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Greater amberjackShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker72
- Spot72
- Red drum70
- Atlantic tarpon68
- Spotted seatrout67
- Gray snapper66
- Southern flounder65
- Crevalle jack63
- King mackerel62
- Black drum60
- Summer flounder59
- Red snapper58
- Little tunny56
- Black sea bass55
- Gray triggerfish55
- Gag grouper54
- Red grouper54
- Weakfish54
- Sheepshead53
- Spanish mackerel53
- Cobia51
- Greater amberjack49
- Florida pompano44
- Bluefish35
Best score today · 9 AM · Greater amberjack
- Now
- 4912 AM EDT
- Best window
- 4 PM-12 AMHigh slack
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.5 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Pains Point 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 · 12 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
76Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
97Wind: 4 kt SPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
60Water temp: 80°F, warmLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.1 ftSeason & habitat · Greater amberjack
Species seasonality
40Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Greater amberjack 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 Greater amberjack is best here
Shoulder season for Greater amberjack · 10 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Pains Point
- Depth
- 1-4 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonGreater amberjack
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 Pains Point
Pains Point is a cape in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina. Depth is 1-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, 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 Atlantic tarpon, and shoulder season for black drum, red snapper, little tunny and black sea bass. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Red drum peak from August through November.
Tackle & technique
- Greater amberjack
- Amberjack school around wrecks, oil rigs, towers and high-relief reefs in 60 to 250 feet, often suspended well above the bottom. Drop a live blue runner or work a heavy jig through the school, then pump hard, because a big AJ runs straight back into the structure. Heavy conventional gear with 50 to 80 pound line is standard.
- 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
- Pains Bay77
Bay · 1.3 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 77
- Spot 77
- Red drum 76
4 kt SL 1:39 AM · 0.4 ftH 6:52 AM · 0.6 ft
- Rawls Point72
Cape · 1.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Red drum 72
- Spot 72
4 kt SL 1:39 AM · 0.4 ftH 6:52 AM · 0.6 ft
- Pingleton Point72
Cape · 1.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Spot 72
- Red drum 70
4 kt SL 1:39 AM · 0.4 ftH 6:52 AM · 0.6 ft
- Juniper Swamp Point72
Cape · 3.7 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Spot 72
- Red drum 70
4 kt SL 1:39 AM · 0.4 ftH 6:52 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.