1.3 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when East Channel 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, Sep 25 · 8 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
72Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
98Wind: 9 kt NPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
80Water temp: 78°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.5 ftSeason & habitat · Cobia
Species seasonality
39Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Cobia 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 Cobia is best here
Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
East Channel
- Depth
- 1-4 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonCobia
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 East Channel
East Channel is a channel in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 1-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, Atlantic tarpon and gray snapper, and shoulder season for black drum, weakfish, black sea bass and red snapper. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- Cobia
- Cobia cruise inlets, beaches, buoys, wrecks and the backs of rays in 5 to 100 feet of water. On calm, sunny days sight-cast bucktails or live eels to fish near the surface. Otherwise anchor up-current of structure, chum, and fish live eels, crabs or menhaden near the bottom.
- 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
- West Channel80
Channel · 0.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 80
- Spot 78
- Atlantic tarpon 75
8 kt NNEH 7:06 AM · 1.9 ftL 1:29 PM · 0.5 ft
- Hawkins Bay77
Bay · 0.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 77
- Spot 77
- Red drum 73
8 kt NNEH 7:06 AM · 1.9 ftL 1:29 PM · 0.5 ft
- Main Channel77
Channel · 1.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 77
- Spot 75
- Atlantic tarpon 73
8 kt NNEH 5:46 AM · 2.1 ftL 11:48 AM · 0.5 ft
- Robinson Point73
Cape · 1.7 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 73
- Atlantic tarpon 73
- Atlantic croaker 71
8 kt NNEH 7:06 AM · 1.9 ftL 1:29 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.