Waterlands

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Atlantic croakerShoulder season

Bar · New Jersey

Dunks Bar

39.36°N · 75.39°W · Bar · Delaware Bay waters north of East Point NJ to Slaughter Beach DE

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Best score today · 12 PM · Atlantic croaker

74/100Great
Now
569 AM EDT
Best window
11 AM-2 PMEbb tide
Tide now
High5.3 ft

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

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14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Mon · 82

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 9 AM · now

Time9ANOW
Score56Good
Tide5.3 ftHigh
CurrentSlack0.2 kn
Wind12 kn NNEgusts 23 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.2 ft · 3 s
Air temp58°Mild
WeatherOvercast76% chance of rain
Water73°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

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

Always check with NJFW ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: NJFW · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Atlantic croaker is best here

Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 1 more week at shoulder

Atlantic croaker season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Atlantic croaker in New Jersey →

Spot profile

Dunks Bar

Depth
6-15 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bar · Inner · Semi-exposedBar · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonAtlantic croaker

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 Dunks Bar

Dunks Bar is a bar in Delaware Bay waters north of East Point NJ to Slaughter Beach DE, New Jersey. Depth is 6-15 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bar, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are spot, scup and little tunny. It is peak season now for spot, scup, little tunny and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for Atlantic croaker, bluefish, black sea bass and weakfish. Spot peak from August through October. Scup peak from June through October. Little tunny peak from September through October.

Tackle & technique

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.
Scup
Scup school over hard and mixed bottom, rock piles, mussel beds, piers and jetties, usually in 10 to 60 feet of water. Fish a high-low rig with small hooks and squid or clam strips on the bottom, and chum with clam to hold a school under the boat. If nothing bites within 15 minutes, move to the next piece of structure.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →
  • Cut Through

    Channel · 1.5 mi

    75
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 75
    • Scup 73
    • Atlantic croaker 65

    12 kt NNEL 2:50 PM · 0.7 ftH 9:03 PM · 5.9 ft

  • Dunks Point

    Cape · 0.6 mi

    69
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 69
    • Scup 68
    • Little tunny 61

    12 kt NNEL 2:50 PM · 0.7 ftH 9:03 PM · 5.9 ft

  • Cohansey Point

    Cape · 2.0 mi

    69
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 69
    • Scup 68
    • Little tunny 61

    12 kt NNEL 2:50 PM · 0.7 ftH 9:03 PM · 5.9 ft

  • Arnold Point Shoal

    Bar · 2.1 mi

    69
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 69
    • Spanish mackerel 67
    • Spot 67

    12 kt NNEL 2:34 PM · 0.8 ftH 8:38 PM · 6.7 ft

Open in the tide map

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 NJFW before you keep a fish.