Waterlands

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SpotPeak season

Bay · New York

Orient Harbor

41.13°N · 72.31°W · Bay · Peconic and Gardiners Bays

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Best score today · 7 AM · Spot

78/100Great
Now
7210 PM EDT
Best window
10 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing2.3 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions

Sunday, Oct 4 · 8 AM

Time8A
Score83Great
Tide1.6 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.5 kn · toward E
Wind6 kn SWgusts 11 · steady
Air temp63°Mild
WeatherClear0% cloud
Water66°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Spot 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 Spot is best here

Peak season for Spot · 4 more weeks at peak

Spot season by week of the year. Peak season for Spot · 4 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • Not here
  • This week

Spot in New York

Spot profile

Orient Harbor

Depth
15-20 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonSpot

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 Orient Harbor

Orient Harbor is a bay in Peconic and Gardiners Bays, New York. Depth is 15-20 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are spot, sheepshead and scup. It is peak season now for spot, sheepshead, scup and little tunny, and shoulder season for striped bass, bluefish, black sea bass and weakfish. Spot peak from August through October. Sheepshead peak from July through September. Scup peak from June through October.

Tackle & technique

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.
Sheepshead
Sheepshead graze barnacles and crabs off pilings, jetty rocks, bridge supports, oyster bars and nearshore reefs, from a few feet deep out to about 50 feet. Drop a fiddler crab, sand flea or piece of shrimp on a small, strong hook straight down next to the structure with just enough weight to hold bottom. The bite is a light tap, so keep the line tight and set the hook fast.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Eagle Point

    Cape · 1.9 mi

    74
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 74
    • Striped bass 71
    • Bluefish 70

    8 kt NEL 2:31 AM · 0.5 ftH 8:35 AM · 2.6 ft

  • Browns Point

    Cape · 1.6 mi

    68
    Top: Little tunnyPeak season
    • Little tunny 68
    • Striped bass 65
    • Spot 64

    8 kt NEL 2:31 AM · 0.5 ftH 8:35 AM · 2.6 ft

  • Hay Beach Point

    Cape · 1.9 mi

    63
    Top: ScupPeak season
    • Scup 63
    • Little tunny 58
    • Striped bass 57

    16 kt NEL 2:41 AM · 0.6 ftH 9:06 AM · 2.6 ft

  • Spring Pond

    Bay · 1.6 mi

    61
    Top: SpotPeak season
    • Spot 61
    • Scup 60
    • Bluefish 56

    16 kt NEL 2:41 AM · 0.6 ftH 9:06 AM · 2.6 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.