Waterlands

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Red grouperShoulder season

Cape · North Carolina

Bensons Point

35.38°N · 76.06°W · Cape · Pamlico Sound

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Best score today · 12 AM · Red grouper

65/100Great
Now
418 AM EDT
Best window
8 AM-12 PMEbb tide
Tide now
High0.6 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 8 AM · now

Time8ANOW
Score41Fair
Tide0.6 ftHigh
Current0.5 knmodeled · toward SW
Wind15 kn NNEgusts 24 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.9 ft · 4 s
Air temp73°Warm
WeatherOvercast91% cloud
Water79°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Red 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 Red grouper is best here

Shoulder season for Red grouper · 5 more weeks at shoulder

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

Red grouper in North Carolina

Spot profile

Bensons Point

Depth
1-6 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonRed 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 Bensons Point

Bensons Point is a cape in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina. Depth is 1-6 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and Florida pompano. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, king mackerel and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, little tunny, black sea bass and gag grouper. 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

Red grouper
Red grouper live on low limestone ledges and potholed live bottom across the West Florida Shelf, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Drift to find hard bottom, then anchor and fish live pinfish, grunts or squid on the bottom with stout conventional tackle. Reel hard right after the bite, because they dive into holes, and use a descending device on fish released from deep water.
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

  • Hog Island Shoal

    Bar · 1.4 mi

    68
    Top: Florida pompanoShoulder season
    • Florida pompano 68
    • Atlantic croaker 61
    • Spot 61

    15 kt NNEL 2:18 PM · 0.3 ftH 9:05 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Mount Pheasant Bay

    Bay · 0.9 mi

    67
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 67
    • Spot 67
    • Florida pompano 58

    15 kt NNEL 2:18 PM · 0.3 ftH 9:05 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Hickory Creek Bay

    Bay · 1.4 mi

    67
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 67
    • Spot 67
    • Florida pompano 63

    15 kt NNEL 2:18 PM · 0.3 ftH 9:05 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Old Hill Bay

    Bay · 1.7 mi

    66
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 66
    • Spot 66
    • Florida pompano 58

    15 kt NNEL 2:18 PM · 0.3 ftH 9:05 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.