UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
CobiaShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker79
- Spot78
- Atlantic tarpon76
- Red drum74
- Crevalle jack73
- Gray snapper73
- Southern flounder68
- Spotted seatrout68
- Summer flounder68
- King mackerel67
- Black drum65
- Red snapper62
- Spanish mackerel62
- Gray triggerfish61
- Sheepshead61
- Weakfish60
- Black sea bass59
- Gag grouper59
- Red grouper59
- Cobia58
- Little tunny56
- Greater amberjack55
- Florida pompano52
- Bluefish35
Best score today · 6 PM · Cobia
- Now
- 589 PM EDT
- Best window
- 9-11 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.4 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Onslow Bay 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
78Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 4 kt SEPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
71Water temp: 81°F, warmLight: NightSolunar: Major periodSeas: 1.6 ftSeason & habitat · Cobia
Species seasonality
57Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Cobia 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 Cobia is best here
Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Onslow Bay
- Depth
- 10-30 ftSlope
- Structure
- Bay · Outer · ExposedBay · slope
- Season
- Shoulder seasonCobia
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 Onslow Bay
Onslow Bay is a bay in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 10-30 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, Atlantic tarpon and red drum, and shoulder season for black drum, red snapper, Spanish mackerel and gray triggerfish. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- Cobia
- Cobia cruise inlets, beaches, buoys, wrecks and the backs of rays in 5 to 100 feet of water. On calm, sunny days sight-cast bucktails or live eels to fish near the surface. Otherwise anchor up-current of structure, chum, and fish live eels, crabs or menhaden near the bottom.
- 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
- Browns Inlet82
Channel · 0.7 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 82
- Atlantic tarpon 80
- Spot 77
4 kt SEL 11:18 PM · 0.8 ftH 5:03 AM · 2.6 ft
- Banks Channel82
Channel · 0.8 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 82
- Atlantic tarpon 79
- Spot 77
4 kt SEL 11:18 PM · 0.8 ftH 5:03 AM · 2.6 ft
- Sanders Creek80
Gut · 4.0 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 80
- Atlantic tarpon 78
- Spot 76
2 kt EL 11:16 PM · 0.8 ftH 5:00 AM · 1.9 ft
- Browns Sound79
Bay · 1.0 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 79
- Spot 77
- Atlantic tarpon 76
4 kt SEL 11:18 PM · 0.8 ftH 5:03 AM · 2.6 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.