Waterlands

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Gray triggerfishOff season

Bay · North Carolina

Tar Hole Inlet

35.18°N · 75.80°W · Bay · Pamlico Sound

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Best score today · 5 PM · Gray triggerfish

73/100Great
Now
352 PM EST
Best window
5-7 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing2.2 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions

Tuesday, Nov 10 · 1 PM

Time1P
Score35Fair
Tide0.5 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb2.1 kn · toward SSE
Wind10 kn WNWgusts 19 · building
Sea stateModerate2.2 ft · 6 s
Air temp63°Mild
WeatherOvercast86% cloud
Water73°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Gray triggerfish 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 Gray triggerfish is best here

Out of season for Gray triggerfish · shoulder season starts in 18 weeks

Gray triggerfish season by week of the year. Out of season for Gray triggerfish · shoulder season starts in 18 weeks.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
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Gray triggerfish in North Carolina →

Spot profile

Tar Hole Inlet

Depth
1-2 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Inlet · Inner · Semi-exposedInlet · flat bottom
Season
Off seasonGray triggerfish

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 Tar Hole Inlet

Tar Hole Inlet is a bay in Pamlico Sound, North Carolina. Depth is 1-2 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads inlet, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 25 species here; the best right now are little tunny, bluefish and Florida pompano. It is peak season now for little tunny, bluefish, Florida pompano and weakfish, and shoulder season for summer flounder, Atlantic croaker, spot and striped bass. Little tunny peak from October through November. Bluefish peak from March through April and from November through December. Florida pompano peak from March through April and from October through November.

Tackle & technique

Gray triggerfish
Gray triggerfish hover a few feet over reefs, wrecks and ledges, usually in 60 to 200 feet, and often show up while snapper fishing. Use small, strong circle hooks with small pieces of squid or cut bait on a short bottom rig, because they nibble and strip big baits. Keep the bait just off the bottom and reel steadily at the first solid pull.
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.
Bluefish
Bluefish travel in size-sorted schools and feed where tide pushes bait past structure: inlet mouths, rips, shoal edges and the surf line, mostly in water shallower than 60 feet. Look for birds and breaking bait and cast metal or poppers into it, or soak cut bunker or mullet on the bottom from the beach. Use a short wire or heavy leader because their teeth cut light line.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Hatteras Inlet

    Channel · 2.2 mi

    66
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 66
    • Black sea bass 64
    • Bluefish 64

    18 kt NEL 7:06 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:00 AM · 1.9 ft

  • Cockrel Creek

    Channel · 1.2 mi

    64
    Top: Black sea bassPeak season
    • Black sea bass 64
    • Weakfish 62
    • Summer flounder 59

    18 kt NEL 7:06 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:00 AM · 1.9 ft

  • Legged Lump

    Bar · 2.1 mi

    63
    Top: Florida pompanoPeak season
    • Florida pompano 63
    • Bluefish 62
    • Little tunny 62

    18 kt NEL 7:06 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:00 AM · 1.9 ft

  • Shingle Creek

    Bay · 1.6 mi

    60
    Top: BluefishPeak season
    • Bluefish 60
    • Black sea bass 59
    • Weakfish 59

    18 kt NEL 7:06 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:00 AM · 1.9 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.