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Greater amberjackRetention openBay · Florida
Coral Creek Inlet
26.48°N · 82.14°W · Bay · Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Common snook77
- Atlantic croaker68
- Red drum67
- Crevalle jack66
- Spanish mackerel66
- Atlantic tarpon65
- Gray snapper64
- Florida pompano60
- Southern flounder59
- Gag grouper58
- King mackerel57
- Gray triggerfish54
- Red grouper54
- Red snapper54
- Cobia53
- Permit53
- Black drum52
- Greater amberjack49
- Spotted seatrout46
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 7 PM · Greater amberjack
- Now
- 498 PM EDT
- Best window
- 8 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding1.3 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Coral Creek Inlet 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 · 8 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
70Tide: FloodingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
93Wind: 11 kt ENEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
67Water temp: 86°F, hotLight: DuskSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.7 ftSeason & habitat · Greater amberjack
Species seasonality
40Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Greater amberjack
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 34 in, fork length
- Season
- Sep 1 to Oct 13, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Closed from Oct 14
- Other
- Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. FWC set the 2026 Gulf season to September 1 through October 13 by executive order, matching the federal season.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Amberjack, 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)
- 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))
- 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 today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Greater amberjack is best here
Shoulder season for Greater amberjack · 9 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Coral Creek Inlet
- Depth
- 2-5 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Inlet · Inner · Semi-exposedInlet · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonGreater amberjack
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 Coral Creek Inlet
Coral Creek Inlet is a bay in Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound, Florida. Depth is 2-5 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads inlet, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are common snook, Atlantic croaker and red drum. It is peak season now for common snook, Atlantic croaker, red drum and gray snapper, and shoulder season for crevalle jack, Spanish mackerel, Atlantic tarpon and Florida pompano. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Red drum peak from September through November.
Tackle & technique
- Greater amberjack
- Amberjack school around wrecks, oil rigs, towers and high-relief reefs in 60 to 250 feet, often suspended well above the bottom. Drop a live blue runner or work a heavy jig through the school, then pump hard, because a big AJ runs straight back into the structure. Heavy conventional gear with 50 to 80 pound line is standard.
- 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 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Wulfert Channel76
Channel · 2.7 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 76
- Atlantic croaker 74
- Gray snapper 72
11 kt ENEH 11:39 PM · 2.3 ftL 5:03 AM · 1.2 ft
- Saint James Point71
Cape · 2.1 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 71
- Gray snapper 66
- Atlantic croaker 65
4 kt ENEH 12:37 AM · 2.3 ftL 6:15 AM · 1.2 ft
- Sanibel Rocks71
Bar · 2.6 mi
Top: Gray snapperPeak season- Gray snapper 71
- Common snook 69
- Gag grouper 67
11 kt ENEH 12:46 AM · 2.2 ftL 6:28 AM · 0.9 ft
- Long Point57
Cape · 0.5 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 57
- Gray snapper 51
- Atlantic croaker 50
11 kt ENEH 1:35 AM · 1.8 ftL 7:23 AM · 1.1 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.