Waterlands

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WahooRetention open

Bay · Florida

Turtle Creek Bay

29.11°N · 82.80°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM

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Best score today · 11 PM · Wahoo

74/100Great
Now
439 AM EDT
Best window
9 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding2.3 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: Sun · 81

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 9 AM · now

Time9ANOW
Score43Fair
Tide2.3 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.1 knmodeled · toward N
Wind5 kn NEgusts 10 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.2 ft · 3 s
Air temp77°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy84% cloud
Water86°FObserved

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 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))
  • 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)
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 · 1 more week at shoulder

Wahoo season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Wahoo · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Wahoo in Florida →

Spot profile

Turtle Creek Bay

Depth
Under 1 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Outer · Semi-exposedBay · 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 Turtle Creek Bay

Turtle 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 23 species here; the best right now are red drum, Atlantic croaker and gray snapper. It is peak season now for red drum, Atlantic croaker and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, southern flounder, crevalle jack and Florida pompano. Red drum peak from September through November. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Gray snapper peak from June through September.

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.
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 →
  • Eleven Prong

    Bay · 1.9 mi

    73
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 73
    • Atlantic croaker 71
    • Gray snapper 67

    5 kt NEH 12:15 PM · 3.5 ftL 7:59 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Lows Bay

    Bay · 3.2 mi

    73
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 73
    • Atlantic croaker 71
    • Gray snapper 67

    5 kt NEH 12:15 PM · 3.5 ftL 7:59 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Waccasassa Bay

    Bay · 3.1 mi

    71
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 71
    • Red drum 70
    • Gray snapper 67

    5 kt NEH 12:15 PM · 3.5 ftL 7:59 PM · 0.8 ft

  • Compass Point

    Cape · 3.5 mi

    71
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 71
    • Red drum 70
    • Gray snapper 67

    5 kt NEH 12:15 PM · 3.5 ftL 7:59 PM · 0.8 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.