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Common snookRetention openChannel · Florida
Shell Pass
26.70°N · 82.15°W · Channel · Charlotte Harbor and Pine Island Sound
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Spotted seatrout80
- Spanish mackerel78
- Red drum76
- Florida pompano75
- Common snook74
- Black drum69
- King mackerel68
- Gray snapper64
- Sheepshead63
- Gray triggerfish59
- Red grouper58
- Atlantic croaker35
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Crevalle jack35
- Permit35
- Gag grouper20
- Greater amberjack20
- Red snapper20
- Southern flounder20
Best score today · 7 PM · Common snook
- Now
- 745 PM EST
- Best window
- 5-10 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding0.5 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
Sunday, Nov 8 · 6 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
83Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.7 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
81Wind: 3 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
85Water temp: 79°F, primeLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.1 ftSeason & habitat · Common snook
Species seasonality
76Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Snook
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Slot 28 to 33 in, total length
- Season
- Oct 1 to Nov 30, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Catch & release from Dec 1
- Other
- Snook permit and saltwater fishing license required. Must stay whole until landed ashore. For-hire captain and crew may not keep a bag limit. Hook and line only. Closed December 1 through the end of February and May 1 through September 30. Open March 1 through April 30 and October 1 through November 30. Regional rules apply in inland, state and adjacent federal waters.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Snook, 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)
- 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 today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Common snook is best here
Shoulder season for Common snook · 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 seasonCommon snook
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 spotted seatrout, Spanish mackerel and red drum. It is peak season now for spotted seatrout, Spanish mackerel, red drum and Florida pompano, and shoulder season for common snook, black drum, king mackerel and gray snapper. Spotted seatrout peak from March through May and from October through November. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. Red drum peak from September through November.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Big Jim Creek79
Bay · 1.9 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 79
- Spotted seatrout 78
- Spanish mackerel 69
9 kt ENEH 10:25 PM · 1.4 ftL 3:24 AM · 1.2 ft
- Jug Creek78
Bay · 0.2 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 78
- Spotted seatrout 78
- Spanish mackerel 69
9 kt ENEH 10:55 PM · 1.3 ftL 2:07 AM · 1.2 ft
- Jug Creek Point Shoal76
Bar · 1.3 mi
Top: Florida pompanoPeak season- Florida pompano 76
- Spanish mackerel 75
- Spotted seatrout 73
9 kt ENEH 10:55 PM · 1.3 ftL 2:07 AM · 1.2 ft
- Back Bay75
Bay · 1.0 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 75
- Spanish mackerel 74
- Spotted seatrout 74
9 kt ENEH 10:55 PM · 1.3 ftL 2:07 AM · 1.2 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.
