Cape Lookout fishing forecast today

Tide times, wind, moon phase and the best times to fish today at Cape Lookout, using NOAA tide station Cape Lookout (ocean).

Crystal Coast Updated 12:08 PM EST, Nov 5 NOAA station 8656937

North CarolinaMid-Atlantic coast

Bite outlook today Estimate

Good

Light wind (up to 9 mph)
Normal tide range (3.8 ft)

Next best time

Today 2:37 PM

Prime: Minor moon period + Tide change + Dusk

Next tide

High 3:59 PM

3.7 ft

Weather

72°F

Wind 8 mph SE - Slight Chance Rain Showers - pressure falling

Water temp

68°F

NOAA Beaufort, Duke Marine Lab (11.1 mi), 8 min ago

Best times to fish

8:04 AM - 10:26 AMPrimeMajor solunar period (moon overhead); Moving water into the low tide at 9:56 AM

2:37 PM - 5:39 PMPrimeMinor solunar period (moonset); Moving water into the high tide at 3:59 PM; Dusk - the evening feed

8:32 PM - 10:36 PMPrimeMajor solunar period (moon underfoot); Moving water into the low tide at 10:06 PM

All 5 times today

2:24 AM - 4:11 AMMinor solunar period (moonrise); Moving water into the high tide at 3:41 AM

5:45 AM - 7:45 AMDawn - low light, fish move shallow

8:04 AM - 10:26 AMPrimeMajor solunar period (moon overhead); Moving water into the low tide at 9:56 AM

2:37 PM - 5:39 PMPrimeMinor solunar period (moonset); Moving water into the high tide at 3:59 PM; Dusk - the evening feed

8:32 PM - 10:36 PMPrimeMajor solunar period (moon underfoot); Moving water into the low tide at 10:06 PM

Sunrise 6:30 AMSunset 5:09 PM 70-73°Fwind to 9 mph SE

Tide chart and times4 tides today

Prime - best times todayGood - worth fishingNight

Tide times for the next 4 days

Day	Tides (feet, MLLW)
Today	High 3:41 AM (4.0 ft) Low 9:56 AM (0.4 ft) High 3:59 PM (3.7 ft) Low 10:06 PM (0.2 ft)
Fri Nov 6	High 4:30 AM (4.2 ft) Low 10:49 AM (0.4 ft) High 4:46 PM (3.6 ft) Low 10:48 PM (0.2 ft)
Sat Nov 7	High 5:14 AM (4.4 ft) Low 11:37 AM (0.3 ft) High 5:30 PM (3.5 ft) Low 11:26 PM (0.2 ft)
Sun Nov 8	High 5:55 AM (4.5 ft) Low 12:22 PM (0.3 ft) High 6:11 PM (3.4 ft)

Predictions from NOAA station 8656937 (Cape Lookout (ocean)). Strong wind can push real water levels above or below these predictions.

Cape Lookout: Cape Lookout Lighthouse — Photo: Jarek Tuszyński, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0, cropped

Satellite view of Cape Lookout from above — Imagery: USGS National Map (public domain). Pin = NOAA tide station Cape Lookout (ocean); the fishing area extends around it.

Google Maps Directions

Water is 68°F - who's feedingLive reading matched to each local fish's preferred temperature. A rough guide - season and size rules still apply.

