Waterlands

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Gray snapperRetention open

Channel · Florida

Cape Florida Anchorage

25.67°N · 80.16°W · Channel · Biscayne Bay

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Best score today · 6 AM · Gray snapper

78/100Great
Now
604 AM EST
Best window
6-8 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing2.1 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions

Saturday, Nov 7 · 6 AM

Time6A
Score69Great
Tide2.5 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.6 kn · toward W
Wind3 kn WNWgusts 7 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.7 ft · 6 s
Air temp71°Warm
WeatherOvercast96% cloud
Water82°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Gray snapper

Retention open
Daily limit
5 per day (10 snapper combined)
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 10 in, total length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Open year-round in Gulf and Atlantic state waters. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Counts toward the 10-snapper aggregate per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. Federal waters have a 12-inch minimum and a 10-fish bag.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Snappers, 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)
  • Gag grouper Closed (No retention)
  • 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 Gray snapper is best here

Shoulder season for Gray snapper · 25 more weeks at shoulder

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

Gray snapper in Florida →

Spot profile

Cape Florida Anchorage

Depth
15-20 ftSlope
Structure
Bay · Inner · Semi-exposedBay · slope
Season
Shoulder seasonGray snapper

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 Cape Florida Anchorage

Cape Florida Anchorage is a channel in Biscayne Bay, Florida. Depth is 15-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads bay, inner water and semi-exposed.

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

Tackle & technique

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.
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.
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

  • Cape Florida Channel

    Channel · 0.7 mi

    69
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 69
    • Common snook 67
    • Crevalle jack 65

    7 kt ESEL 8:47 AM · 0.5 ftH 3:01 PM · 2.5 ft

  • Biscayne Channel

    Channel · 0.9 mi

    69
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 69
    • Common snook 67
    • Crevalle jack 65

    7 kt ESEL 8:47 AM · 0.5 ftH 3:01 PM · 2.5 ft

  • Cape Florida

    Cape · 0.2 mi

    66
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 66
    • Common snook 65
    • Crevalle jack 62

    7 kt ESEL 8:47 AM · 0.5 ftH 3:01 PM · 2.5 ft

  • South Basin

    Bay · 1.3 mi

    64
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 64
    • Common snook 63
    • Crevalle jack 59

    7 kt ESEL 9:41 AM · 0.5 ftH 3:34 PM · 2.4 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.