Waterlands

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Greater amberjackRetention open

Cape · Florida

Palm Point

29.85°N · 85.33°W · Cape · Coastal Waters from Mexico Beach to Apalachicola out 20 NM

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Best score today · 7 AM · Greater amberjack

72/100Great
Now
409 AM EDT
Best window
9 AM-1 PMEbb tide
Tide now
High1.9 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 · 77

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 9 AM · now

Time9ANOW
Score40Fair
Tide1.9 ftHigh
Current0.4 knmodeled · toward S
Wind6 kn ENEgusts 14 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.4 ft · 4 s
Air temp76°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy55% cloud
Water87°FBias corrected

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Greater amberjack

Retention open
Daily limit
1 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 34 in, fork length
Season
Sep 1 to Oct 13, 2026
Annual quota
Not published
Changes
Closed from Oct 14
Other
Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. FWC set the 2026 Gulf season to September 1 through October 13 by executive order, matching the federal season.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Amberjack, 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)
  • 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 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 Greater amberjack is best here

Shoulder season for Greater amberjack · 9 more weeks at shoulder

Greater amberjack season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Greater amberjack · 9 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Greater amberjack in Florida →

Spot profile

Palm Point

Depth
1-20 ftSlope
Structure
Point · Outer · ExposedPoint · slope
Season
Shoulder seasonGreater amberjack

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 Palm Point

Palm Point is a cape in Coastal Waters from Mexico Beach to Apalachicola out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is 1-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads point, outer water and 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 crevalle jack. 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

Greater amberjack
Amberjack school around wrecks, oil rigs, towers and high-relief reefs in 60 to 250 feet, often suspended well above the bottom. Drop a live blue runner or work a heavy jig through the school, then pump hard, because a big AJ runs straight back into the structure. Heavy conventional gear with 50 to 80 pound line is standard.
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 →
  • Eagle Harbor

    Bay · 6.8 mi

    73
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 73
    • Florida pompano 65
    • Gray snapper 61

    7 kt ENEL 6:27 PM · 0.7 ftH 12:00 AM · 1.2 ft

  • Saint Joseph Point

    Cape · 3.8 mi

    72
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 72
    • Florida pompano 65
    • Red drum 59

    7 kt ENEL 6:42 PM · 0.7 ftH 9:52 AM · 1.7 ft

  • Saint Joseph Bay

    Bay · 4.4 mi

    72
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 72
    • Red drum 59
    • Florida pompano 58

    6 kt ENEH 9:13 AM · 1.9 ftL 7:11 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Bell Shoal

    Bar · 8.5 mi

    67
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 67
    • Florida pompano 63
    • Gray snapper 54

    7 kt ENEL 6:42 PM · 0.7 ftH 9:52 AM · 1.7 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.