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SpotPeak seasonSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 6 AM · Little tunny
- Now
- 513 AM EDT
- Best window
- 6-8 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Low0.5 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Shelter Island Sound 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
Sunday, Sep 27 · 5 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
100Tide: EbbingCurrent: 1.4 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
40Wind: 14 kt ENEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
87Water temp: 65°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 2.0 ftSeason & habitat · Little tunny
Species seasonality
90Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
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.
Source: NYSDEC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Spot is best here
Peak season for Spot · 4 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
Shelter Island Sound
- Depth
- 15-30 ftSlope
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · slope
- 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 Shelter Island Sound
Shelter Island Sound is a bay in Peconic and Gardiners Bays, New York. Depth is 15-30 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 17 species here; the best right now are spot, scup and bluefish. It is peak season now for spot, scup, little tunny and sheepshead, and shoulder season for bluefish, striped bass, weakfish and black sea bass. Spot peak from August through October. Scup peak from June through October. Bluefish peak in May and from October through November.
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.
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Crab Creek Point53
Cape · 1.0 mi
Top: ScupPeak season- Scup 53
- Little tunny 49
- Striped bass 48
17 kt NEH 9:35 AM · 2.4 ftL 3:34 PM · 0.6 ft
- West Neck Harbor53
Bay · 1.3 mi
Top: SpotPeak season- Spot 53
- Sheepshead 50
- Little tunny 48
17 kt NEH 9:57 AM · 2.4 ftL 3:45 PM · 0.6 ft
- West Neck Point50
Cape · 1.1 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 50
- Striped bass 49
- Bluefish 47
17 kt NEH 9:57 AM · 2.4 ftL 3:45 PM · 0.6 ft
- Cedar Beach Point46
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Little tunnyPeak season- Little tunny 46
- Striped bass 45
- Bluefish 43
20 kt NEH 9:35 AM · 2.4 ftL 3:34 PM · 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.