Waterlands

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Spotted seatroutPeak season

Bay · North Carolina

Goose Bay

34.74°N · 76.58°W · Bay · Neuse and Bay Rivers

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Best score today · 12 AM · Spotted seatrout

72/100Great
Now
308 AM EDT
Best window
10 AM-12 PMEbb tide
Tide now
High1.5 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 8 AM · now

Time8ANOW
Score30Fair
Tide1.5 ftHigh
CurrentSlack0.0 kn
Wind18 kn NNEgusts 30 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.9 ft · 4 s
Air temp75°Warm
WeatherOvercast82% chance of rain
Water80°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Spotted seatrout 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 Spotted seatrout is best here

Peak season for Spotted seatrout · 9 more weeks at peak

Spotted seatrout season by week of the year. Peak season for Spotted seatrout · 9 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
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Spotted seatrout in North Carolina

Spot profile

Goose Bay

Depth
About 1 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonSpotted seatrout

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 Goose Bay

Goose Bay 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 24 species here; the best right now are Florida pompano, crevalle jack and king mackerel. It is peak season now for crevalle jack, king mackerel, Atlantic croaker and Atlantic tarpon, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, black sea bass, gag grouper and gray triggerfish. Florida pompano peak from March through April and from October through November. Crevalle jack peak from July through October. King mackerel peak in May and from September through October.

Tackle & technique

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.
Florida pompano
Pompano feed on sand fleas and coquina clams in the trough between the beach and the first sandbar, and around the sandy edges of passes, inlets and bridges. Surf anglers fish a two-hook pompano rig with sand fleas, clams or shrimp, while boat and bridge anglers bounce small jigs along the bottom. The runs follow water temperature, heading north in spring and south in fall as the water cools.
Crevalle jack
Jacks roam in schools through inlets, passes, bays, river mouths and along beaches, pushing bait to the surface, and big fish also hold on nearshore reefs and wrecks. Watch for birds and surface blowups, then cast a popper, a spoon or a bucktail into the school and retrieve fast. Bring heavy spinning tackle, because a jack over 15 pounds runs hard and fights for a long time.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Black Hammock Point

    Bar · 0.4 mi

    59
    Top: Florida pompanoShoulder season
    • Florida pompano 59
    • King mackerel 47
    • Crevalle jack 44

    18 kt NNEL 2:04 PM · 0.4 ftH 8:06 PM · 1.8 ft

  • South Leopard Creek

    Bay · 1.4 mi

    53
    Top: Crevalle jackPeak season
    • Crevalle jack 53
    • Florida pompano 53
    • King mackerel 48

    18 kt NNEL 2:41 PM · 0.4 ftH 8:23 PM · 2.0 ft

  • Whitehurst Creek

    Bay · 1.6 mi

    51
    Top: Florida pompanoShoulder season
    • Florida pompano 51
    • Crevalle jack 50
    • King mackerel 47

    18 kt NNEL 2:04 PM · 0.4 ftH 8:06 PM · 1.8 ft

  • Gaskill Point

    Cape · 1.7 mi

    51
    Top: Florida pompanoShoulder season
    • Florida pompano 51
    • King mackerel 47
    • Crevalle jack 44

    18 kt NNEL 2:04 PM · 0.4 ftH 8:06 PM · 1.8 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.