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SailfishRetention openChannel · Florida
Rayonier Reach
30.66°N · 81.48°W · Channel · Coastal waters from Fernandina Beach to St. Augustine FL out 20 NM
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker78
- Spot73
- Atlantic tarpon72
- Crevalle jack69
- Gray snapper67
- Red drum67
- Southern flounder66
- Summer flounder66
- Florida pompano65
- King mackerel64
- Black drum61
- Spanish mackerel61
- Spotted seatrout61
- Black sea bass59
- Weakfish58
- Little tunny54
- Sheepshead54
- Gray triggerfish53
- Red snapper52
- Red grouper51
- Cobia50
- Greater amberjack47
- Mahi-mahi47
- Wahoo41
- Bluefish35
- Sailfish35
- Yellowfin tuna35
- Gag grouper20
Best score today · 4 AM · Sailfish
- Now
- 358 AM EDT
- Best window
- 8 AM-12 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing5.6 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Rayonier Reach 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 · rolling from now
Conditions · 8 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
56Tide: EbbingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
99Wind: 7 kt NNEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
72Water temp: 84°F, warmLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeason & habitat · Sailfish
Species seasonality
33Off season · capped at 35Season: Off seasonHabitat: Usable structureDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)
Sailfish
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day (1 billfish combined)
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 63 in, lower jaw fork length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Report landed billfish to NOAA within 24 hours. A federal HMS Angling Permit is needed in federal waters, not in state waters. Sailfish you plan to release may not be removed from the water in federal waters, or in state waters if you hold an HMS permit. 1 billfish per person per day. Open year-round.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Billfish, Tuna, and Swordfish, read Sep 13
Other species here
- Atlantic croaker Retention open (50 per day)
- Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
- Bluefish Retention open (3 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 (10 per day)
- Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
- King mackerel Retention open (2 per day)
- Mahi-mahi Retention open (5 per day)
- Permit Retention open (2 per day)
- Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
- Red grouper Retention open (3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish combined))
- Red snapper Check regulations
- Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
- Snook Retention open (1 per day)
- Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open (50 per day)
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
- Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Sailfish is best here
Out of season for Sailfish · shoulder season starts in 6 weeks
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Rayonier Reach
- Depth
- 10-20 ftSlope
- Structure
- Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · slope
- Season
- Off seasonSailfish
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 Rayonier Reach
Rayonier Reach is a channel in Coastal waters from Fernandina Beach to St. Augustine FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is 10-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 28 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, Atlantic tarpon and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, black drum, Spanish mackerel and black sea bass. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- Sailfish
- Sailfish feed along reef edges and color changes, usually in 80 to 240 feet off Southeast Florida and farther out along the Gulf and Carolina shelf edge. Fly live goggle-eyes, pilchards or threadfins from kites, or slow-troll live ballyhoo, on non-offset circle hooks. In winter the best bite often comes the day or two after a cold front, when north wind stacks bait along the edge.
- Atlantic croaker
- Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
- Spot
- Spot school over mud and sand in bays, tidal creeks and channels and around piers and bridges, generally in less than 25 feet of water. Fish a two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and bits of bloodworm or shrimp, and move until you find a school. In fall the biggest fish run out of the sounds past piers and inlets, and the bite can go all day.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Seaboard Reach79
Channel · 1.3 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 79
- Spot 74
- Atlantic tarpon 73
7 kt NNEL 12:42 PM · 1.2 ftH 7:17 PM · 6.7 ft
- Old Town Reach79
Channel · 1.7 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 79
- Spot 74
- Atlantic tarpon 73
7 kt NNEL 12:42 PM · 1.2 ftH 7:17 PM · 6.7 ft
- Kingsley Creek79
Gut · 3.3 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 79
- Spot 74
- Atlantic tarpon 70
7 kt NNEL 1:07 PM · 1.2 ftH 7:44 PM · 6.6 ft
- City Front Reach78
Channel · 0.7 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 78
- Spot 73
- Atlantic tarpon 72
7 kt NNEL 12:42 PM · 1.2 ftH 7:17 PM · 6.7 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.