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King mackerelRetention openBay · Florida
Sand Bay
28.21°N · 82.77°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker73
- Common snook68
- Red drum67
- Florida pompano66
- Permit61
- Atlantic tarpon60
- Southern flounder59
- Gray snapper58
- Spanish mackerel58
- Black drum56
- Crevalle jack55
- Gag grouper52
- Gray triggerfish49
- King mackerel49
- Red grouper49
- Red snapper49
- Spotted seatrout49
- Yellowfin tuna49
- Cobia46
- Sailfish46
- Greater amberjack43
- Mahi-mahi43
- Wahoo42
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 7 PM · King mackerel
- Now
- 4911 AM EDT
- Best window
- 7-11 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing3.5 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Sand Bay 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
34Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 5 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
56Water temp: 86°F, warmLight: Partly cloudySolunar: Major periodSeas: 0.7 ftSeason & habitat · King mackerel
Species seasonality
68Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
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 (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 King mackerel is best here
Shoulder season for King mackerel · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Sand Bay
- Depth
- 1-3 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 Sand Bay
Sand Bay is a bay in Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is 1-3 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, 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, permit, Atlantic tarpon 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
- 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.
- 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
- Ben Pilot Point73
Cape · 0.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 73
- Common snook 67
- Florida pompano 66
5 kt NEL 6:00 PM · 0.7 ftH 11:47 PM · 3.2 ft
- Fillmans Creek73
Bay · 1.2 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 73
- Common snook 67
- Florida pompano 66
5 kt NEL 6:00 PM · 0.7 ftH 11:47 PM · 3.2 ft
- Big Bayou Point73
Cape · 2.2 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 73
- Florida pompano 66
- Common snook 63
5 kt NEL 6:28 PM · 0.7 ftH 12:18 AM · 3.1 ft
- Big Bayou71
Bay · 2.3 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 71
- Common snook 66
- Red drum 65
5 kt NEL 6:00 PM · 0.7 ftH 11:47 PM · 3.2 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.