Waterlands

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CobiaRetention open

Bay · Florida

Waccasassa Bay

29.14°N · 82.84°W · Bay · Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM

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Best score today · 6 PM · Cobia

73/100Great
Now
513 PM EDT
Best window
3-7 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing2.7 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 · 79

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 3 PM · now

Time3PNOW
Score51Good
Tide2.7 ft ▼Ebbing
Current0.2 knmodeled · toward WSW
Wind6 kn NEgusts 16 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.2 ft · 4 s
Air temp88°Hot
WeatherPartly cloudy42% chance of rain
Water86°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Cobia

Retention open
Daily limit
1 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 36 in, fork length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
1 per person or 2 per vessel, whichever is less. Spears, gigs, hook and line, seine or cast net.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Cobia, 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)
  • 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)
  • Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Always check with FWC ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: FWC · synced today

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Cobia is best here

Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder

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

Cobia in Florida →

Spot profile

Waccasassa Bay

Depth
4-6 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Outer · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonCobia

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 Waccasassa Bay

Waccasassa Bay is a bay in Coastal waters from Tarpon Springs to Suwannee River FL out 20 NM, Florida. Depth is 4-6 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, outer water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 23 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, red drum and gray snapper. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, red drum and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, Spanish mackerel, crevalle jack and gag grouper. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Red drum peak from September through November. Gray snapper peak from June through September.

Tackle & technique

Cobia
Cobia cruise inlets, beaches, buoys, wrecks and the backs of rays in 5 to 100 feet of water. On calm, sunny days sight-cast bucktails or live eels to fish near the surface. Otherwise anchor up-current of structure, chum, and fish live eels, crabs or menhaden near the bottom.
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.
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.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

View all on map →
  • East Pass

    Channel · 2.0 mi

    72
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 72
    • Gray snapper 68
    • Red drum 65

    6 kt NEL 7:04 PM · 0.8 ftH 1:21 AM · 3.4 ft

  • West Pass

    Channel · 2.1 mi

    72
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 72
    • Gray snapper 68
    • Red drum 65

    6 kt NEL 7:04 PM · 0.8 ftH 1:21 AM · 3.4 ft

  • Compass Point

    Cape · 1.4 mi

    69
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 69
    • Red drum 65
    • Gray snapper 63

    6 kt NEL 7:59 PM · 0.8 ftH 1:28 AM · 3.1 ft

  • Waccasassa Reefs

    Bar · 2.1 mi

    69
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 69
    • Red drum 66
    • Gray snapper 64

    6 kt NEL 7:59 PM · 0.8 ftH 1:28 AM · 3.1 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.