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CobiaShoulder seasonBay · New York
Smithtown Bay
40.94°N · 73.25°W · Bay · Long Island Sound West of New Haven CT/Port Jefferson NY
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 AM · Cobia
- Now
- 528 PM EDT
- Best window
- 8 PM-12 AMHigh slack
- Tide now
- Flooding5.5 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Smithtown Bay scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 8 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
76Tide: FloodingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
80Wind: 10 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
61Water temp: 69°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 2.5 ftSeason & habitat · Cobia
Species seasonality
55Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Cobia is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with NYSDEC before you keep a fish.
Source: NYSDEC · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Cobia is best here
Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Smithtown Bay
- Depth
- 45-60 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonCobia
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 Smithtown Bay
Smithtown Bay is a bay in Long Island Sound West of New Haven CT/Port Jefferson NY, New York. Depth is 45-60 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are scup, sheepshead and little tunny. It is peak season now for scup, sheepshead, little tunny and summer flounder, and shoulder season for bluefish, black sea bass, striped bass and weakfish. Scup peak from June through October. Sheepshead peak from July through September. Little tunny peak from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- Cobia
- Cobia cruise inlets, beaches, buoys, wrecks and the backs of rays in 5 to 100 feet of water. On calm, sunny days sight-cast bucktails or live eels to fish near the surface. Otherwise anchor up-current of structure, chum, and fish live eels, crabs or menhaden near the bottom.
- 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.
- Sheepshead
- Sheepshead graze barnacles and crabs off pilings, jetty rocks, bridge supports, oyster bars and nearshore reefs, from a few feet deep out to about 50 feet. Drop a fiddler crab, sand flea or piece of shrimp on a small, strong hook straight down next to the structure with just enough weight to hold bottom. The bite is a light tap, so keep the line tight and set the hook fast.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Duck Island Harbor77
Bay · 6.6 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 77
- Sheepshead 76
- Spot 76
8 kt NEH 9:53 PM · 7.3 ftL 4:09 AM · 0.5 ft
- Northport Harbor74
Bay · 6.4 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 74
- Sheepshead 73
- Spot 73
10 kt NEH 10:10 PM · 7.3 ftL 4:30 AM · 0.7 ft
- Northport Basin72
Bay · 5.0 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 72
- Spot 70
- Little tunny 68
10 kt NEH 10:10 PM · 7.3 ftL 4:30 AM · 0.7 ft
- Northport Bay72
Bay · 6.4 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 72
- Spot 70
- Little tunny 68
10 kt NEH 10:10 PM · 7.3 ftL 4:30 AM · 0.7 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.