UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
ScupPeak seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 5 PM · Scup
- Now
- 764 PM EDT
- Best window
- 4-10 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding4.6 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Upper 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 · 4 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
100Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.8 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
92Wind: 6 kt ENEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
79Water temp: 73°F, primeLight: OvercastSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.9 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
Upper Bay
- Depth
- 45-60 ftSlope
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · 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 Upper Bay
Upper Bay is a bay in New York Harbor. Depth is 45-60 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are scup, spot and Spanish mackerel. It is peak season now for scup, spot, Spanish mackerel and little tunny, and shoulder season for weakfish, Atlantic croaker, cobia and bluefish. Scup peak from June through October. Spot peak from August through October. Spanish mackerel peak from July through September.
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.
- 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.
- Spanish mackerel
- Spanish mackerel school along beaches and around inlets, jetties, piers and bridge-tunnel structures, and along tide rips in 5 to 40 feet of water once the water climbs above about 68 degrees F. Troll small spoons or cast metal jigs and retrieve fast, or look for birds diving on bait and cast into the school. FWC calls for a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader because their teeth cut light line.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Bay Ridge Channel77
Channel · 1.2 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 77
- Scup 76
- Atlantic croaker 68
6 kt ENEH 4:54 PM · 4.8 ftL 11:36 PM · 1.0 ft
- Red Hook Channel77
Channel · 1.5 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 77
- Scup 76
- Atlantic croaker 68
6 kt ENEH 4:54 PM · 4.8 ftL 11:36 PM · 1.0 ft
- Anchorage Channel76
Channel · 0.9 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 76
- Spot 70
- Summer flounder 70
6 kt ENEH 4:55 PM · 4.6 ftL 11:33 PM · 1.0 ft
- Gowanus Flats71
Bar · 1.2 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 71
- Scup 70
- Red drum 68
6 kt ENEH 4:54 PM · 4.8 ftL 11:36 PM · 1.0 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.