Barnegat Bay fishing conditions and tides
New Jersey · Atlantic coast · 3.2 ft mean tide range · 26 ppt
A shallow back bay with an inlet that funnels everything moving up the Jersey coast
Current conditions
Very Good
Fishing score 80/100
How this score is calculated
58°F against a 50–70°F band for striped bass.
Slack low at 0.3 ft, moving 0 ft/hr. Near slack — expect fish to reposition and the bite to pause.
5 mph out of the NW. Workable wind with useful chop.
1.7 ft at 6 seconds. Good working surf for beaches and inlets.
Good working clarity with some colour for cover.
30.16 inHg and falling.
56% illumination — neap tides with a smaller exchange.
Fall pattern is fully established for this zone.
What should I do today?
The highest-percentage pattern for this tide and this wind.
Backup pattern
Bluefish — metal and topwater in 3–25 ft. Slammer blues work the inlet in spring and fall; cocktail blues fill the bay all summer.
Right now
Current conditions
Tide
Slack low
0.3 ft, 0 ft/hr
Next high
9:08 AM
2.9 ft
Next low
3:20 PM
0.3 ft
Mean range
3.2 ft
Typical high-to-low swing
Water temp
58°F
-0.5°F / 3 days
Water clarity
Lightly stained
Salinity about 26 ppt
Swell
1.7 ft
6 second period
Wind
5 mph
Out of the NW
Pressure
30.16"
Falling pressure — a change is moving in
Air temp
66°F
31% cloud cover
Moon
56%
First Quarter · solunar 12/100
Daylight
6:18 AM
Sunset 5:03 PM
Timing
Today's tides and fishing windows
- Low tide (0.5 ft) — tide change window1:55 AM – 3:55 AM
- Solunar major 25:38 AM – 7:38 AM
- Morning prime window5:53 AM – 8:38 AM
- Sunrise6:18 AM
- High tide (2.9 ft) — tide change window8:08 AM – 10:08 AM
- Low tide (0.3 ft) — tide change window2:20 PM – 4:20 PM
- Evening window3:03 PM – 5:38 PM
- Sunset5:03 PM
- Solunar major 15:38 PM – 7:38 PM
- High tide (2.7 ft) — tide change window8:33 PM – 10:33 PM
Targets
Target species in this zone
| Species | Activity | Depth | Best tide | Technique | Bait | Active temp | Season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Striped Bass | ★★★★★ | 3–30 ft | Outgoing at the inlet, last of the flood on the marsh | Paddle-tail on a 1 oz jig head, plugs at night | Bunker, clam | 50–70°F | April through December |
| Bluefish | ★★★★☆ | 3–25 ft | Moving water | Metal and topwater | Bunker | 58–76°F | May through October |
| Fluke | ★★★★★ | 6–35 ft | Two hours either side of low | Bucktail and Gulp drift | Spearing, squid | 60–74°F | May through September |
| Weakfish | ★★★☆☆ | 5–20 ft | Slow-moving water at night | Soft plastics slow-rolled near bottom | Grass shrimp, sandworm | 56–68°F | May through June |
- Striped Bass: Hold on the inlet rocks and in the deeper channel bends; back-bay fish push onto the marsh drains on the outgoing.
- Bluefish: Slammer blues work the inlet in spring and fall; cocktail blues fill the bay all summer.
- Fluke: Drift the channel edges and the inlet on a moderate tide; the biggest fish sit in the deepest inlet holes.
- Weakfish: Spring fish push into the deeper bay holes and around the bridges after dark.
Structure
Habitat and structure that holds fish
- Salt marsh
- Eelgrass flats
- Dredged channel
- Inlet jetty
- Barnegat Inlet jetties
- Oyster Creek channel
- Double Creek Channel
- Sedge island drains
- Bridge pilings at Manahawkin
Surf and beach notes
LBI beaches fish best on a 2–3 ft swell with a northwest wind cleaning up the water.
Bait in the zone
Grass shrimp and spearing in spring, then mullet and peanut bunker from late August — match the outflow bait at the inlet.
Patterns
Season-by-season patterns
Spring
46–62°FBay water warms first — back-bay bass and weakfish start in April, well before the ocean turns on.
Summer
70–78°FFluke dominate the daytime; bass go to night tides around bridges and the inlet.
Fall
56–70°FMullet and peanut bunker pour out of the inlet on the outgoing tide, and the fall run sets up along the LBI beaches.
