Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

Red drumPeak season

Cape · New Jersey

Dunks Point

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

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 7 AM · Red drum

77/100Great
Now
608 AM EDT
Best window
8 AM-1 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding5.1 ft ▲

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

Notify me when Dunks Point scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 8 AM · now

Time8ANOW
Score60Good
Tide5.1 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.5 kn · toward ENE
Wind13 kn NNEgusts 23 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.2 ft · 3 s
Air temp57°Mild
WeatherOvercast55% chance of rain
Water73°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

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

Source: NJFW · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Red drum is best here

Peak season for Red drum · 4 more weeks at peak

Red drum season by week of the year. Peak season for Red drum · 4 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Red drum in New Jersey

Spot profile

Dunks Point

Depth
3-15 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonRed drum

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 Point

Dunks Point is a cape in Delaware Bay waters north of East Point NJ to Slaughter Beach DE, New Jersey. Depth is 3-15 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, 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 bluefish, Atlantic croaker, weakfish and striped bass. Spot peak from August through October. Scup peak from June through October. Little tunny peak from September through October.

Tackle & technique

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.
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

  • Cut Through

    Channel · 2.0 mi

    76
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 76
    • Scup 74
    • Atlantic croaker 66

    13 kt NNEH 8:46 AM · 5.3 ftL 2:50 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Oyster Cove

    Bay · 1.9 mi

    73
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 73
    • Spot 73
    • Scup 72

    11 kt NNEH 9:06 AM · 4.7 ftL 3:07 PM · 0.6 ft

  • Dunks Bar

    Bar · 0.6 mi

    70
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 70
    • Scup 69
    • Little tunny 66

    13 kt NNEH 8:46 AM · 5.3 ftL 2:50 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Arnold Point Shoal

    Bar · 2.0 mi

    66
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 66
    • Spot 65
    • Little tunny 64

    13 kt NNEH 8:21 AM · 5.9 ftL 2:34 PM · 0.8 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 NJFW before you keep a fish.