Waterlands

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Spotted seatroutShoulder season

Bay · New Jersey

Dyer Cove

39.26°N · 75.21°W · Bay · Delaware Bay waters north of East Point NJ to Slaughter Beach DE

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Best score today · 11 AM · Spotted seatrout

77/100Great
Now
571 PM EDT
Best window
10 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.6 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 1 PM · now

Time1PNOW
Score57Good
Tide1.6 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.6 kn · toward SSE
Wind12 kn ENEgusts 25 · building
Sea stateLight chop1.6 ft · 3 s
Air temp66°Mild
WeatherOvercast100% cloud
Water73°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

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

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Spotted seatrout is best here

Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 1 more week at shoulder

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

Spotted seatrout in New Jersey

Spot profile

Dyer Cove

Depth
6-10 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonSpotted seatrout

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 Dyer Cove

Dyer Cove is a bay in Delaware Bay waters north of East Point NJ to Slaughter Beach DE, New Jersey. Depth is 6-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

Spotted seatrout
Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Nantuxent Point

    Cape · 2.3 mi

    68
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 68
    • Spot 59
    • Bluefish 58

    12 kt ENEL 1:46 PM · 0.8 ftH 8:02 PM · 6.6 ft

  • Bay Point

    Cape · 3.4 mi

    68
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 68
    • Spot 60
    • Bluefish 58

    12 kt ENEL 1:53 PM · 0.8 ftH 8:08 PM · 6.5 ft

  • Nantuxent Cove

    Bay · 3.8 mi

    67
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 67
    • Little tunny 66
    • Sheepshead 64

    12 kt ENEL 2:10 PM · 0.8 ftH 8:16 PM · 6.4 ft

  • Beadon Point

    Cape · 1.5 mi

    66
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 66
    • Bluefish 57
    • Spanish mackerel 56

    12 kt ENEL 1:54 PM · 1.1 ftH 7:53 PM · 6.2 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.