Waterlands

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Black sea bassShoulder season

Bar · New York

Ship Rock

40.93°N · 73.71°W · Bar · Long Island Sound West of New Haven CT/Port Jefferson NY

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Best score today · 7 PM · Black sea bass

79/100Great
Now
6211 AM EDT
Best window
6 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing6.8 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 11 AM · now

Time11ANOW
Score62Good
Tide6.8 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentSlack0.0 kn
Wind10 kn NEgusts 24 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.9 ft · 3 s
Air temp58°Mild
WeatherOvercast100% cloud
Water71°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Black sea bass is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with NYSDEC before you keep a fish.

Source: NYSDEC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Black sea bass is best here

Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder

Black sea bass season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Black sea bass in New York

Spot profile

Ship Rock

Depth
15-30 ftSlope
Structure
Ledge · Inner · Semi-exposedLedge · slope
Season
Shoulder seasonBlack sea bass

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 Ship Rock

Ship Rock is a bar in Long Island Sound West of New Haven CT/Port Jefferson NY, New York. Depth is 15-30 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads ledge, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

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.
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.
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

  • 75
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 75
    • Little tunny 65
    • Spot 64

    10 kt NEL 4:03 PM · 0.9 ftH 10:07 PM · 7.7 ft

  • West Rock

    Bar · 0.4 mi

    75
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 75
    • Little tunny 65
    • Spot 64

    10 kt NEL 4:03 PM · 0.9 ftH 10:07 PM · 7.7 ft

  • Turkey Rock

    Bar · 0.5 mi

    75
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 75
    • Little tunny 65
    • Spot 64

    10 kt NEL 4:03 PM · 0.9 ftH 10:07 PM · 7.7 ft

  • Scotch Caps

    Bar · 0.5 mi

    66
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 66
    • Little tunny 65
    • Spot 64

    10 kt NEL 4:03 PM · 0.9 ftH 10:07 PM · 7.7 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 NYSDEC before you keep a fish.