Waterlands

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Florida pompanoPeak season

Bar · North Carolina

Core Point Shoal

35.43°N · 76.84°W · Bar · Pamlico and Pungo Rivers

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Best score today · 8 AM · Florida pompano

74/100Great
Now
696 PM EST
Best window
6-10 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding0.4 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 6 PM · now

Time6PNOW
Score69Great
Tide0.4 ft ▲Flooding
Wind6 kn SEgusts 14 · steady
Air temp70°Warm
WeatherPartly cloudy29% cloud

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Florida pompano 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 Florida pompano is best here

Peak season for Florida pompano · 3 more weeks at peak

Florida pompano season by week of the year. Peak season for Florida pompano · 3 more weeks at peak.
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  • Shoulder
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Florida pompano in North Carolina →

Spot profile

Core Point Shoal

Depth
1-7 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Shoal · Inner · Semi-exposedShoal · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonFlorida pompano

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 Core Point Shoal

Core Point Shoal is a bar in Pamlico and Pungo Rivers, North Carolina. Depth is 1-7 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads shoal, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 25 species here; the best right now are Florida pompano, spotted seatrout and little tunny. It is peak season now for Florida pompano, spotted seatrout, little tunny and red drum, and shoulder season for summer flounder, black drum, Atlantic croaker and king mackerel. Florida pompano peak from March through April and from October through November. Spotted seatrout peak from September through November. Little tunny peak from October through November.

Tackle & technique

Florida pompano
Pompano feed on sand fleas and coquina clams in the trough between the beach and the first sandbar, and around the sandy edges of passes, inlets and bridges. Surf anglers fish a two-hook pompano rig with sand fleas, clams or shrimp, while boat and bridge anglers bounce small jigs along the bottom. The runs follow water temperature, heading north in spring and south in fall as the water cools.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Sparrow Bay

    Bay · 2.1 mi

    73
    Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season
    • Spotted seatrout 73
    • Red drum 72
    • Weakfish 69

    5 kt SEH 10:43 PM · 0.6 ftL 5:04 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Durham Creek Point

    Cape · 1.7 mi

    71
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 71
    • Spotted seatrout 69
    • Red drum 68

    6 kt SEH 10:43 PM · 0.6 ftL 5:04 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Plum Point

    Cape · 2.4 mi

    71
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 71
    • Spotted seatrout 69
    • Red drum 68

    6 kt SEH 10:43 PM · 0.6 ftL 5:04 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Sullivan Point

    Cape · 2.7 mi

    71
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 71
    • Spotted seatrout 69
    • Red drum 68

    6 kt SEH 10:43 PM · 0.6 ftL 5:04 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.