Waterlands

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Atlantic croakerShoulder season

Cape · North Carolina

Old Field Point

35.33°N · 76.62°W · Cape · Pamlico and Pungo Rivers

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Best score today · 6 AM · Little tunny

79/100Great
Now
659 AM EST
Best window
4-8 PMFlood tide
Tide now
High0.5 ft

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

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24-hour conditions

Thursday, Nov 5 · 8 AM

Time8A
Score81Great
Tide0.4 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.2 knmodeled · toward N
Wind5 kn ESEgusts 8 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.3 ft · 4 s
Air temp69°Warm
WeatherOvercast100% cloud
Water66°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Atlantic croaker 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 Atlantic croaker is best here

Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 4 more weeks at shoulder

Atlantic croaker season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 4 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Atlantic croaker in North Carolina →

Spot profile

Old Field Point

Depth
1-6 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonAtlantic croaker

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 Old Field Point

Old Field Point is a cape in Pamlico and Pungo Rivers, North Carolina. Depth in the nearest water is 1-6 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 25 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and Florida pompano. It is peak season now for Florida pompano, little tunny, spotted seatrout and black sea bass, and shoulder season for Atlantic croaker, spot, striped bass 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

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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Old House Cove

    Bay · 0.7 mi

    72
    Top: Atlantic croakerShoulder season
    • Atlantic croaker 72
    • Spot 72
    • Florida pompano 68

    6 kt NNEL 2:30 PM · 0.3 ftH 9:28 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Bostic Point

    Cape · 0.4 mi

    67
    Top: SpotShoulder season
    • Spot 67
    • Atlantic croaker 66
    • Little tunny 65

    6 kt NNEL 2:30 PM · 0.3 ftH 9:28 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Brick Hill Point

    Cape · 0.7 mi

    67
    Top: SpotShoulder season
    • Spot 67
    • Atlantic croaker 66
    • Little tunny 64

    6 kt NNEL 2:30 PM · 0.3 ftH 9:28 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Clark Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    65
    Top: Atlantic croakerShoulder season
    • Atlantic croaker 65
    • Spot 65
    • Florida pompano 63

    10 kt NNEL 2:30 PM · 0.3 ftH 9:28 PM · 0.7 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.