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BluefishShoulder seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 6 PM · Bluefish
- Now
- 613 AM EDT
- Best window
- 5-11 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.6 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Orient Harbor 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 · 3 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
63Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.8 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
94Wind: 7 kt NNEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
81Water temp: 71°F, primeLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.6 ftSeason & habitat · Bluefish
Species seasonality
66Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
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.
Source: NYSDEC · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Bluefish is best here
Shoulder season for Bluefish · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Orient Harbor
- Depth
- 15-20 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- 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 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, scup and sheepshead. It is peak season now for spot, scup, sheepshead and little tunny, and shoulder season for weakfish, Atlantic croaker, striped bass and bluefish. Spot peak from August through October. Scup peak from June through October. Sheepshead peak from July 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.
- 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.
- 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
- Browns Point71
Cape · 1.6 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 71
- Red drum 66
- Spot 66
7 kt NNEH 5:23 AM · 2.0 ftL 11:11 AM · 0.9 ft
- Hay Beach Point70
Cape · 1.9 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 70
- Little tunny 68
- Spot 64
12 kt NEH 5:59 AM · 2.1 ftL 11:18 AM · 1.0 ft
- Spring Pond69
Bay · 1.6 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 69
- Red drum 67
- Scup 67
12 kt NEH 5:59 AM · 2.1 ftL 11:18 AM · 1.0 ft
- Eagle Point69
Cape · 1.9 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 69
- Spot 66
- Scup 65
7 kt NNEH 5:23 AM · 2.0 ftL 11:11 AM · 0.9 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.