Waterlands

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Spanish mackerelRetention open

Channel · Florida

Shell Pass

26.70°N · 82.15°W · Channel · Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound

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Best score today · 7 PM · Spanish mackerel

83/100Great
Now
633 PM EST
Best window
5-10 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Low0.3 ft

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

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14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Wed · 85

24-hour conditions

Saturday, Nov 7 · 11 AM

Time11A
Score78Great
Tide1.1 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.7 kn · toward E
Wind2 kn NNEgusts 10 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.3 ft · 3 s
Air temp80°Warm
WeatherClear14% cloud
Water79°FModel

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Spanish mackerel

Retention open
Daily limit
15 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 12 in, fork length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Beach or haul seine, cast net, hook and line, or spear. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spanish Mackerel, 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)
  • Greater amberjack Closed (No retention)
  • 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)
  • 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)
Always check with FWC ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: FWC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Spanish mackerel is best here

Peak season for Spanish mackerel · 2 more weeks at peak

Spanish mackerel season by week of the year. Peak season for Spanish mackerel · 2 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Spanish mackerel in Florida →

Spot profile

Shell Pass

Depth
4-9 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Pass · Inner · Semi-exposedPass · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonSpanish mackerel

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, Florida pompano and spotted seatrout. It is peak season now for Spanish mackerel, Florida pompano, spotted seatrout and red drum, and shoulder season for common snook, black drum, king mackerel and gray snapper. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October through November. Spotted seatrout peak from March through May and from October through November.

Tackle & technique

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.
Florida pompano
Pompano feed on sand fleas and coquina clams in the trough between the beach and the first sandbar, and around the sandy edges of passes, inlets and bridges. Surf anglers fish a two-hook pompano rig with sand fleas, clams or shrimp, while boat and bridge anglers bounce small jigs along the bottom. The runs follow water temperature, heading north in spring and south in fall as the water cools.
Spotted seatrout
Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →
  • Big Jim Creek

    Bay · 1.9 mi

    67
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 67
    • Spotted seatrout 65
    • Black drum 57

    9 kt EH 10:25 PM · 1.4 ftL 3:24 AM · 1.2 ft

  • Jug Creek Point Shoal

    Bar · 1.3 mi

    62
    Top: Florida pompanoPeak season
    • Florida pompano 62
    • Spanish mackerel 59
    • Red drum 54

    9 kt EH 10:55 PM · 1.3 ftL 2:07 AM · 1.2 ft

  • Jug Creek

    Bay · 0.2 mi

    61
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 61
    • Spotted seatrout 60
    • Florida pompano 55

    9 kt EH 10:55 PM · 1.3 ftL 2:07 AM · 1.2 ft

  • Back Bay

    Bay · 1.0 mi

    60
    Top: Florida pompanoPeak season
    • Florida pompano 60
    • Red drum 58
    • Spanish mackerel 58

    9 kt EH 10:55 PM · 1.3 ftL 2:07 AM · 1.2 ft

Open in the tide map

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.