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SailfishRetention openCape · Florida
First Point
28.43°N · 82.68°W · Cape · Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker71
- Common snook70
- Red drum68
- Florida pompano64
- Atlantic tarpon62
- Permit61
- Southern flounder60
- Gray snapper59
- Spanish mackerel58
- Crevalle jack56
- Black drum55
- King mackerel53
- Gag grouper52
- Spotted seatrout51
- Yellowfin tuna49
- Cobia48
- Gray triggerfish48
- Red grouper48
- Red snapper48
- Sailfish44
- Wahoo44
- Greater amberjack43
- Mahi-mahi43
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 8 AM · Sailfish
- Now
- 4411 AM EDT
- Best window
- 8 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding3.0 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when First Point 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 · 11 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
31Tide: FloodingCurrent: WeakWind & pressure
ECMWF
78Wind: 3 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
Open-Meteo Marine
60Water temp: 86°F, warmLight: OvercastSolunar: Major periodSeas: 0.3 ftSeason & habitat · Sailfish
Species seasonality
61Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier 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
- 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)
- 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))
- 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 (5 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
Shoulder season for Sailfish · 5 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- Not here
- This week
Spot profile
First Point
- Depth
- Up to 1 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Point · Outer · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder 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 First Point
First Point is a cape in Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is up to 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, outer water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, common snook and red drum. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, common snook, red drum and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, Atlantic tarpon, permit and southern flounder. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Red drum peak from September through November.
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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- The Cutoff74
Channel · 1.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 74
- Common snook 73
- Red drum 70
3 kt NEH 11:34 AM · 2.2 ftL 8:05 PM · 0.2 ft
- Second Point71
Cape · 0.3 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 71
- Common snook 70
- Red drum 68
3 kt NEH 11:31 AM · 3.1 ftL 7:27 PM · 0.5 ft
- Hammock Creek71
Bay · 0.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 71
- Common snook 70
- Red drum 68
3 kt NEH 11:31 AM · 3.1 ftL 7:27 PM · 0.5 ft
- Indian Bay71
Bay · 1.3 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 71
- Common snook 70
- Red drum 68
3 kt NEH 11:31 AM · 3.1 ftL 7:27 PM · 0.5 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.