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CobiaShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- King mackerel60
- Atlantic croaker59
- Crevalle jack59
- Spot59
- Gray snapper58
- Atlantic tarpon56
- Red drum56
- Summer flounder53
- Red snapper49
- Black drum47
- Black sea bass46
- Spanish mackerel46
- Gray triggerfish45
- Weakfish45
- Gag grouper44
- Red grouper44
- Sheepshead44
- Little tunny43
- Florida pompano42
- Greater amberjack42
- Cobia41
- Bluefish35
- Southern flounder30
- Spotted seatrout30
Best score today · 1 AM · Cobia
- Now
- 412 AM EDT
- Best window
- 2-3 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.4 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Core Sound 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
Friday, Oct 2 · 7 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
100Tide: EbbingWind & pressure
ECMWF
99Wind: 9 kt SEPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
91Water temp: 76°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Near a majorSeason & habitat · Cobia
Species seasonality
47Off season · capped at 35Season: Off seasonHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
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.
Source: NCDMF · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Cobia is best here
Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Core Sound
- Depth
- 1-5 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · 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 Core Sound
Core Sound is a bay in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina. Depth is 1-5 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are king mackerel, Atlantic croaker and crevalle jack. It is peak season now for king mackerel, Atlantic croaker, crevalle jack and spot, and shoulder season for red snapper, black drum, black sea bass and Spanish mackerel. King mackerel peak in May and from September through October. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Crevalle jack peak from July through October.
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.
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Mill Point63
Cape · 1.9 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 63
- Atlantic tarpon 60
- Atlantic croaker 59
13 kt NEL 4:30 AM · 0.2 ftH 9:40 AM · 0.6 ft
- Cross Shoal Channel63
Channel · 2.1 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 63
- Red drum 61
- Spot 60
17 kt NEL 4:30 AM · 0.2 ftH 9:40 AM · 0.6 ft
- Gutter Creek63
Gut · 2.2 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 63
- Spot 60
- Atlantic tarpon 59
17 kt NEL 4:30 AM · 0.2 ftH 9:40 AM · 0.6 ft
- Styron Bay59
Bay · 1.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 59
- Spot 59
- Crevalle jack 57
17 kt NEL 4:30 AM · 0.2 ftH 9:40 AM · 0.6 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.