Waterlands

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Little tunnyPeak season

Cape · North Carolina

Horse Point

34.66°N · 76.57°W · Cape · Neuse and Bay Rivers

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Best score today · 6 AM · Little tunny

84/100Great
Now
704 PM EST
Best window
5-8 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.9 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions

Tuesday, Nov 10 · 6 PM

Time6P
Score82Great
Tide0.5 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood1.1 kn · toward ESE
Wind7 kn WNWgusts 16 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.2 ft · 4 s
Air temp56°Mild
WeatherClear0% cloud
Water67°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Little tunny is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with NCDMF before you keep a fish.

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Little tunny is best here

Peak season for Little tunny · 4 more weeks at peak

Little tunny season by week of the year. Peak season for Little tunny · 4 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Little tunny in North Carolina →

Spot profile

Horse Point

Depth
1-5 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonLittle tunny

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 Horse Point

Horse Point is a cape in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 1-5 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 25 species here; the best right now are little tunny, Florida pompano and Atlantic croaker. It is peak season now for little tunny, Florida pompano, bluefish and red drum, and shoulder season for Atlantic croaker, spot, striped bass and black drum. Little tunny peak from October through November. Florida pompano peak from March through April and from October through November. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October.

Tackle & technique

Little tunny
Little tunny travel fast in schools that pin bait against inlets, points, jetties and tide rips, usually within a few miles of shore and often in less than 60 feet. Stay off the school's path, wait for it to surface within range, and cast small metal or epoxy jigs with a fast retrieve. When fish stay down, troll small feathers along bait edges and color changes to find them.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Cabs Creek

    Gut · 1.5 mi

    75
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 75
    • Weakfish 73
    • Atlantic croaker 72

    9 kt EL 9:23 PM · 0.4 ftH 3:28 AM · 2.0 ft

  • Johnsons Bay

    Bay · 0.7 mi

    69
    Top: Florida pompanoPeak season
    • Florida pompano 69
    • Spot 69
    • Atlantic croaker 68

    9 kt EL 10:30 PM · 0.4 ftH 3:55 AM · 1.6 ft

  • Bald Hill Bay

    Bay · 0.8 mi

    69
    Top: Florida pompanoPeak season
    • Florida pompano 69
    • Spot 69
    • Atlantic croaker 68

    9 kt EL 10:30 PM · 0.4 ftH 3:55 AM · 1.6 ft

  • Back Sound

    Bay · 1.7 mi

    69
    Top: Florida pompanoPeak season
    • Florida pompano 69
    • Spot 69
    • Atlantic croaker 68

    9 kt EL 10:30 PM · 0.4 ftH 3:55 AM · 1.6 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.