UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
Red snapperRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker70
- Common snook64
- Florida pompano56
- Gray snapper56
- Red drum56
- Atlantic tarpon51
- Southern flounder48
- Spanish mackerel47
- Black drum46
- Permit45
- Crevalle jack44
- Red snapper41
- Spotted seatrout41
- Gag grouper40
- Gray triggerfish38
- Cobia37
- King mackerel37
- Red grouper37
- Greater amberjack33
- Sheepshead32
Best score today · 6 PM · Red snapper
- Now
- 412 AM EDT
- Best window
- 3-7 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- High1.3 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Back Bay 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
Saturday, Oct 3 · 8 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
93Tide: EbbingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
92Wind: 2 kt SSEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
60Water temp: 86°F, warmLight: DawnSolunar: Near a majorSeason & habitat · Red snapper
Species seasonality
43Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Red snapper(private recreational)
Retention open- Daily limit
- 2 per day (10 snapper combined)
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 16 in, total length
- Season
- Sep 1 to Oct 4, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Closed from Oct 5
- Other
- Applies to private recreational vessels in Florida Gulf state and federal waters, and to for-hire vessels without a federal permit in Gulf state waters only. Charter captain and crew bag limit is zero. Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Counts toward the 10-snapper aggregate per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. FWC sets this 2026 Gulf private recreational season for both Gulf state waters and Gulf federal waters off Florida.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Snappers, 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 Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
- 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 Retention open (10 per day)
- Permit Retention open (2 per day)
- Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
- Red grouper Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper 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 Red snapper is best here
Shoulder season for Red snapper · 31 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Back Bay
- Depth
- 3-6 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonRed 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 Back Bay
Back Bay is a bay in Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound, Florida. Depth is 3-6 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, common snook and Florida pompano. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, common snook, gray snapper and red drum, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, Atlantic tarpon, southern flounder and Spanish mackerel. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October through November.
Tackle & technique
- Red snapper
- Red snapper school over rigs, wrecks, artificial reefs and natural ledges, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Anchor or drift over the structure, chum, and drop cut or live cigar minnows, sardines or squid on circle hooks, using as little weight as the current allows. Federal rules require circle hooks with natural bait in the Gulf and a descending device or venting tool on board.
- Atlantic croaker
- Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
- 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
- Shell Pass73
Channel · 1.0 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 73
- Common snook 67
- Florida pompano 58
4 kt ESEL 5:12 AM · 1.1 ftH 11:42 AM · 1.9 ft
- Jug Creek70
Bay · 1.1 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 70
- Common snook 59
- Red drum 59
4 kt ESEL 5:12 AM · 1.1 ftH 11:42 AM · 1.9 ft
- Little Bokeelia Bay70
Bay · 1.2 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 70
- Common snook 64
- Florida pompano 56
4 kt ESEL 5:12 AM · 1.1 ftH 11:42 AM · 1.9 ft
- Big Jim Creek70
Bay · 1.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 70
- Red drum 60
- Common snook 59
4 kt ESEL 6:51 AM · 1.2 ftH 12:10 PM · 2.1 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.