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Common snookCatch & releaseBar · Florida
Sawa Rock
24.64°N · 82.86°W · Bar · Gulf of America including Dry Tortugas and Rebecca Shoal Channel
Species here · tap to switch
Best score today · 6 PM · Common snook
- Now
- 443 PM EDT
- Best window
- 5-9 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.8 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Sawa Rock 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 · 3 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
27Tide: EbbingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
99Wind: 4 kt WNWPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
Open-Meteo Marine
47Water temp: 88°F, warmLight: Partly cloudySolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.7 ftSeason & habitat · Common snook
Species seasonality
56Season: PeakHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Catch & release
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Monroe County state waters (Florida Keys)
Snook
Catch & release- Daily limit
- No retention
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- May 1 to Sep 30, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Retention open from Oct 1
- Other
- Harvest is closed, but snook may be caught and released with a snook permit and a saltwater fishing license. Closed December 1 through the end of February and May 1 through September 30. Open March 1 through April 30 and October 1 through November 30. Regional rules apply in inland, state and adjacent federal waters.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Snook, 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 Retention open (1 per day)
- King mackerel Retention open (3 per day)
- Mahi-mahi Check regulations
- Permit Retention open (1 per day)
- Red drum Retention open (1 per day)
- Red grouper Retention open (3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish 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)
- Southern flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- Spot Retention open
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
- Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Common snook is best here
Peak season for Common snook · 9 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Sawa Rock
- Depth
- 40-50 ft
- Structure
- Ledge · Outer · Exposed
- Season
- Peak seasonCommon snook
NOAA NCEI DEM, sampled Sep 13 on a 464 m grid. Depths are feet below mean sea level, not chart datum (MLLW), so they can differ from a chart by a few feet. Not for navigation.
About this spot
Fishing Sawa Rock
Sawa Rock is a bar in Gulf of America including Dry Tortugas and Rebecca Shoal Channel, Florida. Depth is 40-50 ft. Its profile reads ledge, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 18 species here; the best right now are permit, red grouper and crevalle jack. It is peak season now for crevalle jack and common snook, and shoulder season for permit, red grouper, Atlantic tarpon and gray snapper. Permit peak from March through June. Red grouper peak from April through June. Crevalle jack peak from April through May and from September through November.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- Permit
- Permit cruise flat edges and channels in 2 to 6 feet of water in the Keys and Biscayne Bay, and school over wrecks and reefs in 30 to 120 feet, especially during the spring spawn. A live or artificial crab is the standard bait, cast ahead of a tailing fish on the flats or dropped to a school on a wreck. They spook easily in shallow water, so good light and a long, quiet cast are needed.
- Red grouper
- Red grouper live on low limestone ledges and potholed live bottom across the West Florida Shelf, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Drift to find hard bottom, then anchor and fish live pinfish, grunts or squid on the bottom with stout conventional tackle. Reel hard right after the bite, because they dive into holes, and use a descending device on fish released from deep water.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Bird Key Harbor58
Bay · 1.9 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 58
- Crevalle jack 56
- Atlantic tarpon 49
4 kt WSWH 9:38 PM · 1.6 ftL 2:56 AM · 1.1 ft
- Southeast Channel58
Channel · 2.1 mi
Top: Atlantic tarponShoulder season- Atlantic tarpon 58
- Common snook 54
- Crevalle jack 54
5 kt WSWH 9:38 PM · 1.6 ftL 2:56 AM · 1.1 ft
- Bird Key Bank57
Bay · 2.2 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 57
- Common snook 54
- Atlantic tarpon 52
4 kt WSWH 9:38 PM · 1.6 ftL 2:56 AM · 1.1 ft
- Bush Key Shoal51
Bar · 0.7 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 51
- Crevalle jack 48
- Atlantic tarpon 47
4 kt WNWH 9:38 PM · 1.6 ftL 2:56 AM · 1.1 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.