Waterlands

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BluefishShoulder season

Channel · New York

North Race

40.98°N · 72.47°W · Channel · Peconic and Gardiners Bays

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 12 AM · Bluefish

72/100Great
Now
536 PM EDT
Best window
6 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding1.5 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 6 PM · now

Time6PNOW
Score53Good
Tide1.5 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.8 kn · toward WSW
Wind20 kn NEgusts 27 · steady
Sea stateModerate2.6 ft · 4 s
Air temp64°Mild
WeatherOvercast100% cloud
Water69°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Bluefish is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with NYSDEC before you keep a fish.

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Bluefish is best here

Shoulder season for Bluefish · 1 more week at shoulder

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

Bluefish in New York

Spot profile

North Race

Depth
3-20 ftSlope
Structure
Channel · Inner · Semi-exposedChannel · slope
Season
Shoulder seasonBluefish

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 North Race

North Race is a channel in Peconic and Gardiners Bays, New York. Depth is 3-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are scup, spot and summer flounder. It is peak season now for scup, spot, summer flounder and sheepshead, and shoulder season for black sea bass, striped bass, weakfish and Atlantic croaker. Scup peak from June through October. Spot peak from August through October. Summer flounder peak from June through September.

Tackle & technique

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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Marratooka Point

    Cape · 1.7 mi

    68
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 68
    • Red drum 63
    • Striped bass 61

    20 kt NEH 9:53 PM · 2.9 ftL 3:57 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Robbins Island Rock

    Bar · 1.9 mi

    67
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 67
    • Little tunny 65
    • Black sea bass 62

    20 kt NEH 9:53 PM · 2.9 ftL 3:57 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Cutchogue Harbor

    Bay · 1.1 mi

    66
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 66
    • Scup 65
    • Spot 65

    20 kt NEH 9:53 PM · 2.9 ftL 3:57 AM · 0.6 ft

  • Horseshoe Cove

    Bay · 1.7 mi

    64
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 64
    • Scup 64
    • Spot 62

    20 kt NEH 9:53 PM · 2.9 ftL 3:57 AM · 0.6 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.