Waterlands

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Greater amberjackShoulder season

Bay · North Carolina

Lookout Bight

34.62°N · 76.53°W · Bay · Neuse and Bay Rivers

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Best score today · 6 PM · Greater amberjack

75/100Great
Now
5211 AM EST
Best window
4-7 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding3.5 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions

Thursday, Nov 12 · 7 AM

Time7A
Score57Good
Tide3.9 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood1.2 kn · toward ESE
Wind7 kn NNEgusts 11 · steady
Air temp62°Mild
WeatherClear0% cloud
Water67°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 · 4 more weeks at shoulder

Greater amberjack season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Greater amberjack · 4 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Greater amberjack in North Carolina →

Spot profile

Lookout Bight

Depth
5-15 ftSlope
Structure
Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · slope
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 Lookout Bight

Lookout Bight is a bay in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 5-15 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Barden Inlet

    Channel · 1.5 mi

    77
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 77
    • Black sea bass 74
    • Weakfish 74

    10 kt NEH 1:05 PM · 4.4 ftL 7:42 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Wreck Point

    Cape · 0.3 mi

    74
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 74
    • Bluefish 68
    • Black sea bass 67

    12 kt NEH 1:05 PM · 4.4 ftL 7:42 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Catfish Point

    Bar · 0.4 mi

    74
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 74
    • Florida pompano 71
    • Bluefish 69

    12 kt NEH 1:05 PM · 4.4 ftL 7:42 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Blinds Hammock Bay

    Bay · 2.0 mi

    72
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 72
    • Florida pompano 70
    • Weakfish 70

    10 kt NEH 1:05 PM · 4.4 ftL 7:42 PM · 0.8 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.