Waterlands

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Greater amberjackShoulder season

Bay · North Carolina

Fulcher Creek

34.76°N · 76.62°W · Bay · Neuse and Bay Rivers

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 12 AM · Greater amberjack

72/100Great
Now
4612 AM EDT
Best window
12-2 AMEbb 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

Sunday, Oct 4 · 7 PM

Time7P
Score57Good
Tide1.9 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb1.1 kn · toward SW
Wind5 kn Sgusts 13 · steady
Air temp76°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy52% cloud
Water77°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Greater amberjack 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 Greater amberjack is best here

Shoulder season for Greater amberjack · 9 more weeks at shoulder

Greater amberjack season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Greater amberjack · 9 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Greater amberjack in North Carolina

Spot profile

Fulcher Creek

Depth
About 1 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Estuary · Inner · ProtectedEstuary · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonGreater amberjack

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 Fulcher Creek

Fulcher Creek is a bay in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is about 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads estuary, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and red drum. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, red drum and Atlantic tarpon, and shoulder season for black drum, red snapper, weakfish and black sea bass. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Red drum peak from August through November.

Tackle & technique

Greater amberjack
Amberjack school around wrecks, oil rigs, towers and high-relief reefs in 60 to 250 feet, often suspended well above the bottom. Drop a live blue runner or work a heavy jig through the school, then pump hard, because a big AJ runs straight back into the structure. Heavy conventional gear with 50 to 80 pound line is standard.
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

  • Marsh Hen Point

    Cape · 0.6 mi

    75
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 75
    • Atlantic tarpon 73
    • Spotted seatrout 71

    13 kt NEL 2:49 AM · 0.5 ftH 7:58 AM · 1.7 ft

  • South Leopard Creek

    Bay · 2.5 mi

    75
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 75
    • Atlantic tarpon 73
    • Southern flounder 71

    13 kt NEL 2:49 AM · 0.5 ftH 7:58 AM · 1.7 ft

  • Steep Point Channel

    Channel · 1.8 mi

    67
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 67
    • Atlantic tarpon 67
    • Atlantic croaker 63

    13 kt NEL 12:52 AM · 0.8 ftH 6:51 AM · 2.3 ft

  • Wading Creek

    Bay · 2.3 mi

    67
    Top: Atlantic tarponPeak season
    • Atlantic tarpon 67
    • Atlantic croaker 66
    • Red drum 66

    8 kt NL 12:54 AM · 0.8 ftH 6:36 AM · 3.0 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.