Waterlands

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Atlantic croakerShoulder season

Cape · New York

Crab Creek Point

41.05°N · 72.37°W · Cape · Peconic and Gardiners Bays

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Best score today · 6 AM · Atlantic croaker

78/100Great
Now
541 AM EDT
Best window
6-10 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing0.9 ft ▼

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 1 AM · now

Time1ANOW
Score54Good
Tide0.9 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.9 kn · toward NNW
Wind11 kn NEgusts 17 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.6 ft · 3 s
Air temp63°Mild
WeatherOvercast100% cloud
Water69°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Atlantic croaker 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 Atlantic croaker is best here

Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 1 more week at shoulder

Atlantic croaker season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Atlantic croaker · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Atlantic croaker in New York

Spot profile

Crab Creek Point

Depth
2-70 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · drop-off
Season
Shoulder seasonAtlantic croaker

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 Crab Creek Point

Crab Creek Point is a cape in Peconic and Gardiners Bays, New York. Depth in the nearest water is 2-70 ft, with a drop-off. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are little tunny, spot and striped bass. It is peak season now for little tunny, spot, red drum and scup, and shoulder season for striped bass, bluefish, black sea bass and weakfish. Little tunny peak from September through October. Spot peak from August through October. Striped bass peak from April through May and from October through December.

Tackle & technique

Atlantic croaker
Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
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

  • West Neck Harbor

    Bay · 1.3 mi

    74
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 74
    • Little tunny 70
    • Sheepshead 70

    11 kt NEL 2:49 AM · 0.6 ftH 9:15 AM · 2.3 ft

  • 72
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 72
    • Little tunny 69
    • Red drum 69

    11 kt NEL 2:38 AM · 0.6 ftH 8:53 AM · 2.3 ft

  • Crab Creek

    Bay · 0.3 mi

    70
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 70
    • Spot 70
    • Bluefish 65

    11 kt NEL 2:38 AM · 0.6 ftH 8:53 AM · 2.3 ft

  • West Neck Bay

    Bay · 1.0 mi

    65
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 65
    • Little tunny 64
    • Red drum 64

    11 kt NEL 1:58 AM · 0.7 ftH 8:32 AM · 2.4 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.