Waterlands

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Red grouperShoulder season

Cape · North Carolina

Lookout Point

34.92°N · 76.30°W · Cape · Pamlico Sound

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 1 AM · Red grouper

61/100Good
Now
4712 AM EDT
Best window
12-3 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing0.5 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 12 AM · now

Time12ANOW
Score47Good
Tide0.5 ft ▼Ebbing
Current0.8 knmodeled · toward SSW
Wind13 kn NEgusts 22 · steady
Sea stateModerate3.3 ft · 5 s
Air temp76°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy100% chance of rain
Water80°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

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 yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Red grouper is best here

Shoulder season for Red grouper · 5 more weeks at shoulder

Red grouper season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Red grouper · 5 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Red grouper in North Carolina

Spot profile

Lookout Point

Depth
1-6 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Outer · ExposedPoint · 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 Lookout Point

Lookout Point is a cape in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina. Depth is 1-6 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, outer water and exposed.

Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are king mackerel, gray snapper and Atlantic croaker. It is peak season now for king mackerel, gray snapper, Atlantic croaker and Atlantic tarpon, and shoulder season for red snapper, little tunny, black sea bass and Florida pompano. King mackerel peak in May and from September through October. Gray snapper peak from June through September. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October.

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.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • South Point

    Cape · 2.0 mi

    67
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 67
    • Atlantic tarpon 64
    • King mackerel 62

    13 kt NEL 3:33 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:41 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Rumley Bay

    Bay · 0.8 mi

    64
    Top: Crevalle jackPeak season
    • Crevalle jack 64
    • Gray snapper 64
    • Atlantic croaker 63

    13 kt NEL 4:30 AM · 0.2 ftH 9:40 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Thorofare Bay

    Bay · 1.8 mi

    64
    Top: Crevalle jackPeak season
    • Crevalle jack 64
    • Gray snapper 64
    • Atlantic croaker 63

    13 kt NEL 4:30 AM · 0.2 ftH 9:40 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Hall Point

    Cape · 1.5 mi

    60
    Top: King mackerelPeak season
    • King mackerel 60
    • Gray snapper 59
    • Atlantic croaker 58

    13 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.