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ScupPeak seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 AM · Scup
- Now
- 738 PM EDT
- Best window
- 8 PM-12 AMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing4.0 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Buttermilk Channel 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
81Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.3 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
97Wind: 8 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
79Water temp: 71°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 2.0 ftSeason & habitat · Scup
Species seasonality
90Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for Scup 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 Scup is best here
Peak season for Scup · 5 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Buttermilk Channel
- Depth
- 35-50 ftSlope
- Structure
- Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · slope
- Season
- Peak seasonScup
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 Buttermilk Channel
Buttermilk Channel is a channel in New York Harbor. Depth is 35-50 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are sheepshead, scup and spot. It is peak season now for sheepshead, scup, spot and summer flounder, and shoulder season for black sea bass, weakfish, Atlantic croaker and striped bass. Sheepshead peak from July through September. Scup peak from June through October. Spot peak from August through October.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Dimond Reef76
Bar · 0.8 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 76
- Scup 76
- Sheepshead 75
8 kt NEL 12:31 AM · 0.8 ftH 6:38 AM · 4.5 ft
- Red Hook Channel76
Channel · 1.1 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 76
- Sheepshead 74
- Summer flounder 72
8 kt NEL 12:19 AM · 0.7 ftH 6:20 AM · 4.6 ft
- Gowanus Bay75
Bay · 1.5 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 75
- Sheepshead 73
- Little tunny 72
8 kt NEL 12:19 AM · 0.7 ftH 6:20 AM · 4.6 ft
- Gowanus Flats73
Bar · 1.5 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 73
- Red drum 71
- Spanish mackerel 70
8 kt NEL 12:19 AM · 0.7 ftH 6:20 AM · 4.6 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.