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CobiaRetention openBay · Florida
Lopez River
25.78°N · 81.33°W · Bay · Bayside and Gulfside from Craig Key to West End of Seven Mile Bridge
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 9 AM · Cobia
- Now
- 359 AM EDT
- Best window
- 9 AM-1 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.2 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Lopez River 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 + Open-Meteo Marine
71Tide: FloodingCurrent: WeakWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 5 kt EPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
63Water temp: 85°F, warmLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.5 ftSeason & habitat · Cobia
Species seasonality
35Off season · capped at 35Season: Off seasonHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Monroe County state waters (Florida Keys)
Cobia
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 36 in, fork length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- 1 per person or 2 per vessel, whichever is less. Spears, gigs, hook and line, seine or cast net.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Cobia, 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)
- 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 Retention open (1 per day)
- King mackerel Retention open (3 per day)
- Mahi-mahi Check regulations
- Permit Retention open (2 per day)
- Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
- Red grouper Retention open (3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish 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 Catch & release (No retention)
- Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 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 Cobia is best here
Out of season for Cobia · shoulder season starts in 6 weeks
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Lopez River
- Depth
- 4-7 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Off seasonCobia
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 Lopez River
Lopez River is a bay in Bayside and Gulfside from Craig Key to West End of Seven Mile Bridge, Florida. Depth is 4-7 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 18 species here; the best right now are common snook, crevalle jack and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for common snook and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, bonefish, permit and gray snapper. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through November. Crevalle jack peak from April through May and from September through November. Atlantic tarpon peak from March through June.
Tackle & technique
- Cobia
- Cobia cruise inlets, beaches, buoys, wrecks and the backs of rays in 5 to 100 feet of water. On calm, sunny days sight-cast bucktails or live eels to fish near the surface. Otherwise anchor up-current of structure, chum, and fish live eels, crabs or menhaden near the bottom.
- Common snook
- Snook ambush bait around mangrove shorelines, bridge and dock lights, jetties and the mouths of passes and inlets, generally in 2 to 15 feet of water. Fish moving water, especially the outgoing tide, with a live pilchard, pinfish or shrimp, or a jerkbait or soft plastic swum past the structure. In summer they spawn along beaches and inlets, and in winter they crowd into rivers, canals and deep backcountry creeks where the water stays warmer.
- Crevalle jack
- Jacks roam in schools through inlets, passes, bays, river mouths and along beaches, pushing bait to the surface, and big fish also hold on nearshore reefs and wrecks. Watch for birds and surface blowups, then cast a popper, a spoon or a bucktail into the school and retrieve fast. Bring heavy spinning tackle, because a jack over 15 pounds runs hard and fights for a long time.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Rabbit Key Pass81
Channel · 2.0 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 81
- Crevalle jack 78
- Atlantic tarpon 74
5 kt EH 1:08 PM · 3.5 ftL 8:34 PM · 0.4 ft
- Cross Bays74
Bay · 2.2 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 74
- Common snook 73
- Bonefish 72
5 kt EH 1:08 PM · 3.5 ftL 8:34 PM · 0.4 ft
- Crooked Creek74
Bay · 2.3 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 74
- Common snook 73
- Red drum 65
5 kt EH 1:08 PM · 3.5 ftL 8:34 PM · 0.4 ft
- Rabbit Key Grasses73
Flat · 1.8 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 73
- Bonefish 72
- Permit 70
5 kt EH 1:08 PM · 3.5 ftL 8:34 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.