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7,617-acre Smithtown Bay fishing map with NOAA BlueTopo survey contours (99.95% measured, 99.99% assessed), charted rock and wreck structure, regional fish-survey occurrence, sourced forage timing and verified public access. The water tops out around 74 ft. The depth chart is built from real agency bathymetry referenced to NAVD88; directly measured coverage remains distinguished from source interpolation. The channels, holes and drop-offs come from the source data, not a distance-from-shore model. What the data behind the map says about each species, season by season:
The outline encloses 7,609 acres, worked by 16.1 miles of shoreline. Nearly circular (index 1.3), so the story is the bottom, not the bank. Roughly 29% of the water is 15 ft or less, the band where the food chain lives. End to end it runs roughly 6.9 mi, about 2.6 mi across. If the bite dies, Setauket Harbor is 6 mi to the east.
The spring pattern is a shallow one: striped bass in 5 to 20 ft. Midsummer fish sit out in 25 to 60 ft before dropping to 20 to 50 ft for winter. The spot to know is Surveyed channel edge, a drop-off in about 28 ft of water that rates good for striped bass in summer. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. Summer baits: a topwater walker at low light or a paddletail on a light jig gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Surveyed channel edge (20 ft) | 3-6 inch paddletail, Suspending minnow plug |
| Summer | 25 to 60 ft | dawn & dusk | Surveyed channel edge (28 ft) | Topwater walker at low light, Paddletail on a light jig |
| Fall | 10 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | Surveyed channel edge (28 ft) | Pencil popper, Baitfish swimbait |
| Winter | 20 to 50 ft | midday | Surveyed channel edge (28 ft) | Slow paddletail, Bucktail near bottom |
Spring bluefish on Smithtown Bay hold shallow, usually 3 to 20 ft. They move out to 5 to 30 ft in summer and finish the year down in 15 to 40 ft. Put Surveyed channel edge first on the milk run — a drop-off near 28 ft that grades good for summer. The feeding windows run early morning and the evening. The summer box starts with a popper (early/late) or a metal jigs in the rips.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow feeding flat (18 ft) | Metal (Hopkins/Kastmaster), Pencil popper |
| Summer | 5 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | Surveyed channel edge (28 ft) | Popper (early/late), Metal jigs in the rips |
| Fall | 3 to 25 ft | dawn & midday | Shallow feeding flat (18 ft) | Pencil popper, Big metal |
| Winter | 15 to 40 ft | midday | open water | Metal jig worked slow (southern waters) |
In spring, summer flounder (fluke) run shallow here, mostly 5 to 25 ft. Midsummer fish sit out in 8 to 35 ft before dropping to 20 to 60 ft for winter. Summer summer flounder (fluke) concentrate at Surveyed channel edge, a prime-rated drop-off around 28 ft. Fish it in midday and early morning and you'll meet the bite. You won't need more than a bucktail (1-3 oz by drift speed) or a gulp grub on jighead most summer days.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 25 ft | midday & dawn | Surveyed channel edge (20 ft) | Bucktail + Gulp swimming mullet, Hi-lo rig + squid strip |
| Summer | 8 to 35 ft | midday & dawn | Surveyed channel edge (28 ft) | Bucktail (1-3 oz by drift speed), Gulp grub on jighead |
| Fall | 12 to 45 ft | midday | Surveyed channel edge (28 ft) | Heavier bucktail on the lumps, Big Gulp 6" grub |
| Winter | 20 to 60 ft | midday | Surveyed channel edge (28 ft) | Slow bottom rig + strip |
The spring pattern is a shallow one: black sea bass in 10 to 40 ft. Midsummer fish sit out in 15 to 60 ft before dropping to 22 to 74 ft for winter. The spot to know is NOAA charted underwater rock, a rock pile in about 17 ft of water that rates prime for black sea bass in spring. Plan around midday and early morning in the warm months. Summer baits: a bucktail + grub or a diamond jig + squid teaser gets it done.
