Waterlands

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CobiaShoulder season

Channel · North Carolina

Buxton Harbor Channel

35.28°N · 75.56°W · Channel · Pamlico Sound

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 4 AM · Cobia

77/100Great
Now
309 PM EDT
Best window
9-11 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.8 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 9 PM · now

Time9PNOW
Score30Fair
Tide1.8 ft ▼Ebbing
Current0.8 knmodeled · toward SW
Wind23 kn NEgusts 30 · steady
Sea stateModerate3.5 ft · 5 s
Air temp78°Warm
WeatherOvercast69% chance of rain
Water80°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Cobia 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 Cobia is best here

Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder

Cobia season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Cobia in North Carolina

Spot profile

Buxton Harbor Channel

Depth
2-3 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Channel · Inner · Semi-exposedChannel · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonCobia

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 Buxton Harbor Channel

Buxton Harbor Channel is a channel in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina. Depth is 2-3 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are crevalle jack, king mackerel and black sea bass. It is peak season now for crevalle jack, king mackerel, Atlantic croaker and Atlantic tarpon, and shoulder season for black sea bass, red snapper, gray triggerfish and gag grouper. Crevalle jack peak from July through October. King mackerel peak in May and from September through October. Black sea bass peak from March through April and from October through November.

Tackle & technique

Cobia
Cobia cruise inlets, beaches, buoys, wrecks and the backs of rays in 5 to 100 feet of water. On calm, sunny days sight-cast bucktails or live eels to fish near the surface. Otherwise anchor up-current of structure, chum, and fish live eels, crabs or menhaden near the bottom.
Crevalle jack
Jacks roam in schools through inlets, passes, bays, river mouths and along beaches, pushing bait to the surface, and big fish also hold on nearshore reefs and wrecks. Watch for birds and surface blowups, then cast a popper, a spoon or a bucktail into the school and retrieve fast. Bring heavy spinning tackle, because a jack over 15 pounds runs hard and fights for a long time.
King mackerel
Kings roam from beaches and pier ends out to reefs, wrecks and ledges in 40 to 200 feet, usually feeding in the upper half of the water column. Slow-troll live menhaden, blue runners or cigar minnows on a light wire stinger rig, or pull spoons and ribbonfish past bait schools. Look for clean green water above 68 F with bait and birds on it.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Canadian Hole

    Bay · 1.2 mi

    57
    Top: Crevalle jackPeak season
    • Crevalle jack 57
    • King mackerel 53
    • Red snapper 44

    23 kt NEL 11:42 PM · 0.8 ftH 5:34 AM · 2.9 ft

  • Brooks Creek

    Bay · 2.3 mi

    57
    Top: Crevalle jackPeak season
    • Crevalle jack 57
    • King mackerel 54
    • Red snapper 45

    23 kt NEL 11:41 PM · 0.8 ftH 5:33 AM · 2.9 ft

  • Devil Shoals

    Bar · 1.4 mi

    54
    Top: Florida pompanoShoulder season
    • Florida pompano 54
    • King mackerel 42
    • Crevalle jack 40

    23 kt NEL 3:48 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:41 AM · 0.4 ft

  • Brooks Point

    Cape · 2.2 mi

    54
    Top: King mackerelPeak season
    • King mackerel 54
    • Crevalle jack 52
    • Red snapper 45

    23 kt NEL 11:41 PM · 0.8 ftH 5:33 AM · 2.9 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.