Right temperature

Redfish 60-85°F
Spotted seatrout 58-80°F
Flounder 58-80°F

Too cold - slow or moved off

Spanish mackerel likes 70°F+
King mackerel likes 70°F+

Hourly weatherNWS

12 PM72°8 mphSE20% rain

1 PM72°8 mphSE20% rain

2 PM72°8 mphS24% rain

3 PM73°8 mphS30% rain

4 PM72°9 mphS30% rain

5 PM71°9 mphS30% rain

6 PM71°9 mphS29% rain

7 PM70°9 mphS20% rain

8 PM70°10 mphSSlight Chance Rain

9 PM70°10 mphSPartly Cloudy

10 PM70°10 mphSPartly Cloudy

11 PM70°10 mphSPartly Cloudy

12 AM70°9 mphSMostly Clear

1 AM69°9 mphSPartly Cloudy

2 AM69°9 mphSPartly Cloudy

3 AM69°9 mphSMostly Cloudy

4 AM69°9 mphSMostly Cloudy

5 AM69°9 mphSMostly Cloudy

6 AM69°9 mphSPartly Sunny

7 AM69°9 mphSPartly Sunny

8 AM70°10 mphSPartly Sunny

9 AM71°10 mphSMostly Cloudy

10 AM72°12 mphSMostly Cloudy

11 AM72°12 mphSPartly Sunny

A slight chance of rain showers before 9am. Partly sunny, with a high near 74. Southeast wind around 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%. New rainfall amounts less than a tenth of an inch possible.

Sun and moonWaning crescent

Waning crescent
12% of the moon is lit

Day	Sun	Moon	Solunar periods
Today	6:30 AM 5:09 PM	Rise 2:54 AM Set 3:07 PM	Minor 2:24 AM Major 8:04 AM Minor 2:37 PM Major 8:32 PM
Fri 6	6:31 AM 5:08 PM	Rise 3:58 AM Set 3:34 PM	Minor 3:28 AM Major 8:48 AM Minor 3:04 PM Major 9:16 PM
Sat 7	6:32 AM 5:07 PM	Rise 5:01 AM Set 4:03 PM	Minor 4:31 AM Major 9:32 AM Minor 3:33 PM Major 10:00 PM
Sun 8	6:33 AM 5:06 PM	Rise 6:03 AM Set 4:34 PM	Minor 5:33 AM Major 10:20 AM Minor 4:04 PM Major 10:48 PM
Mon 9	6:34 AM 5:06 PM	Rise 7:05 AM Set 5:09 PM	Minor 6:35 AM Major 11:08 AM Minor 4:39 PM
Tue 10	6:34 AM 5:05 PM	Rise 8:05 AM Set 5:50 PM	Major 11:36 PM Minor 7:35 AM Major 11:56 AM Minor 5:20 PM
Wed 11	6:35 AM 5:04 PM	Rise 9:02 AM Set 6:36 PM	Major 12:24 AM Minor 8:32 AM Major 12:48 PM Minor 6:06 PM

Calculated for this location. Moon times are accurate to within a few minutes. Major periods are the 2 hours around the moon passing overhead or underfoot; minor periods are the hour around moonrise and moonset.

Fishing Cape Lookout

Morehead City, Beaufort and Cape Lookout: inlets, sounds and the Cape Lookout shoals.

What's biting now (Fall): The best season of the year: red drum, speckled trout, bluefish and false albacore along the Outer Banks and inlets.

Commonly caught in this area: Red drum, speckled trout, flounder, Spanish and king mackerel.

Also caught here: false albacore, Spanish mackerel, king mackerel, gray triggerfish, croaker, sheepshead.

Read the beach before you cast: look for darker troughs, rip currents and cuts in the sandbar where fish feed. Sand fleas and shrimp are reliable surf baits, and the first and last hours of daylight are usually best.

Best baits here6 fish

Redfish (red drum)

Spotted seatrout (speckled trout)

Flounder

Spanish mackerel

King mackerel (kingfish)

False albacore

Full bait guide

How the bite outlook works

The rating is our estimate, not a guarantee. It combines tide range, wind, rain and storms, temperature swings, the moon phase and how well the solunar periods line up with dawn and dusk. Fish do not read forecasts - local knowledge always wins. Read more

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Nearby spots

Beaufort 11 miGood Morehead City 13 miGood Swansboro 34 miGood Ocracoke 47 miGood Cape Hatteras 66 miGood Wrightsville Beach 77 miGood