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October on this coast

Ranked by what is normally around now and whether the water is the temperature they want. The size and bag limits beside each one are North Carolina's current rules.

SouthportWilmingtonWrightsville BeachSurf CitySwansboroBeaufort
Water temperature
78°F

Full summer. Spanish and kings are in, and the sounds fish best at first light.

Measured at NDBC 41110 · Masonboro Inlet · 76 min ago
EverythingInshoreInletsStructureSurf & piersNearshoreOffshore

Sounds, creeks, marsh and the ICW

Confirm before you keep anything.

These limits are copied from the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries table effective July 1, 2026, last checked August 22, 2026. Several species are governed by proclamations that change mid-season, and this app is not the authority. Check the current DMF table or call 252-515-5500.

Worth going for right now

Red drum

Redfish, puppy drum, spottail
InshoreInletsSurf & piersStructure
OpenPeak now
You may keep them within the limits below.
Size
18" total length to 27" total length
Limit
1 per person per day

A slot: under 18" or over 27" goes back. Cannot be gigged, speared or gaffed.

Peak month, and 78°F is right in their band.

The one fish you can catch here every month of the year. Autumn is when the big schools push through the inlets and along the beach.

Cut bait on the bottomSoft plasticsTopwater at dawnLive mullet
Normally 55–88°FGear list →

Spotted seatrout

Speckled trout, specks
InshoreInletsStructure
OpenPeak now
You may keep them within the limits below.
Size
14" total length to 20" total length
Limit
3 per person per day

A slot, but one fish over 26" is allowed per person per day.

Peak month, and 78°F is right in their band.

Gets good as the water cools and stays good into winter. A hard freeze can kill them off in the creeks and set the fishery back a couple of seasons.

Soft plastics on a jigheadLive shrimp under a corkTopwater at first light
Normally 50–82°FGear list →

Flounder

Southern flounder, doormat
InshoreInletsStructure
ClosedPeak now
Unlawful to possess right now.
Size
15" total length (during the open window)
Limit
1 per person per day (during the open window)
Season
Sept 1 at 12:01am to Sept 14 at 11:59pm, 2026

Closed and unlawful to possess outside that fourteen-day window. Applies to Coastal and Joint Fishing Waters; the Wildlife Resources Commission sets separate rules inland.

Peak month, and 78°F is right in their band.

You will catch them all summer. You may only keep them for two weeks in September. Everything else goes back in the water.

Live mud minnows or finger mulletGulp on a jigheadDrifting the inlet
Normally 60–80°FGear list →

Black drum

InshoreStructureInlets
OpenPeak now
You may keep them within the limits below.
Size
14" total length to 25" total length
Limit
10 per person per day

One fish over 25" is allowed per person per day.

Peak month, and 78°F is right in their band.

Reliable when nothing else is going. Sits tight to structure and eats shrimp on the bottom.

Fresh shrimp on the bottomCrabAround pilings and bridges
Normally 50–85°FGear list →

Shrimp

Inshore
OpenPeak now
You may keep them within the limits below.
Limit
48 quarts heads-on or 30 quarts heads-off per person per day, cast net only

Open areas are set by proclamation and vary. Recreational Commercial Gear Licence holders get double.

Peak month, and 78°F is right in their band.

Late summer into autumn is when they are big enough to bother with.

Cast net over a baited holeUnder lights at night
Normally 70–88°F

Hard clams

Inshore
OpenPeak now
You may keep them within the limits below.
Size
1" thick
Limit
100 per person per day, 200 per vessel per day

Only from waters open to shellfishing. Closures for rainfall and pollution change constantly — check the DMF shellfish map on the day.

One of the best months of the year for them here.

Check the closure map before you pick up a single clam. Areas close after heavy rain and the map is the only thing that tells you.

Raking the flats at low waterTreading barefoot

Blue crab

Inshore
Open
You may keep them within the limits below.
Size
5" carapace width
Limit
50 per person per day, 100 per vessel per day

Unlawful to possess immature females. Dark sponge crabs illegal April 1-30. Closed Jan 1-31 north of Highway 58 and Mar 1-15 south of it.

Around now, and 78°F suits them.

The best thing you can do with a dock and a kid. Half a chicken and a net.

Chicken necks on a stringTrapsDip net off a dock
Normally 65–88°F

Oysters

Inshore
Closed
Unlawful to possess right now.
Season
Normally Oct 15 to Mar 31, opened by proclamation

Currently unlawful to possess. The season is opened by proclamation, not automatically by date.

Normally around in October.

The old rule about months with an R is roughly right and legally meaningless — what matters is whether DMF has opened the season and whether the bed is in open water.

Hand picking at low waterCulling to size on the spot

Around, but not their season

Shown so you know what you are holding when one turns up anyway — and what the rules are for it.

Weakfish

Gray trout
InshoreInletsNearshore
Open
You may keep them within the limits below.
Size
12" total length
Limit
1 per person per day

A one-fish limit — the stock is in poor shape.

Around in October, but 78°F is above the 75°F band they normally hold in.

Nothing like the numbers the old-timers describe. Treat a keeper as a bonus, not a target.

JiggingSoft plastics deepAround the inlets on moving water
Normally 52–75°F

Tarpon

Silver king
InshoreInletsNearshore
Release only
Unlawful to possess at any time.

Unlawful to possess. Catch and release only.

Not normally around in October. They turn up again around June.

They are here in high summer and most people never know it. Keep them in the water for photographs — a hundred-pound fish held up by the jaw usually dies.

Live menhadenCut bait on the bottom in the soundsSight fishing rolling fish
Normally 75–90°F
Size and bag limits — N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries, effective 2026-07-01. Water temperature — NDBC buoy observation. Seasons and temperature bands are local rule of thumb, not regulation.

A licence is required to fish in coastal waters. Fish do not read calendars — the months and temperatures here are what normally happens on this stretch, not a promise. If you catch something that is not on this list, put it back until you know what it is and what the rule for it says.