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CobiaShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 8 AM · Cobia
- Now
- 307 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 Old Orchard Shoal 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
77Wind: 10 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
55Seas over the limit · capped at 30Water temp: 70°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 4.1 ftSeason & habitat · Cobia
Species seasonality
41Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: 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
Old Orchard Shoal
- Depth
- 15-20 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Shoal · Inner · Semi-exposedShoal · 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 Old Orchard Shoal
Old Orchard Shoal is a bar in New York Harbor. Depth is 15-20 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads shoal, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are little tunny, bluefish and scup. It is peak season now for little tunny, scup, Spanish mackerel and summer flounder, and shoulder season for bluefish, black sea bass, striped bass and king mackerel. Little tunny peak from September through October. Bluefish peak in May and from October through November. Scup peak from June 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.
- 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.
- Bluefish
- Bluefish travel in size-sorted schools and feed where tide pushes bait past structure: inlet mouths, rips, shoal edges and the surf line, mostly in water shallower than 60 feet. Look for birds and breaking bait and cast metal or poppers into it, or soak cut bunker or mullet on the bottom from the beach. Use a short wire or heavy leader because their teeth cut light line.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Crookes Point69
Cape · 1.6 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
- Great Kills Harbor69
Bay · 1.7 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 69
- Little tunny 67
- Sheepshead 66
10 kt NEL 12:01 AM · 0.7 ftH 5:59 AM · 4.7 ft
- Craven Shoal66
Bar · 2.0 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 Bay64
Bay · 1.7 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 64
- Little tunny 61
- Sheepshead 59
10 kt NEL 12:01 AM · 0.7 ftH 5:59 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.