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King mackerelShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Weakfish74
- Little tunny73
- Red drum72
- Spot71
- Spotted seatrout71
- Atlantic croaker70
- Black sea bass70
- Bluefish68
- Southern flounder68
- Black drum66
- Gag grouper66
- Sheepshead66
- Summer flounder66
- Striped bass60
- Red snapper59
- Crevalle jack54
- Florida pompano54
- King mackerel54
- Greater amberjack50
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Gray snapper35
- Gray triggerfish35
- Red grouper35
- Spanish mackerel35
Best score today · 3 PM · King mackerel
- Now
- 5410 AM EST
- Best window
- 12-8 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.3 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Hickory Creek 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
Friday, Nov 6 · 5 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
96Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.7 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
95Wind: 9 kt SPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
59Water temp: 67°F, coldLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.4 ftSeason & habitat · King mackerel
Species seasonality
55Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for King mackerel 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 King mackerel is best here
Shoulder season for King mackerel · 4 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Hickory Creek Bay
- Depth
- 1-4 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonKing mackerel
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 Hickory Creek Bay
Hickory Creek Bay is a bay in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina. Depth is 1-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 25 species here; the best right now are weakfish, little tunny and red drum. It is peak season now for weakfish, little tunny, red drum and spotted seatrout, and shoulder season for spot, Atlantic croaker, black drum and sheepshead. Weakfish peak from October through November. Little tunny peak from October through November. Red drum peak from August through November.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- Weakfish
- Weakfish hold along channel edges, grass beds, oyster bars and bridge shadows in bays and sounds, usually in 5 to 40 feet of water, and feed hardest at dawn, dusk and after dark. Swim soft plastics or bucktails slowly near the bottom, or drift peeler crab and bloodworms. They have soft mouths, so keep the drag light and the pressure steady.
- Little tunny
- Little tunny travel fast in schools that pin bait against inlets, points, jetties and tide rips, usually within a few miles of shore and often in less than 60 feet. Stay off the school's path, wait for it to surface within range, and cast small metal or epoxy jigs with a fast retrieve. When fish stay down, troll small feathers along bait edges and color changes to find them.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Bensons Point77
Cape · 1.4 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 77
- Black sea bass 70
- Weakfish 69
8 kt NEL 11:11 AM · 0.3 ftH 5:23 PM · 0.7 ft
- Green Point77
Cape · 1.5 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 77
- Black sea bass 70
- Weakfish 69
8 kt NEL 11:11 AM · 0.3 ftH 5:23 PM · 0.7 ft
- Mount Pheasant Bay76
Bay · 0.5 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 76
- Spotted seatrout 75
- Weakfish 74
8 kt NEL 11:11 AM · 0.3 ftH 5:23 PM · 0.7 ft
- Old Hill Bay76
Bay · 0.6 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 76
- Spotted seatrout 75
- Weakfish 74
8 kt NEL 11:11 AM · 0.3 ftH 5:23 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.