Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

Gag grouperShoulder season

Bay · North Carolina

Boat Creek

35.31°N · 76.52°W · Bay · Pamlico and Pungo Rivers

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 12 AM · Gag grouper

68/100Great
Now
4512 AM EDT
Best window
12-7 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding0.6 ft ▲

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

Notify me when Boat Creek scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 12 AM · now

Time12ANOW
Score45Good
Tide0.6 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.0 knmodeled · toward E
Wind13 kn NEgusts 22 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.9 ft · 3 s
Air temp76°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy100% chance of rain
Water82°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Gag grouper 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 Gag grouper is best here

Shoulder season for Gag grouper · 5 more weeks at shoulder

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

Gag grouper in North Carolina

Spot profile

Boat Creek

Depth
1-5 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Estuary · Inner · Semi-exposedEstuary · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonGag grouper

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 Boat Creek

Boat Creek is a bay in Pamlico and Pungo Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 1-5 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads estuary, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and red drum. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, red drum and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, red snapper, weakfish and black sea bass. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Red drum peak from August through November.

Tackle & technique

Gag grouper
Gag hold on ledges, rock piles and wrecks, from 15 to 40 feet in the fall on Florida's Gulf coast out to 250 feet the rest of the year. Troll deep-diving plugs to find productive rocks, then anchor and drop or freeline live pinfish or pigfish on a strong circle hook. Keep the drag tight and turn the fish in the first few seconds or it will reach the rocks.
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

  • Clark Point

    Cape · 0.4 mi

    62
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 62
    • Spot 60
    • Atlantic tarpon 57

    13 kt NEH 1:18 AM · 0.6 ftL 7:10 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Wire Point

    Cape · 0.5 mi

    62
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 62
    • Spot 60
    • Atlantic tarpon 57

    13 kt NEH 1:18 AM · 0.6 ftL 7:10 AM · 0.3 ft

  • James Creek Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    62
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 62
    • Spot 60
    • Atlantic tarpon 57

    13 kt NEH 1:18 AM · 0.6 ftL 7:10 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Beard Island Point

    Cape · 0.9 mi

    62
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 62
    • Spot 60
    • Atlantic tarpon 57

    13 kt NEH 1:18 AM · 0.6 ftL 7:10 AM · 0.3 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.