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Red grouperShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker77
- Spot77
- Red drum76
- Spotted seatrout76
- Crevalle jack74
- Atlantic tarpon73
- Gray snapper72
- Southern flounder71
- Summer flounder69
- King mackerel68
- Black drum66
- Spanish mackerel64
- Cobia61
- Sheepshead61
- Weakfish60
- Gag grouper59
- Gray triggerfish59
- Red snapper59
- Black sea bass58
- Little tunny58
- Red grouper58
- Florida pompano53
- Greater amberjack53
- Bluefish35
Best score today · 7 AM · Red grouper
- Now
- 589 AM EDT
- Best window
- 1-8 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.4 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 · rolling from now
Conditions · 9 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
91Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.3 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
96Wind: 8 kt SWPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
79Water temp: 79°F, warmLight: MorningSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.0 ftSeason & habitat · Red grouper
Species seasonality
44Season: 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 today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Red grouper is best here
Shoulder season for Red grouper · 6 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 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 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 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and red drum. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, red drum and spotted seatrout, and shoulder season for black drum, Spanish mackerel, cobia and sheepshead. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Red drum peak from August 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
- Mount Pheasant Bay81
Bay · 0.5 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 81
- Spotted seatrout 79
- Atlantic croaker 77
8 kt SWL 11:16 AM · 0.3 ftH 6:27 PM · 0.7 ft
- Old Hill Bay81
Bay · 0.6 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 81
- Spotted seatrout 79
- Atlantic croaker 77
8 kt SWL 11:16 AM · 0.3 ftH 6:27 PM · 0.7 ft
- Bensons Point72
Cape · 1.4 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Red drum 72
- Spot 72
8 kt SWL 11:16 AM · 0.3 ftH 6:27 PM · 0.7 ft
- Green Point72
Cape · 1.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Red drum 72
- Spot 72
8 kt SWL 11:16 AM · 0.3 ftH 6:27 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.