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Gray snapperPeak seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker77
- Spot76
- Atlantic tarpon73
- Red drum71
- Southern flounder71
- Crevalle jack69
- Spotted seatrout68
- Summer flounder65
- King mackerel64
- Gray snapper62
- Black drum61
- Florida pompano59
- Cobia56
- Weakfish56
- Gray triggerfish54
- Red snapper54
- Spanish mackerel54
- Black sea bass53
- Gag grouper53
- Red grouper53
- Sheepshead51
- Greater amberjack48
- Little tunny48
- Bluefish35
Best score today · 9 AM · Gray snapper
- Now
- 626 AM EDT
- Best window
- 6-10 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding0.3 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Dowdy Bay 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 · 6 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
56Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.3 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 5 kt NNWPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
81Water temp: 81°F, primeLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.9 ftSeason & habitat · Gray snapper
Species seasonality
70Season: PeakHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Gray snapper 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 Gray snapper is best here
Peak season for Gray snapper · 1 more week at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Dowdy Bay
- Depth
- About 1 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak seasonGray snapper
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 Dowdy Bay
Dowdy Bay is a bay in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina. Depth is about 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, Atlantic tarpon and red drum, and shoulder season for black drum, Florida pompano, cobia and weakfish. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- Gray snapper
- Mangrove snapper hold tight to mangrove roots, bridge pilings, jetties and reef ledges, from a few feet deep inshore to 150 feet offshore. Chum to pull them out of cover, then freeline or lightly weight a live shrimp or pilchard on fluorocarbon leader, since they shy away from heavy line in clear water. The bite improves at dusk and after dark.
- 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
- Point of Island Bay77
Bay · 1.0 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 77
- Spot 77
- Atlantic tarpon 73
5 kt NNWH 7:09 AM · 0.3 ftL 1:24 PM · 0.2 ft
- Jacks Bay77
Bay · 1.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 77
- Spot 76
- Atlantic tarpon 73
5 kt NNWH 7:09 AM · 0.3 ftL 1:24 PM · 0.2 ft
- Dowdy Point72
Cape · 0.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Spot 71
- Atlantic tarpon 68
5 kt NNWH 7:09 AM · 0.3 ftL 1:24 PM · 0.2 ft
- Jacks Bay Point72
Cape · 1.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Spot 71
- Atlantic tarpon 68
5 kt NNWH 7:09 AM · 0.3 ftL 1:24 PM · 0.2 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.