Waterlands

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SheepsheadShoulder season

Cape · North Carolina

White Point

34.70°N · 76.55°W · Cape · Neuse and Bay Rivers

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Best score today · 7 AM · Sheepshead

85/100Epic
Now
5010 AM EST
Best window
6-11 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing0.4 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions

Tuesday, Nov 10 · 3 PM

Time3P
Score59Good
Tide0.5 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb1.3 kn · toward W
Wind10 kn SWgusts 17 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.1 ft · 5 s
Air temp70°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy69% cloud
Water67°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Sheepshead 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 Sheepshead is best here

Shoulder season for Sheepshead · 12 more weeks at shoulder

Sheepshead season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Sheepshead · 12 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Sheepshead in North Carolina →

Spot profile

White Point

Depth
1-2 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonSheepshead

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 White Point

White Point is a cape in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth in the nearest water is 1-2 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 25 species here; the best right now are little tunny, red drum and spotted seatrout. It is peak season now for little tunny, red drum, spotted seatrout and black sea bass, and shoulder season for black drum, summer flounder, striped bass and spot. Little tunny peak from October through November. Red drum peak from August through November. Spotted seatrout peak from September through November.

Tackle & technique

Sheepshead
Sheepshead graze barnacles and crabs off pilings, jetty rocks, bridge supports, oyster bars and nearshore reefs, from a few feet deep out to about 50 feet. Drop a fiddler crab, sand flea or piece of shrimp on a small, strong hook straight down next to the structure with just enough weight to hold bottom. The bite is a light tap, so keep the line tight and set the hook fast.
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.
Red drum
Redfish feed on shallow grass flats, oyster bars and marsh edges, often in 1 to 4 feet of water, and drop into channels, deep holes and tidal creeks when the water turns very hot or cold. Work a live shrimp under a popping cork or a soft plastic along the grass line on a rising tide, then fish creek mouths and drains as the tide falls. Bull reds over 30 inches school in the surf, passes and jetties in late summer and fall, where cut mullet or a live crab on the bottom is the standard approach.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Wading Point

    Cape · 0.7 mi

    68
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 68
    • Red drum 65
    • Spotted seatrout 61

    9 kt NEL 10:38 AM · 0.3 ftH 4:37 PM · 1.8 ft

  • Westmouth Bay

    Bay · 0.3 mi

    66
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 66
    • Bluefish 61
    • Spotted seatrout 61

    9 kt NEL 10:38 AM · 0.3 ftH 4:37 PM · 1.8 ft

  • Henry Jones Creek

    Bay · 0.3 mi

    65
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 65
    • Spotted seatrout 61
    • Bluefish 60

    9 kt NEL 10:41 AM · 0.4 ftH 4:21 PM · 1.9 ft

  • Eastmouth Bay

    Bay · 1.0 mi

    64
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 64
    • Red drum 61
    • Bluefish 60

    9 kt NEL 10:41 AM · 0.4 ftH 4:21 PM · 1.9 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.