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King mackerelShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 2 AM · King mackerel
- Now
- 597 PM EDT
- Best window
- 7-11 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing4.4 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Great Kills Harbor 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 · 7 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
77Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.6 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
91Wind: 10 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
72Water temp: 70°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 4.1 ftSeason & habitat · King mackerel
Species seasonality
59Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
No rule for King mackerel 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 King mackerel is best here
Shoulder season for King mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Great Kills Harbor
- Depth
- 10-25 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonKing mackerel
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 Great Kills Harbor
Great Kills Harbor is a bay in New York Harbor. Depth is 10-25 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are scup, little tunny and sheepshead. It is peak season now for scup, little tunny, sheepshead and Spanish mackerel, and shoulder season for black sea bass, bluefish, striped bass and king mackerel. Scup peak from June through October. Little tunny peak from September through October. Sheepshead peak from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- King mackerel
- Kings roam from beaches and pier ends out to reefs, wrecks and ledges in 40 to 200 feet, usually feeding in the upper half of the water column. Slow-troll live menhaden, blue runners or cigar minnows on a light wire stinger rig, or pull spoons and ribbonfish past bait schools. Look for clean green water above 68 F with bait and birds on it.
- 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
- Crookes Point69
Cape · 0.4 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 69
- Scup 62
- Striped bass 61
10 kt NEL 12:01 AM · 0.7 ftH 5:59 AM · 4.7 ft
- Old Orchard Shoal66
Bar · 1.7 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 66
- Bluefish 62
- Scup 62
10 kt NEL 12:01 AM · 0.7 ftH 5:59 AM · 4.7 ft
- Craven Shoal66
Bar · 2.8 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 66
- Bluefish 62
- Scup 62
10 kt NEL 12:01 AM · 0.7 ftH 5:59 AM · 4.7 ft
- Raritan Bay West Reach64
Channel · 3.0 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 64
- Sheepshead 59
- Summer flounder 59
10 kt NEL 12:05 AM · 0.8 ftH 6:04 AM · 4.7 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.