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SailfishRetention openChannel · Florida
Steamboat Gap
29.19°N · 83.11°W · Channel · Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker76
- Gray snapper72
- Red drum70
- Atlantic tarpon67
- Black drum65
- Florida pompano65
- Spanish mackerel65
- Crevalle jack64
- Southern flounder62
- Gag grouper61
- Permit61
- King mackerel59
- Gray triggerfish57
- Red grouper57
- Red snapper57
- Spotted seatrout55
- Cobia54
- Greater amberjack52
- Yellowfin tuna49
- Sailfish47
- Wahoo43
- Mahi-mahi42
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 9 AM · Sailfish
- Now
- 4710 AM EDT
- Best window
- 10 AM-6 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding3.3 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Steamboat Gap 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 · 10 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
78Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.2 knWind & pressure
ECMWF
96Wind: 7 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
56Water temp: 86°F, warmLight: OvercastSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 0.7 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
Steamboat Gap
- Depth
- 6-9 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Channel · Outer · Semi-exposedChannel · 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 Steamboat Gap
Steamboat Gap is a channel in Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is 6-9 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads channel, outer water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 23 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, gray snapper and red drum. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, gray snapper and red drum, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, black drum, Florida pompano and Spanish mackerel. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Gray snapper peak from June through September. 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.
- Gray snapper
- Mangrove snapper hold tight to mangrove roots, bridge pilings, jetties and reef ledges, from a few feet deep inshore to 150 feet offshore. Chum to pull them out of cover, then freeline or lightly weight a live shrimp or pilchard on fluorocarbon leader, since they shy away from heavy line in clear water. The bite improves at dusk and after dark.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Derrick Key Gap76
Channel · 1.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 76
- Gray snapper 72
- Red drum 70
7 kt NEH 12:05 PM · 3.9 ftL 6:47 PM · 0.5 ft
- Suwannee Reef75
Bar · 0.7 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 75
- Gray snapper 74
- Red drum 73
7 kt NEH 12:05 PM · 3.9 ftL 6:47 PM · 0.5 ft
- Pelican Reef75
Bar · 2.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 75
- Gray snapper 74
- Red drum 73
7 kt NEH 12:05 PM · 3.9 ftL 6:47 PM · 0.5 ft
- White Shell Bar72
Bar · 1.8 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 72
- Red drum 70
- Gray snapper 67
7 kt NEH 12:05 PM · 3.9 ftL 6:47 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.