Waterlands

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PermitRetention open

Bay · Florida

Goodland Bay

25.93°N · 81.64°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 6 AM · Permit

83/100Great
Now
3510 AM EST
Best window
3-8 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.6 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 · 84

24-hour conditions

Monday, Nov 2 · 7 AM

Time7A
Score35Fair
Tide3.5 ftHigh
Current0.4 knmodeled · toward WNW
Wind6 kn ENEgusts 14 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.1 ft · 3 s
Air temp69°Warm
WeatherOvercast63% chance of rain
Water80°FBias corrected

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Permit

Retention open
Daily limit
2 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Slot 11 to 22 in, fork length. One fish over 22 inches allowed per person, counted in the bag limit.
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
No more than 2 permit over 22 inches per vessel. Hook and line only in state waters. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Outside the Special Permit Zone. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Permit, Florida pompano and African pompano, 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)
  • 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 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)
Always check with FWC ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: FWC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Permit is best here

Out of season for Permit · shoulder season starts in 18 weeks

Permit season by week of the year. Out of season for Permit · shoulder season starts in 18 weeks.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Permit in Florida →

Spot profile

Goodland Bay

Depth
Up to 6 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
Season
Off seasonPermit

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 Goodland Bay

Goodland Bay is a bay in Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is up to 6 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Spanish mackerel, king mackerel and red drum. It is peak season now for Spanish mackerel, red drum, Florida pompano and spotted seatrout, and shoulder season for king mackerel, common snook, gray snapper and gray triggerfish. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. King mackerel peak in May and in October. Red drum peak from September through November.

Tackle & technique

Permit
Permit cruise flat edges and channels in 2 to 6 feet of water in the Keys and Biscayne Bay, and school over wrecks and reefs in 30 to 120 feet, especially during the spring spawn. A live or artificial crab is the standard bait, cast ahead of a tailing fish on the flats or dropped to a school on a wreck. They spook easily in shallow water, so good light and a long, quiet cast are needed.
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.
King mackerel
Kings roam from beaches and pier ends out to reefs, wrecks and ledges in 40 to 200 feet, usually feeding in the upper half of the water column. Slow-troll live menhaden, blue runners or cigar minnows on a light wire stinger rig, or pull spoons and ribbonfish past bait schools. Look for clean green water above 68 F with bait and birds on it.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →
  • Coon Key Pass

    Channel · 1.2 mi

    80
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 80
    • Common snook 75
    • King mackerel 73

    9 kt ENEL 1:05 PM · 0.4 ftH 7:52 PM · 3.1 ft

  • Big Marco River

    Bay · 1.6 mi

    77
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 77
    • King mackerel 73
    • Common snook 72

    9 kt ENEL 1:40 PM · 0.3 ftH 8:40 PM · 2.0 ft

  • Sugar Bay

    Bay · 1.2 mi

    76
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 76
    • Spanish mackerel 75
    • Common snook 72

    9 kt ENEL 1:05 PM · 0.4 ftH 7:52 PM · 3.1 ft

  • Blue Hill Creek

    Bay · 1.6 mi

    76
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 76
    • Spanish mackerel 75
    • King mackerel 72

    9 kt ENEL 1:05 PM · 0.4 ftH 7:52 PM · 3.1 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.