Winter
38–44°FBay is essentially closed down; a few holdover bass sit in the warm-water discharge areas.
Outlook
7-day fishing forecast
| Day | Score | Water | Wind | Swell | First high tide | Best species | Morning window |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Today | 80Very Good | 58°F | 5 mph NW | 1.7 ft | 9:08 AM (2.9 ft) | Striped Bass | 5:53 AM – 8:38 AM |
| Tue | 83Excellent | 58°F | 20 mph NE | 1.8 ft | 9:58 AM (3.1 ft) | Striped Bass | 5:54 AM – 8:39 AM |
| Wed | 91Excellent | 57°F | 11 mph NW | 2.1 ft | 10:49 AM (3.2 ft) | Striped Bass | 5:55 AM – 8:40 AM |
| Thu | 98Excellent | 58°F | 6 mph S | 1.3 ft | 11:39 AM (3.3 ft) | Striped Bass | 5:57 AM – 8:42 AM |
| Fri | 93Excellent | 57°F | 10 mph SE | 0.8 ft | 12:04 AM (3.5 ft) | Striped Bass | 5:58 AM – 8:43 AM |
| Sat | 92Excellent | 57°F | 20 mph SE | 1.9 ft | 12:55 AM (3.5 ft) | Striped Bass | 5:59 AM – 8:44 AM |
| Sun | 95Excellent | 57°F | 12 mph W | 1.3 ft | 1:45 AM (3.6 ft) | Striped Bass | 6:00 AM – 8:45 AM |
Trends
Last 7 days
Water temperature
57°F → 58°F
Wind
6 mph → 5 mph
Swell
0.8 ft → 1.7 ft
Daily score
94 → 80
Water temperature has been stable within 1°F all week, so the established fall pattern should hold.
The water
About Barnegat Bay
Barnegat Bay is a 30-mile shallow estuary behind Long Beach Island, mostly 3–6 ft deep with a few dredged channels and one dominant feature — Barnegat Inlet. Tide inside the bay lags the ocean by up to three hours, so you can fish an outgoing inlet and then run back to a still-flooding marsh drain.
Local knowledge
Expert notes
- The bay tide lags the ocean by up to three hours. Fish the inlet on the ocean's outgoing, then run back and catch the marsh on a still-falling bay tide — two prime windows in one trip.
- In summer, the best bay water is whatever is moving. A dead-slack 78°F bay flat is the emptiest water in New Jersey.
- After a hard nor'easter, fish the clean edge where the muddy bay outflow meets green ocean water at the inlet mouth.
Logistics
Access, ramps and launches
boat ramp
Barnegat Light ramp
Closest access to the inlet; parking fills early on weekends.
shore
Barnegat Inlet north jetty
Long walkable jetty; slippery and dangerous in any swell.
kayak launch
Sedge Islands kayak launch
Protected paddling to marsh drains — the best way to fish the skinny water.
pier
Waretown pier
Family-friendly bay access for snapper blues and small fluke.
Rules
Regulations
- Free New Jersey Saltwater Recreational Registry required.
- Striped bass slot and bag limits apply; circle hooks required with natural bait.
- Fluke minimum size and bag change annually and differ in Delaware Bay.
Always verify current regulations with the relevant state wildlife agency before fishing. New Jersey Division of Fish & Wildlife — Marine
Transparency
Data sources
Where this data comes from
Conditions are modelled from each water's documented climate, structure and seasonal patterns. Modules marked “Live data integration pending” are not yet pulling from their API, so those values are clearly labelled as sample data rather than presented as real-time readings.
Weather API
PendingNOAA / National Weather Service — Air temperature, wind, cloud cover, rainfall and barometric pressure with a 7-day forecast.
Water Level & Flow API
PendingUSGS Water Services — Reservoir stage, discharge and 7-day level trend from the nearest gauge.
Water Temperature
PendingUSGS / NOAA buoys — Surface water temperature and its multi-day trend.
Tide & Current API
PendingNOAA CO-OPS — Tide predictions, current direction and speed for coastal zones.
Moon & Solunar
LiveComputed on-site — Moon phase, illumination and solunar major/minor periods are calculated from date and coordinates.
Water Clarity
PendingSatellite imagery + angler reports — Visibility estimates by lake arm, refined by submitted fishing reports.
Fishing Regulations
PendingState wildlife agencies — License, size and creel rules, linked to the official agency page for verification.
Map Data
PendingBathymetry + access point database — Depth zones, structure locations and boat ramps for the lake infographic.
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