Waterlands

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Gray triggerfishShoulder season

Cape · North Carolina

Shell Point

34.68°N · 76.53°W · Cape · Neuse and Bay Rivers

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Best score today · 10 PM · Gray triggerfish

75/100Great
Now
476 PM EDT
Best window
6 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
High1.7 ft

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

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24-hour conditions

Thursday, Sep 24 · 12 AM

Time12A
Score35Fair
Tide1.0 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.8 kn · toward W
Wind22 kn NNEgusts 37 · steady
Sea stateRough4.2 ft · 5 s
Air temp74°Warm
WeatherOvercast69% chance of rain
Water81°FBias corrected

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Gray triggerfish 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 Gray triggerfish is best here

Shoulder season for Gray triggerfish · 5 more weeks at shoulder

Gray triggerfish season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Gray triggerfish · 5 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Gray triggerfish in North Carolina

Spot profile

Shell Point

Depth
6-7 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Outer · ExposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonGray triggerfish

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 Shell Point

Shell Point is a cape in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 6-7 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, outer water and 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 crevalle jack, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, little tunny, Spanish mackerel and black drum. 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

Gray triggerfish
Gray triggerfish hover a few feet over reefs, wrecks and ledges, usually in 60 to 200 feet, and often show up while snapper fishing. Use small, strong circle hooks with small pieces of squid or cut bait on a short bottom rig, because they nibble and strip big baits. Keep the bait just off the bottom and reel steadily at the first solid pull.
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

  • Lighthouse Channel

    Channel · 1.4 mi

    81
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 81
    • Spot 77
    • Atlantic tarpon 68

    7 kt ESEL 1:35 AM · 0.8 ftH 6:39 AM · 1.4 ft

  • Eastmouth Bay

    Bay · 1.2 mi

    77
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 77
    • Spot 76
    • Florida pompano 65

    7 kt ESEL 1:35 AM · 0.8 ftH 6:39 AM · 1.4 ft

  • Henry Jones Creek

    Bay · 1.6 mi

    77
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 77
    • Spot 76
    • Atlantic tarpon 65

    7 kt ESEL 1:35 AM · 0.8 ftH 6:39 AM · 1.4 ft

  • Sandy Point

    Cape · 1.0 mi

    72
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 72
    • Spot 71
    • Florida pompano 61

    7 kt ESEL 1:35 AM · 0.8 ftH 6:39 AM · 1.4 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.