Waterlands

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WahooRetention open

Bar · Florida

Suwannee Reef

29.27°N · 83.18°W · Bar · Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 6 PM · Wahoo

83/100Great
Now
5212 PM EST
Best window
3-8 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Ebbing0.5 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: today · 83

24-hour conditions

Monday, Nov 2 · 7 AM

Time7A
Score56Good
Tide3.1 ftHigh
Current0.3 knmodeled · toward NW
Wind10 kn ENEgusts 18 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.4 ft · 3 s
Air temp70°Warm
WeatherPartly cloudy22% cloud
Water74°FBias corrected

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Wahoo

Retention open
Daily limit
2 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Not published
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
No minimum size. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Wahoo, 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 Closed (No retention)
  • Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
  • Gray triggerfish Retention open (1 per day)
  • Greater amberjack Closed (No retention)
  • 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 Closed (No retention)
  • Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
  • Spot Retention open
  • Spotted seatrout Retention open (5 per day)
  • Summer flounder Closed (No retention)
  • Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
Always check with FWC ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: FWC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Wahoo is best here

Shoulder season for Wahoo · 4 more weeks at shoulder

Wahoo season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Wahoo · 4 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Wahoo in Florida →

Spot profile

Suwannee Reef

Depth
5-8 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Reef · Outer · Semi-exposedReef · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonWahoo

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 Suwannee Reef

Suwannee Reef is a bar in Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is 5-8 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads reef, outer water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 23 species here; the best right now are red drum, Spanish mackerel and king mackerel. It is peak season now for red drum, Spanish mackerel, spotted seatrout and Florida pompano, and shoulder season for king mackerel, black drum, gray triggerfish and red grouper. Red drum peak from September through November. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. King mackerel peak in May and in October.

Tackle & technique

Wahoo
Wahoo patrol drop-offs, seamounts, rigs and weed lines where current and temperature breaks meet, usually along the 100 to 600 foot contours. High-speed trolling at 12 to 18 knots with weighted lures covers ground, and slower trolling with ballyhoo or diving plugs works over known structure. Use wire leader, because their teeth cut monofilament.
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.
Spanish mackerel
Spanish mackerel school along beaches and around inlets, jetties, piers and bridge-tunnel structures, and along tide rips in 5 to 40 feet of water once the water climbs above about 68 degrees F. Troll small spoons or cast metal jigs and retrieve fast, or look for birds diving on bait and cast into the school. FWC calls for a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader because their teeth cut light line.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →
  • Wadley Pass

    Channel · 2.6 mi

    73
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 73
    • Spotted seatrout 69
    • Red drum 68

    9 kt EL 1:10 PM · 0.3 ftH 7:50 PM · 2.4 ft

  • Ranch Bar Gap

    Channel · 1.1 mi

    70
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 70
    • Spotted seatrout 69
    • Red drum 68

    9 kt EL 1:10 PM · 0.3 ftH 7:50 PM · 2.4 ft

  • Halfmoon Reef

    Bar · 2.0 mi

    70
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 70
    • Spanish mackerel 69
    • Spotted seatrout 68

    9 kt EL 1:10 PM · 0.3 ftH 7:50 PM · 2.4 ft

  • White Shell Bar Gap

    Channel · 2.7 mi

    70
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 70
    • Red drum 67
    • Spotted seatrout 67

    9 kt EL 1:10 PM · 0.3 ftH 7:50 PM · 2.4 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.