Waterlands

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Atlantic tarponOff season

Cape · Alabama

Goat Point

30.30°N · 87.50°W · Cape · Perdido Bay Area

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Best score today · 7 AM · Atlantic tarpon

71/100Great
Now
3510 AM CST
Best window
4-11 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing0.4 ft ▼

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 10 AM · now

Time10ANOW
Score35Fair
Tide0.4 ft ▼Ebbing
Current0.1 knmodeled · toward W
Wind5 kn SSWgusts 12 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.9 ft · 5 s
Air temp78°Warm
WeatherPartly cloudy38% chance of rain
Water74°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Tarpon

Catch & release
Daily limit
No retention
Possession
Not published
Size
Not published
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Tarpon over 40 inches must stay in the water. Special gear rules apply year-round in Boca Grande Pass. Hook and line only. No snagging, snatch hooking, spearing, or multiple hooks with natural bait. Applies in state and federal waters of the Gulf and Atlantic.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Tarpon, read Sep 13

Other species here

  • Atlantic croaker Retention open
  • Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
  • Bluefish Retention open (10 per day)
  • Bonefish Catch & release (No retention)
  • Cobia Retention open (1 per day)
  • Crevalle jack Retention open
  • Florida pompano Retention open (6 per day)
  • Gag grouper Closed (No retention)
  • Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
  • Gray triggerfish Retention open (1 per day)
  • Greater amberjack Closed (No retention)
  • King mackerel Retention open (3 per day)
  • Mahi-mahi Retention open (10 per day)
  • Permit Retention open (2 per day)
  • Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
  • Red grouper Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
  • Red snapper Closed (No retention)
  • Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
  • Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
  • Snook Retention open (1 per day)
  • Southern flounder Closed (No retention)
  • Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
  • Spot Retention open
  • Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
  • Summer flounder Closed (No retention)
  • Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)

Source: FWC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Atlantic tarpon is best here

Out of season for Atlantic tarpon · shoulder season starts in 22 weeks

Atlantic tarpon season by week of the year. Out of season for Atlantic tarpon · shoulder season starts in 22 weeks.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Atlantic tarpon in Alabama →

Spot profile

Goat Point

Depth
2-15 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Off seasonAtlantic tarpon

NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 14 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 Goat Point

Goat Point is a cape in Perdido Bay Area, Alabama. Depth in the nearest water is 2-15 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 19 species here; the best right now are gag grouper, Spanish mackerel and red drum. It is peak season now for gag grouper, Spanish mackerel, red drum and Florida pompano, and shoulder season for sheepshead, black drum, king mackerel and gray triggerfish. Gag grouper peak from October through December. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. Red drum peak from September through November.

Tackle & technique

Atlantic tarpon
Tarpon roll along beaches, in passes and channels, and under bridges from late spring through fall, and in South Florida some fish stay through winter in warm canals and backcountry rivers. Live crabs, mullet or pinfish drifted through a pass on the outgoing tide, or a fly or soft plastic cast ahead of a rolling string of fish, are the main approaches. Use a long heavy leader, bow to the jumps, and keep big fish in the water for release.
Gag grouper
Gag hold on ledges, rock piles and wrecks, from 15 to 40 feet in the fall on Florida's Gulf coast out to 250 feet the rest of the year. Troll deep-diving plugs to find productive rocks, then anchor and drop or freeline live pinfish or pigfish on a strong circle hook. Keep the drag tight and turn the fish in the first few seconds or it will reach the rocks.
Spanish mackerel
Spanish mackerel school along beaches and around inlets, jetties, piers and bridge-tunnel structures, and along tide rips in 5 to 40 feet of water once the water climbs above about 68 degrees F. Troll small spoons or cast metal jigs and retrieve fast, or look for birds diving on bait and cast into the school. FWC calls for a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader because their teeth cut light line.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Goat Bayou

    Bay · 0.2 mi

    64
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 64
    • Southern flounder 62
    • Gag grouper 61

    5 kt SSWL 2:57 PM · 0.3 ftH 8:41 PM · 0.4 ft

  • Old River

    Gut · 0.8 mi

    64
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 64
    • Gag grouper 62
    • Southern flounder 62

    5 kt SSWL 2:57 PM · 0.3 ftH 8:41 PM · 0.4 ft

  • Bellville Bay

    Bay · 0.9 mi

    63
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 63
    • Gag grouper 62
    • Florida pompano 61

    5 kt SSWL 2:57 PM · 0.3 ftH 8:41 PM · 0.4 ft

  • Mill Point

    Cape · 1.5 mi

    62
    Top: Gag grouperPeak season
    • Gag grouper 62
    • Spanish mackerel 59
    • Red drum 57

    5 kt SSWL 2:57 PM · 0.3 ftH 8:41 PM · 0.4 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 FWC before you keep a fish.