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Spotted seatroutRetention openBar · Florida
Eastern Dry Rocks
24.46°N · 81.84°W · Bar · Bayside and Gulfside from Craig Key to West End of Seven Mile Bridge
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 11 AM · Spotted seatrout
- Now
- 369 AM EDT
- Best window
- 9 AM-2 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.9 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Eastern Dry Rocks 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 · 9 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
68Tide: EbbingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
64Wind: 4 kt SSWPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
49Water temp: 86°F, hotLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.1 ftSeason & habitat · Spotted seatrout
Species seasonality
28Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Monroe County state waters (Florida Keys)
Spotted seatrout
Retention open- Daily limit
- 3 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Slot 15 to 19 in, total length. One fish over 19 inches per vessel, or per person when fishing from shore, counted in the bag limit.
- 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 multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round. Regional rules apply in inland, state and adjacent federal waters. New regional rules took effect April 1, 2026.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spotted Seatrout, 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 (10 per day)
- Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
- King mackerel Retention open (3 per day)
- Mahi-mahi Retention open (5 per day)
- Permit Retention open (1 per day)
- Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
- Red grouper Retention open (3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish combined))
- Red snapper Check regulations
- Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
- Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
- Snook Catch & release (No retention)
- Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open
- 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 Spotted seatrout is best here
Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 9 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Eastern Dry Rocks
- Depth
- About 80 ft
- Structure
- Ledge · Outer · Exposed
- Season
- Shoulder seasonSpotted seatrout
NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 464 m grid. Depths are feet below mean sea level, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.
About this spot
Fishing Eastern Dry Rocks
Eastern Dry Rocks is a bar in Bayside and Gulfside from Craig Key to West End of Seven Mile Bridge, Florida. Depth is about 80 ft. Its profile reads ledge, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 18 species here; the best right now are gray snapper, permit and red grouper. It is peak season now for crevalle jack and common snook, and shoulder season for gray snapper, permit, red grouper and Atlantic tarpon. Gray snapper peak from May through August. Permit peak from March through June. Red grouper peak from April through June.
Tackle & technique
- Spotted seatrout
- Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
- Gray snapper
- Mangrove snapper hold tight to mangrove roots, bridge pilings, jetties and reef ledges, from a few feet deep inshore to 150 feet offshore. Chum to pull them out of cover, then freeline or lightly weight a live shrimp or pilchard on fluorocarbon leader, since they shy away from heavy line in clear water. The bite improves at dusk and after dark.
- Permit
- Permit cruise flat edges and channels in 2 to 6 feet of water in the Keys and Biscayne Bay, and school over wrecks and reefs in 30 to 120 feet, especially during the spring spawn. A live or artificial crab is the standard bait, cast ahead of a tailing fish on the flats or dropped to a school on a wreck. They spook easily in shallow water, so good light and a long, quiet cast are needed.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Sand Key Channel71
Channel · 4.6 mi
Top: Atlantic tarponShoulder season- Atlantic tarpon 71
- Common snook 70
- Crevalle jack 70
3 kt WSWL 2:18 PM · 0.5 ftH 8:32 PM · 1.6 ft
- Main Ship Channel68
Channel · 4.9 mi
Top: Atlantic tarponShoulder season- Atlantic tarpon 68
- Common snook 67
- Crevalle jack 67
4 kt SSWL 2:44 PM · 0.6 ftH 9:09 PM · 1.7 ft
- Middle Ground67
Bar · 4.0 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 67
- Crevalle jack 65
- Atlantic tarpon 63
3 kt WSWL 2:18 PM · 0.5 ftH 8:32 PM · 1.6 ft
- Sand Key65
Bar · 2.4 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 65
- Atlantic tarpon 63
- Common snook 60
3 kt WSWL 2:18 PM · 0.5 ftH 8:32 PM · 1.6 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.