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Gag grouperShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker72
- Spot72
- Florida pompano65
- Atlantic tarpon61
- Summer flounder59
- Red drum58
- Black drum57
- King mackerel57
- Gray snapper56
- Crevalle jack54
- Southern flounder53
- Spanish mackerel53
- Spotted seatrout53
- Red snapper48
- Black sea bass47
- Gray triggerfish47
- Weakfish47
- Gag grouper46
- Little tunny45
- Red grouper45
- Cobia44
- Sheepshead44
- Greater amberjack41
- Bluefish35
Best score today · 10 PM · Gag grouper
- Now
- 469 PM EDT
- Best window
- 9 PM-12 AMHigh slack
- Tide now
- Flooding0.5 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Garbacon Shoal 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 · rolling from now
Conditions · 9 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
45Tide: FloodingCurrent: WeakWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 8 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
58Water temp: 81°F, warmLight: NightSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 1.4 ftSeason & habitat · Gag grouper
Species seasonality
48Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
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.
Source: NCDMF · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Gag grouper is best here
Shoulder season for Gag grouper · 5 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Garbacon Shoal
- Depth
- 7-10 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Shoal · Inner · Semi-exposedShoal · 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 Garbacon Shoal
Garbacon Shoal is a bar in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 7-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads shoal, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and Florida pompano. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, Atlantic tarpon and summer flounder, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, black drum, Spanish mackerel and red snapper. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Florida pompano peak from March through April and from October through November.
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
- Sandy Point72
Cape · 1.8 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Spot 72
- Red drum 67
8 kt NEH 12:00 AM · 0.5 ftL 5:52 AM · 0.4 ft
- Winthrop Point72
Cape · 2.2 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Spot 72
- Atlantic tarpon 61
8 kt NEH 12:00 AM · 0.5 ftL 5:52 AM · 0.4 ft
- Whittaker Point72
Cape · 2.4 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Spot 72
- Atlantic tarpon 61
8 kt NEH 12:00 AM · 0.5 ftL 5:52 AM · 0.4 ft
- Chadwick Point72
Cape · 2.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Spot 72
- Atlantic tarpon 61
8 kt NEH 12:00 AM · 0.5 ftL 5:52 AM · 0.4 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.