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King mackerelPeak seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker70
- Spot66
- Florida pompano63
- Atlantic tarpon60
- Crevalle jack59
- King mackerel58
- Red drum57
- Gray snapper56
- Summer flounder54
- Spanish mackerel52
- Black drum48
- Black sea bass47
- Little tunny47
- Red snapper44
- Weakfish44
- Gray triggerfish43
- Cobia41
- Red grouper41
- Gag grouper40
- Greater amberjack40
- Sheepshead40
- Bluefish35
- Southern flounder30
- Spotted seatrout30
Best score today · 9 AM · King mackerel
- Now
- 589 PM EDT
- Best window
- 9 PM-12 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.3 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Sand Island Inlet 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 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
41Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.7 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
84Wind: 12 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
61Water temp: 81°F, primeLight: NightSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 3.3 ftSeason & habitat · King mackerel
Species seasonality
90Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
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 today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When King mackerel is best here
Peak season for King mackerel · 5 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Sand Island Inlet
- Depth
- 1-30 ftSlope
- Structure
- Inlet · Outer · ExposedInlet · slope
- Season
- Peak 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 Sand Island Inlet
Sand Island Inlet is a gut in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina. Depth is 1-30 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads inlet, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and Florida pompano. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, Atlantic tarpon and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel, black drum and black sea bass. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Florida pompano peak from March through April and from October 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.
- 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
- Great Ditch74
Channel · 4.0 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 74
- Spot 71
- Atlantic tarpon 63
12 kt NEL 3:33 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:41 AM · 0.3 ft
- Long Point62
Cape · 3.8 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 62
- Spot 61
- King mackerel 59
12 kt NEL 4:30 AM · 0.2 ftH 9:40 AM · 0.6 ft
- Oyster Creek Pit62
Cape · 4.1 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 62
- Spot 62
- Red drum 60
12 kt NEL 3:33 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:41 AM · 0.3 ft
- Cowpen Point61
Bar · 2.8 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 61
- Florida pompano 60
- Spot 59
12 kt NEL 3:33 AM · 0.2 ftH 8:41 AM · 0.3 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.