Waterlands

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Gag grouperRetention open

Bay · Florida

The Narrows

28.87°N · 82.64°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM

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Best score today · 7 PM · Gag grouper

78/100Great
Now
606 PM EDT
Best window
6-9 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.2 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: Mon · 83

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 6 PM · now

Time6PNOW
Score60Good
Tide1.2 ft ▼Ebbing
Current0.1 knmodeled · toward W
Wind6 kn ENEgusts 21 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.5 ft · 3 s
Air temp78°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy72% chance of rain
Water86°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Gag grouper

Retention open
Daily limit
2 per day (4 Gulf grouper combined)
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 24 in, total length
Season
Sep 1 to Sep 30, 2026
Annual quota
Not published
Changes
Closed from Oct 1
Other
Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Charter captain and crew bag limit is zero. No more than 4 grouper combined per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. FWC set the 2026 Gulf state waters gag season to September 1 through 30 by executive order, matching the federal season. Excludes Monroe County.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Groupers, 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)
  • 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))
  • 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 today

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Gag grouper is best here

Shoulder season for Gag grouper · 1 more week at shoulder

Gag grouper season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Gag grouper · 1 more week at shoulder.
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Gag grouper in Florida →

Spot profile

The Narrows

Depth
Under 1 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonGag grouper

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 The Narrows

The Narrows 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 channel, inner water and protected.

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

Tackle & technique

Gag grouper
Gag hold on ledges, rock piles and wrecks, from 15 to 40 feet in the fall on Florida's Gulf coast out to 250 feet the rest of the year. Troll deep-diving plugs to find productive rocks, then anchor and drop or freeline live pinfish or pigfish on a strong circle hook. Keep the drag tight and turn the fish in the first few seconds or it will reach the rocks.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →
  • Coon Gap

    Bay · 2.2 mi

    77
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 77
    • Red drum 76
    • Atlantic croaker 72

    7 kt ENEL 9:12 PM · 0.2 ftH 2:54 AM · 1.6 ft

  • Little Coon Gap

    Bay · 2.4 mi

    77
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 77
    • Red drum 76
    • Atlantic croaker 72

    7 kt ENEL 9:12 PM · 0.2 ftH 2:54 AM · 1.6 ft

  • Dixie Bay

    Bay · 0.7 mi

    76
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 76
    • Red drum 75
    • Atlantic croaker 71

    7 kt ENEL 10:06 PM · 0.3 ftH 3:09 AM · 1.2 ft

  • Salt Creek

    Bay · 1.0 mi

    74
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 74
    • Red drum 72
    • Atlantic croaker 69

    6 kt ENEL 10:06 PM · 0.3 ftH 3:09 AM · 1.2 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.