Waterlands

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Little tunnyPeak season

Cape · North Carolina

Sandy Point

35.63°N · 75.73°W · Cape · Pamlico Sound

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Best score today · 8 AM · Little tunny

85/100Epic
Now
784 PM EST
Best window
4-6 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding0.4 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions

Tuesday, Nov 17 · 6 AM

Time6A
Score76Great
Tide0.3 ft ▼Ebbing
Wind6 kn NNEgusts 10 · steady
Air temp52°Cool
WeatherClear1% cloud
Water66°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Little tunny is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with NCDMF before you keep a fish.

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Little tunny is best here

Peak season for Little tunny · 3 more weeks at peak

Little tunny season by week of the year. Peak season for Little tunny · 3 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Little tunny in North Carolina →

Spot profile

Sandy Point

Depth
2-10 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonLittle tunny

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 Sandy Point

Sandy Point is a cape in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina. Depth is 2-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 25 species here; the best right now are little tunny, red drum and black sea bass. It is peak season now for little tunny, red drum, black sea bass and spotted seatrout, and shoulder season for striped bass, Atlantic croaker, spot and black drum. Little tunny peak from October through November. Red drum peak from August through November. Black sea bass peak from March through April and from October through November.

Tackle & technique

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.
Red drum
Redfish feed on shallow grass flats, oyster bars and marsh edges, often in 1 to 4 feet of water, and drop into channels, deep holes and tidal creeks when the water turns very hot or cold. Work a live shrimp under a popping cork or a soft plastic along the grass line on a rising tide, then fish creek mouths and drains as the tide falls. Bull reds over 30 inches school in the surf, passes and jetties in late summer and fall, where cut mullet or a live crab on the bottom is the standard approach.
Black sea bass
Black sea bass hold tight to wrecks, reefs, rock piles and jetties, from 15 feet inshore in late spring to well over 100 feet on offshore wrecks in late fall. Anchor or drift right over the structure and fish a two-hook high-low rig with squid or clam, or bounce a small jig on the bottom. The biggest males sit on the highest relief.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Parched Corn Bay

    Bay · 3.2 mi

    80
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 80
    • Spotted seatrout 79
    • Weakfish 77

    8 kt SEH 6:52 PM · 0.7 ftL 1:27 AM · 0.4 ft

  • Stumpy Point Bay

    Bay · 4.9 mi

    80
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 80
    • Spotted seatrout 79
    • Weakfish 77

    5 kt SSEH 6:15 PM · 0.5 ftL 12:47 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Sandy Bay

    Bay · 1.1 mi

    78
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 78
    • Spotted seatrout 77
    • Weakfish 75

    8 kt SEH 6:15 PM · 0.5 ftL 12:47 AM · 0.3 ft

  • Drain Point

    Cape · 4.0 mi

    78
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 78
    • Red drum 74
    • Spotted seatrout 72

    5 kt SSEH 6:15 PM · 0.5 ftL 12:47 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.