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ScupPeak seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 8 AM · Spot
- Now
- 5911 AM EDT
- Best window
- 1-11 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Low1.3 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Lower 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
Tuesday, Sep 29 · 7 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
100Tide: FloodingCurrent: 1.0 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
94Wind: 5 kt NNWPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
89Water temp: 65°F, primeLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.4 ftSeason & habitat · Little tunny
Species seasonality
88Season: PeakHabitat: Structure unmappedDepth: In range
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 yesterday
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
Lower Bay
- Depth
- 25-35 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- 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 Lower Bay
Lower Bay is a bay in New York Harbor. Depth is 25-35 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, little tunny and spot. It is peak season now for scup, little tunny, spot and sheepshead, and shoulder season for bluefish, black sea bass, striped bass and weakfish. Scup peak from June through October. Little tunny peak from September 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.
- 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.
- 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
- Fourteen Foot Channel61
Bar · 1.5 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 61
- Summer flounder 60
- Scup 58
9 kt NEH 5:27 PM · 4.9 ftL 11:42 PM · 0.8 ft
- Chapel Hill North Channel60
Channel · 0.7 mi
Top: Summer flounderPeak season- Summer flounder 60
- Scup 58
- Little tunny 56
9 kt NEH 5:27 PM · 4.9 ftL 11:42 PM · 0.8 ft
- Chapel Hill South Channel59
Channel · 1.4 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 59
- Spot 57
- Sheepshead 55
9 kt NEH 5:31 PM · 4.9 ftL 11:59 PM · 0.8 ft
- Craven Shoal53
Bar · 2.2 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 53
- Bluefish 50
- Scup 50
9 kt NEH 5:26 PM · 5.0 ftL 12:01 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.