Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

Gray triggerfishRetention open

Bay · Florida

Fish Creek Bay

28.83°N · 82.72°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 11 PM · Gray triggerfish

75/100Great
Now
386 AM EDT
Best window
9 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.3 ft ▼

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

Notify me when Fish Creek Bay scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: Mon · 83

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 6 AM · now

Time6ANOW
Score38Fair
Tide1.3 ft ▼Ebbing
Current0.0 knmodeled · toward E
Wind2 kn ENEgusts 5 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.3 ft · 5 s
Air temp73°Warm
WeatherOvercast100% cloud
Water87°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Gray triggerfish

Retention open
Daily limit
1 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 15 in, fork length
Season
Aug 1 to Dec 31, 2026
Annual quota
Not published
Changes
Closed from Jan 1
Other
Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. Gulf season is March 1 through May 31 and August 1 through December 31. Federal waters can close early if the quota is met.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Gray Triggerfish, 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))
  • 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))
  • 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 (5 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 Gray triggerfish is best here

Shoulder season for Gray triggerfish · 9 more weeks at shoulder

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

Gray triggerfish in Florida →

Spot profile

Fish Creek Bay

Depth
Under 1 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Outer · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonGray triggerfish

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 Fish Creek Bay

Fish Creek Bay is a bay in Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is under 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, outer water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 24 species here; the best right now are red drum, common snook and Atlantic croaker. It is peak season now for red drum, common snook, Atlantic croaker and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, southern flounder, permit and black drum. Red drum peak from September through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September.

Tackle & technique

Gray triggerfish
Gray triggerfish hover a few feet over reefs, wrecks and ledges, usually in 60 to 200 feet, and often show up while snapper fishing. Use small, strong circle hooks with small pieces of squid or cut bait on a short bottom rig, because they nibble and strip big baits. Keep the bait just off the bottom and reel steadily at the first solid pull.
Red drum
Redfish feed on shallow grass flats, oyster bars and marsh edges, often in 1 to 4 feet of water, and drop into channels, deep holes and tidal creeks when the water turns very hot or cold. Work a live shrimp under a popping cork or a soft plastic along the grass line on a rising tide, then fish creek mouths and drains as the tide falls. Bull reds over 30 inches school in the surf, passes and jetties in late summer and fall, where cut mullet or a live crab on the bottom is the standard approach.
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

View all on map →
  • Grey Mare Pass

    Channel · 0.8 mi

    62
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 62
    • Red drum 61
    • Atlantic croaker 58

    2 kt ENEL 6:57 AM · 1.2 ftH 12:48 PM · 3.3 ft

  • Fish Creek

    Bay · 1.6 mi

    62
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 62
    • Atlantic croaker 61
    • Common snook 61

    2 kt ENEL 10:31 AM · 0.1 ftH 5:08 PM · 0.7 ft

  • Long Point

    Cape · 1.8 mi

    62
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 62
    • Common snook 60
    • Atlantic croaker 57

    2 kt ENEL 6:57 AM · 1.2 ftH 12:48 PM · 3.3 ft

  • Green Point

    Cape · 1.4 mi

    61
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 61
    • Common snook 60
    • Atlantic croaker 55

    2 kt ENEL 6:57 AM · 1.2 ftH 12:48 PM · 3.3 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.