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Gray snapperRetention openBay · Florida
Goodland Bay
25.93°N · 81.64°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Chokoloskee to Bonita Beach FL out 20 NM
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Common snook60
- Florida pompano60
- Red drum58
- Spanish mackerel56
- King mackerel49
- Spotted seatrout49
- Black drum46
- Gray snapper45
- Red snapper44
- Wahoo43
- Gray triggerfish42
- Red grouper40
- Sheepshead39
- Atlantic croaker35
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Crevalle jack35
- Mahi-mahi35
- Sailfish35
- Yellowfin tuna35
- Permit34
- Gag grouper20
- Greater amberjack20
- Southern flounder20
Best score today · 6 PM · Gray snapper
- Now
- 451 AM EDT
- Best window
- 3-8 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Low2.2 ft
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Goodland Bay 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
Friday, Nov 13 · 4 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
38Tide: FloodingWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 4 kt NPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
97Water temp: 81°F, primeLight: DuskSolunar: Major periodSeason & habitat · Gray snapper
Species seasonality
48Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Gray snapper
Retention open- Daily limit
- 5 per day (10 snapper combined)
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 10 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Open year-round in Gulf and Atlantic state waters. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Counts toward the 10-snapper aggregate per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. Federal waters have a 12-inch minimum and a 10-fish bag.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Snappers, 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 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 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)
Source: FWC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Gray snapper is best here
Shoulder season for Gray snapper · 4 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Goodland Bay
- Depth
- Up to 6 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonGray snapper
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 common snook, Florida pompano and red drum. It is peak season now for Florida pompano, red drum, Spanish mackerel and spotted seatrout, and shoulder season for common snook, king mackerel, black drum and gray snapper. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October through November. Red drum peak from September through November.
Tackle & technique
- Gray snapper
- Mangrove snapper hold tight to mangrove roots, bridge pilings, jetties and reef ledges, from a few feet deep inshore to 150 feet offshore. Chum to pull them out of cover, then freeline or lightly weight a live shrimp or pilchard on fluorocarbon leader, since they shy away from heavy line in clear water. The bite improves at dusk and after dark.
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Coon Key Pass63
Channel · 1.2 mi
Top: Common snookShoulder season- Common snook 63
- Florida pompano 60
- Spanish mackerel 60
8 kt ENEH 5:28 AM · 3.8 ftL 1:05 PM · 0.4 ft
- Sugar Bay61
Bay · 1.2 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 61
- Common snook 59
- Florida pompano 59
8 kt ENEH 5:28 AM · 3.8 ftL 1:05 PM · 0.4 ft
- Blue Hill Creek60
Bay · 1.6 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 60
- Common snook 59
- Florida pompano 58
8 kt ENEH 5:28 AM · 3.8 ftL 1:05 PM · 0.4 ft
- Big Marco River59
Bay · 1.6 mi
Top: Common snookShoulder season- Common snook 59
- Florida pompano 59
- Red drum 57
8 kt ENEH 6:00 AM · 2.8 ftL 1:40 PM · 0.3 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.