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Red grouperRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
Best score today · 7 AM · Red grouper
- Now
- 449 AM EDT
- Best window
- 11 AM-3 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Low0.8 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Surprise Waterway 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
37Tide: Low slackCurrent: 0.3 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
91Wind: 2 kt NPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
68Water temp: 86°F, hotLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 1.6 ftSeason & habitat · Red grouper
Species seasonality
45Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)
Red grouper
Retention open- Daily limit
- 3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish combined)
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 20 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Closed from Jan 1
- Other
- Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. No more than 3 grouper and tilefish combined per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. Open May 1 through December 31. Closed January 1 through April 30.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Groupers, 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 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 (2 per day)
- Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
- 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 Retention open (5 per day)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open (50 per day)
- 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 today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Red grouper is best here
Shoulder season for Red grouper · 27 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Surprise Waterway
- Depth
- 9-10 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonRed 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 Surprise Waterway
Surprise Waterway is a gut in Biscayne Bay, Florida. Depth is 9-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 18 species here; the best right now are common snook, Atlantic tarpon and crevalle jack. It is peak season now for common snook and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, gray snapper, permit and red drum. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through November. Atlantic tarpon peak from March through June. Crevalle jack peak from April through May and from September through November.
Tackle & technique
- Red grouper
- Red grouper live on low limestone ledges and potholed live bottom across the West Florida Shelf, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Drift to find hard bottom, then anchor and fish live pinfish, grunts or squid on the bottom with stout conventional tackle. Reel hard right after the bite, because they dive into holes, and use a descending device on fish released from deep water.
- 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.
- Atlantic tarpon
- Tarpon roll along beaches, in passes and channels, and under bridges from late spring through fall, and in South Florida some fish stay through winter in warm canals and backcountry rivers. Live crabs, mullet or pinfish drifted through a pass on the outgoing tide, or a fly or soft plastic cast ahead of a rolling string of fish, are the main approaches. Use a long heavy leader, bow to the jumps, and keep big fish in the water for release.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Tatum Waterway70
Channel · 2.9 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 70
- Atlantic tarpon 65
- Crevalle jack 64
2 kt NL 9:50 AM · 0.7 ftH 3:52 PM · 2.2 ft
- Indian Creek69
Channel · 0.7 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 69
- Atlantic tarpon 66
- Crevalle jack 64
2 kt NL 9:50 AM · 0.7 ftH 3:52 PM · 2.2 ft
- Biscayne Waterway63
Channel · 0.6 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 63
- Crevalle jack 61
- Atlantic tarpon 61
2 kt NH 3:16 PM · 2.2 ftL 9:37 PM · 1.1 ft
- Biscayne Point63
Cape · 2.8 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 63
- Crevalle jack 58
- Atlantic tarpon 57
2 kt NL 9:50 AM · 0.7 ftH 3:52 PM · 2.2 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.