Waterlands

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Gag grouperClosed

Bar · Florida

Bache Shoal

25.48°N · 80.15°W · Bar · Biscayne Bay

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Best score today · 6 PM · Gag grouper

74/100Great
Now
201 PM EST
Best window
5-7 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding2.9 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions

Wednesday, Nov 4 · 8 AM

Time8A
Score20Poor
Tide1.3 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.9 kn · toward ESE
Wind4 kn ENEgusts 8 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.4 ft · 5 s
Air temp77°Warm
WeatherClear17% cloud
Water81°FBias corrected

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Gag grouper

Closed
Daily limit
No retention
Possession
Not published
Size
Not published
Season
Aug 2 to Dec 31, 2026
Annual quota
Not published
Other
FWC closed Atlantic gag grouper, including all state waters off Monroe County, for the rest of the 2026 season (Executive Order 26-10). The 2027 season has not been announced.

From FWC news release, May 13, 2026: Atlantic gag grouper closes August 2 (EO 26-10), read Sep 13

Other species here

  • Atlantic croaker Retention open (50 per day)
  • Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
  • Bluefish Retention open (3 per day)
  • Bonefish Catch & release (No retention)
  • Cobia Retention open (1 per day)
  • Crevalle jack Retention open
  • Florida pompano Retention open (6 per day)
  • 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 (2 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 Retention open (1 per day)
  • Southern flounder Closed (No retention)
  • Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
  • Spot Retention open (50 per day)
  • Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
  • Summer flounder Closed (No retention)
  • Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
  • Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)

Source: FWC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Gag grouper is best here

Shoulder season for Gag grouper · 25 more weeks at shoulder

Gag grouper season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Gag grouper · 25 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Gag grouper in Florida →

Spot profile

Bache Shoal

Depth
25-30 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Shoal · Outer · ExposedShoal · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonGag grouper

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 Bache Shoal

Bache Shoal is a bar in Biscayne Bay, Florida. Depth is 25-30 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads shoal, outer water and exposed.

Waterlands scores 19 species here; the best right now are Florida pompano, common snook and king mackerel. It is peak season now for common snook, king mackerel, crevalle jack and red drum, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, Spanish mackerel, Atlantic tarpon and black drum. Florida pompano peak from December through March. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through November. King mackerel peak from November through March.

Tackle & technique

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.
Florida pompano
Pompano feed on sand fleas and coquina clams in the trough between the beach and the first sandbar, and around the sandy edges of passes, inlets and bridges. Surf anglers fish a two-hook pompano rig with sand fleas, clams or shrimp, while boat and bridge anglers bounce small jigs along the bottom. The runs follow water temperature, heading north in spring and south in fall as the water cools.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Sands Cut

    Channel · 2.1 mi

    75
    Top: Crevalle jackPeak season
    • Crevalle jack 75
    • Common snook 74
    • Red drum 68

    9 kt EH 3:11 PM · 1.8 ftL 10:07 PM · 0.5 ft

  • Bowles Bank

    Bar · 1.9 mi

    72
    Top: King mackerelPeak season
    • King mackerel 72
    • Common snook 69
    • Crevalle jack 69

    9 kt EH 2:45 PM · 2.0 ftL 9:19 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Legare Anchorage

    Channel · 1.3 mi

    63
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 63
    • Crevalle jack 63
    • King mackerel 63

    9 kt EL 7:36 PM · 0.8 ftH 1:43 AM · 2.8 ft

  • Sea Grape Point

    Cape · 2.2 mi

    61
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 61
    • Florida pompano 61
    • King mackerel 59

    9 kt EL 7:36 PM · 0.8 ftH 1:43 AM · 2.8 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.