Depth note: when a documented seasonal range extends below this chart, the table shows the deepest mapped working water, not a verified holding depth.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 10 to 40 ft | midday & dawn | NOAA charted underwater rock (17 ft) | Hi-lo rig + squid, 1-2 oz bucktail + Gulp |
| Summer | 15 to 60 ft | midday & dawn | NOAA charted underwater rock (17 ft) | Bucktail + grub, Diamond jig + squid teaser |
| Fall | 19 to 74 ft chart-limited; documented 20 to 80 ft | midday | NOAA charted underwater rock (36 ft) | 3-4 oz vertical jig (deep), Double-teaser rig |
| Winter | 22 to 74 ft chart-limited; documented 40 to 100 ft | midday | NOAA charted underwater rock (36 ft) | Heavy hi-lo rig on deep wrecks |
Come spring, look for tautog (blackfish) tight to the bank in 5 to 25 ft. Expect a summer slide to 10 to 35 ft, then a winter hold in 30 to 70 ft. Start at NOAA charted underwater rock. It's a rock pile holding about 5 ft of water and rates prime come spring. Prime time lands in early morning. A 1/2-1 oz tog jig + crab is the honest summer answer here.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 25 ft | midday & dawn | NOAA charted underwater rock (5 ft) | Tog jig + green crab half, Bare jig + clam (early) |
| Summer | 10 to 35 ft | dawn | NOAA charted underwater rock (17 ft) | 1/2-1 oz tog jig + crab |
| Fall | 10 to 50 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (46 ft) | Tog jig + whole green crab, Old-school rig + double crab (deep) |
| Winter | 30 to 70 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (46 ft) | Heavy jig + crab on deep structure |
Start shallow in spring: scup (porgy) sit in 5 to 25 ft that time of year. Warm water sends them out to 6 to 35 ft; cold water stacks them in 12 to 50 ft. Top water on the chart: NOAA charted underwater rock, a rock pile in the 5 ft range, prime in spring. Fish it in midday and early morning and you'll meet the bite. Throw a hi-lo porgy rig or a micro metal jig until the fish tell you otherwise.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 25 ft | dawn | NOAA charted underwater rock (5 ft) | Small hi-lo rig, Micro jig tipped with bait |
| Summer | 6 to 35 ft | midday & dawn | NOAA charted underwater rock (6 ft) | Hi-lo porgy rig, Micro metal jig |
| Fall | 8 to 40 ft | midday | NOAA charted underwater rock (17 ft) | Compact vertical jig, Hi-lo rig |
| Winter | 12 to 50 ft | midday | NOAA charted underwater rock (17 ft) | Small slow vertical jig |
Smithtown Bay also holds winter flounder (8 to 30 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
Smithtown Bay carries 56 mapped structure features, topping out (or rather bottoming out) at Deepest basin, about 72 ft down.
Access data: New York State DEC — Boat Launches (FishNY). Confirm conditions and fees locally before you launch.
Season dates, license requirements, and size and bag limits for New York waters are set by the New York DEC (saltwater fishing) — and special regulations can apply to Smithtown Bay specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official New York fishing regulations →
Smithtown Bay is about 74 ft (23 m) deep at its deepest point. The depth chart is built from real agency bathymetry referenced to NAVD88; directly measured coverage remains distinguished from source interpolation. The contours reflect measured and quality-assessed source depths.
Anglers target striped bass, bluefish, summer flounder (fluke), black sea bass, tautog (blackfish), scup (porgy), winter flounder on Smithtown Bay. The list combines the water's survey records with habitat-filtered species from broader official evidence; those additions are plausible occurrences, not exact-water abundance or guaranteed catches.
NOAA charted underwater rock is the top-rated area: a rock pile in about 17 ft of water that rates prime for black sea bass in spring. Open the map above to see every rated spot for each species and season.
For striped bass, the summer bite is best in early morning and the evening. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.
Fishing on Smithtown Bay is regulated by the New York DEC (saltwater fishing). Check the official New York regulations for current license requirements, season dates, and size and bag limits — special regulations can apply to this specific water.
Setauket Harbor 6 mi · Port Jefferson Harbor 6 mi · Blydenburgh Lake 7 mi · Lake Ronkonkoma 9 mi · Mount Sinai Harbor 9 mi · Northport Bay 9 mi · Centerport Harbor 10 mi · Huntington Bay 11 mi · Huntington Harbor 12 mi · Lloyd Harbor 13 mi · Cockenoe Harbor 14 mi, CT · Knapps Lake 14 mi
See how Smithtown Bay stacks up: best striped bass lakes in New York · best summer flounder (fluke) lakes in New York · best winter flounder lakes in New York · best bluefish lakes in New York
Browse all New York fishing maps. See every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: NOAA BlueTopo (NAVD88; 100% measured, 0% source-interpolated). How we build these maps. Fish here with a sonar unit that logs? Send us your depth data and we'll improve this chart, credited to you. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.