Waterlands

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Red drumPeak season

Bar · North Carolina

White Rock

34.77°N · 76.72°W · Bar · Neuse and Bay Rivers

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Best score today · 7 AM · Red drum

87/100Epic
Now
877 AM EST
Best window
7-8 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.3 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions

Sunday, Nov 15 · 8 AM

Time8A
Score75Great
Tide1.5 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.6 kn · toward NE
Wind11 kn NNEgusts 21 · steady
Air temp63°Mild
WeatherOvercast93% cloud
Water67°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Red drum 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 Red drum is best here

Peak season for Red drum · 3 more weeks at peak

Red drum season by week of the year. Peak season for Red drum · 3 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Red drum in North Carolina →

Spot profile

White Rock

Depth
About 1 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Ledge · Inner · Semi-exposedLedge · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonRed drum

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 Rock

White Rock is a bar in Neuse and Bay Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is about 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads ledge, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

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.
Spotted seatrout
Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
Black sea bass
Black sea bass hold tight to wrecks, reefs, rock piles and jetties, from 15 feet inshore in late spring to well over 100 feet on offshore wrecks in late fall. Anchor or drift right over the structure and fish a two-hook high-low rig with squid or clam, or bounce a small jig on the bottom. The biggest males sit on the highest relief.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Turtle Rock

    Bar · 0.7 mi

    87
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 87
    • Spotted seatrout 85
    • Little tunny 83

    6 kt NEL 9:20 AM · 0.5 ftH 3:32 PM · 3.5 ft

  • Penn Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    87
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 87
    • Little tunny 86
    • Spotted seatrout 85

    6 kt NEL 8:36 AM · 0.6 ftH 2:52 PM · 3.5 ft

  • Lawton Point

    Cape · 1.0 mi

    87
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 87
    • Little tunny 86
    • Spotted seatrout 85

    6 kt NEL 9:09 AM · 0.4 ftH 3:17 PM · 2.7 ft

  • Oyster Creek

    Bay · 1.1 mi

    87
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 87
    • Spotted seatrout 85
    • Weakfish 83

    6 kt NEL 9:20 AM · 0.5 ftH 3:32 PM · 3.5 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.