Waterlands

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King mackerelRetention open

Bay · Florida

Horseshoe Cove

29.60°N · 85.03°W · Bay · Coastal Waters from Mexico Beach to Apalachicola out 20 NM

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Best score today · 11 PM · King mackerel

72/100Great
Now
414 AM EDT
Best window
10 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
High1.6 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: Sun · 82

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 4 AM · now

Time4ANOW
Score41Fair
Tide1.6 ftHigh
Current0.2 knmodeled · toward W
Wind4 kn NNEgusts 7 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.7 ft · 4 s
Air temp76°Warm
WeatherPartly cloudy32% cloud
Water87°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

King mackerel

Retention open
Daily limit
3 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 24 in, fork length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Hook and line and spearing only. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: King 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 Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined))
  • Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
  • Gray triggerfish Retention open (1 per day)
  • Greater amberjack Retention open (1 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 Retention open (5 per day)
  • Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
  • Spot Retention open
  • 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)
Always check with FWC ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: FWC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When King mackerel is best here

Shoulder season for King mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder

King mackerel season by week of the year. Shoulder season for King mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

King mackerel in Florida →

Spot profile

Horseshoe Cove

Depth
1-9 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Outer · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonKing 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 Horseshoe Cove

Horseshoe Cove is a bay in Coastal Waters from Mexico Beach to Apalachicola out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is 1-9 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, outer water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 23 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, Florida pompano and red drum. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, red drum and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, Atlantic tarpon, Spanish mackerel and yellowfin tuna. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October through November. Red drum peak from September through November.

Tackle & technique

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.
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.
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

View all on map →
  • Pilot Cove

    Bay · 0.8 mi

    70
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 70
    • Red drum 59
    • Florida pompano 58

    4 kt NNEL 8:36 AM · 1.4 ftH 1:37 PM · 1.8 ft

  • Higgins Shoal

    Bar · 1.5 mi

    70
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 70
    • Florida pompano 58
    • Red drum 55

    4 kt NNEL 8:36 AM · 1.4 ftH 1:37 PM · 1.8 ft

  • Cape Saint George

    Cape · 1.7 mi

    68
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 68
    • Florida pompano 57
    • Red drum 54

    4 kt NNEL 8:36 AM · 1.4 ftH 1:37 PM · 1.8 ft

  • Cape Saint George Shoal

    Bar · 3.6 mi

    68
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 68
    • Florida pompano 57
    • Red drum 54

    4 kt NNEL 8:36 AM · 1.4 ftH 1:37 PM · 1.8 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.