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Greater amberjackClosedChannel · Florida
Shell Pass
26.70°N · 82.15°W · Channel · Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Spanish mackerel79
- Common snook76
- Spotted seatrout76
- Red drum74
- King mackerel71
- Black drum69
- Florida pompano66
- Gray snapper66
- Sheepshead63
- Gray triggerfish61
- Red grouper60
- Atlantic croaker35
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Crevalle jack35
- Permit35
- Gag grouper20
- Greater amberjack20
- Red snapper20
- Southern flounder20
Best score today · 7 PM · Greater amberjack
- Now
- 201 PM EST
- Best window
- 5-10 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.5 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Shell Pass 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
Wednesday, Nov 4 · 7 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
76Tide: FloodingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 4 kt ENEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
90Water temp: 78°F, primeLight: DawnSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 0.4 ftSeason & habitat · Greater amberjack
Species seasonality
41Closed season · capped at 20Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Greater amberjack
Closed- Daily limit
- No retention
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- Oct 14, 2026 to Aug 31, 2027
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Executive Order 26-25 closes Gulf state waters from October 14, 2026 through August 31, 2027. The order itself says it expires November 1, 2026, so check with FWC for the status after that date.
From FWC Executive Order 26-25: Gulf greater amberjack closure, 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 Closed (No retention)
- 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 Closed (No retention)
- 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
- 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 Greater amberjack is best here
Shoulder season for Greater amberjack · 4 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Shell Pass
- Depth
- 4-9 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Pass · Inner · Semi-exposedPass · 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 Shell Pass
Shell Pass is a channel in Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound, Florida. Depth is 4-9 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads pass, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Spanish mackerel, common snook and spotted seatrout. It is peak season now for Spanish mackerel, spotted seatrout, red drum and Florida pompano, and shoulder season for common snook, king mackerel, black drum and gray snapper. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Spotted seatrout peak from March through May and from October 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.
- Spanish mackerel
- Spanish mackerel school along beaches and around inlets, jetties, piers and bridge-tunnel structures, and along tide rips in 5 to 40 feet of water once the water climbs above about 68 degrees F. Troll small spoons or cast metal jigs and retrieve fast, or look for birds diving on bait and cast into the school. FWC calls for a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader because their teeth cut light line.
- 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
- Big Jim Creek77
Bay · 1.9 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 77
- Spotted seatrout 75
- Spanish mackerel 70
10 kt EL 3:30 PM · 0.2 ftH 10:25 PM · 1.4 ft
- Jug Creek76
Bay · 0.2 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 76
- Spotted seatrout 74
- Spanish mackerel 71
10 kt EL 2:52 PM · 0.3 ftH 10:55 PM · 1.3 ft
- Jug Creek Point Shoal76
Bar · 1.3 mi
Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season- Spanish mackerel 76
- Red drum 69
- Spotted seatrout 69
10 kt EL 2:52 PM · 0.3 ftH 10:55 PM · 1.3 ft
- Back Bay75
Bay · 1.0 mi
Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season- Spanish mackerel 75
- Red drum 73
- Common snook 72
10 kt EL 2:52 PM · 0.3 ftH 10:55 PM · 1.3 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.