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Red drumRetention openBay · Florida
Apalachee Bay
30.04°N · 84.17°W · Bay · Apalachee Bay or Coastal Waters From Keaton Beach to Ochlockonee River Fl out to 20 Nm
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Red drum69
- Atlantic croaker67
- Spanish mackerel64
- Florida pompano63
- Gray snapper63
- Atlantic tarpon61
- Crevalle jack60
- King mackerel57
- Gag grouper55
- Southern flounder55
- Black drum53
- Gray triggerfish52
- Permit52
- Red snapper52
- Cobia51
- Red grouper51
- Sailfish50
- Yellowfin tuna50
- Greater amberjack47
- Spotted seatrout47
- Mahi-mahi43
- Wahoo43
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 11 PM · Red drum
- Now
- 698 AM EDT
- Best window
- 9 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.8 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Apalachee Bay scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 8 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
65Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.4 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
64Wind: 6 kt NNEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
Open-Meteo Marine
83Water temp: 86°F, warmLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.9 ftSeason & habitat · Red drum
Species seasonality
90Season: PeakHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Red drum
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Slot 18 to 27 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Must stay whole until landed ashore. For-hire captain and crew may not keep a bag limit. Hook and line or cast net only. No spearing, gigging, bowfishing, snatch hooking, or multiple hooks with natural bait. Open year-round.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Red Drum (Redfish), 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 Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
- Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
- Gray triggerfish Retention open (1 per day)
- Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
- King mackerel Retention open (3 per day)
- Mahi-mahi Retention open (10 per day)
- Permit Retention open (2 per day)
- Red grouper Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
- Red snapper Retention open (2 per day (10 snapper combined))
- Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
- Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
- Snook Retention open (1 per day)
- Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (5 per day)
- Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Red drum is best here
Peak season for Red drum · 9 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Apalachee Bay
- Depth
- 4-10 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Outer · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak seasonRed drum
NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 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 Apalachee Bay
Apalachee Bay is a bay in Apalachee Bay or Coastal Waters From Keaton Beach to Ochlockonee River Fl out to 20 Nm, Florida. Depth is 4-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, outer water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 23 species here; the best right now are red drum, Atlantic croaker and Spanish mackerel. It is peak season now for red drum, Atlantic croaker and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Spanish mackerel, Florida pompano, Atlantic tarpon and crevalle jack. Red drum peak from September through November. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November.
Tackle & technique
- Red drum
- Redfish feed on shallow grass flats, oyster bars and marsh edges, often in 1 to 4 feet of water, and drop into channels, deep holes and tidal creeks when the water turns very hot or cold. Work a live shrimp under a popping cork or a soft plastic along the grass line on a rising tide, then fish creek mouths and drains as the tide falls. Bull reds over 30 inches school in the surf, passes and jetties in late summer and fall, where cut mullet or a live crab on the bottom is the standard approach.
- Atlantic croaker
- Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
- 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
- Bird Racks72
Flat · 1.0 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 72
- Atlantic croaker 67
- Spanish mackerel 64
6 kt NNEH 12:56 PM · 3.6 ftL 7:31 PM · 0.5 ft
- Sand Cove72
Bay · 2.4 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 72
- Atlantic croaker 67
- Florida pompano 63
6 kt NNEH 12:56 PM · 3.6 ftL 7:31 PM · 0.5 ft
- Big Cove72
Bay · 3.0 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 72
- Atlantic croaker 67
- Florida pompano 63
6 kt NNEH 12:56 PM · 3.6 ftL 7:31 PM · 0.5 ft
- Pelican Point66
Cape · 4.1 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 66
- Red drum 66
- Florida pompano 61
6 kt NNEH 12:56 PM · 3.6 ftL 7:31 PM · 0.5 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.