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Red grouperShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker60
- Spot60
- Florida pompano58
- King mackerel58
- Crevalle jack57
- Gray snapper57
- Summer flounder57
- Black drum54
- Red snapper54
- Red drum53
- Black sea bass52
- Gray triggerfish51
- Gag grouper50
- Red grouper50
- Spanish mackerel50
- Little tunny47
- Greater amberjack46
- Sheepshead46
- Weakfish44
- Cobia39
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Bluefish35
- Southern flounder30
- Spotted seatrout30
Best score today · 7 AM · Red grouper
- Now
- 504 AM EDT
- Best window
- 4-11 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding0.9 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Bluff Shoal scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 4 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
100Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.3 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
75Wind: 14 kt NNEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
48Water temp: 79°F, warmLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 2.9 ftSeason & habitat · Red grouper
Species seasonality
45Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
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
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Bluff Shoal
- Depth
- About 10 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Shoal · Inner · Semi-exposedShoal · 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 Bluff Shoal
Bluff Shoal is a bar in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina. Depth is about 10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads shoal, 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, black drum, red snapper and black sea bass. 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
- Big Foot Slough Channel67
Channel · 6.9 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 67
- Spot 64
- Gray snapper 61
14 kt NNEH 6:02 AM · 1.0 ftL 12:31 PM · 0.5 ft
- Royal Shoal63
Bar · 6.7 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 63
- Atlantic tarpon 62
- Atlantic croaker 61
11 kt NNEH 6:02 AM · 1.0 ftL 12:31 PM · 0.5 ft
- Sevenfoot Patch62
Bar · 2.1 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 62
- Spot 62
- Florida pompano 60
14 kt NNEH 6:02 AM · 1.0 ftL 12:31 PM · 0.5 ft
- Bluff Shoal60
Bar · 1.3 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 60
- Spot 60
- Florida pompano 58
14 kt NNEH 6:02 AM · 1.0 ftL 12:31 PM · 0.5 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.