UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN
CobiaRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Common snook71
- Atlantic tarpon70
- Atlantic croaker66
- Crevalle jack66
- Summer flounder65
- Southern flounder64
- Spot63
- Spotted seatrout63
- King mackerel62
- Gray snapper61
- Red drum60
- Weakfish60
- Little tunny58
- Spanish mackerel57
- Black drum55
- Florida pompano55
- Cobia53
- Black sea bass52
- Sheepshead51
- Gag grouper46
- Red snapper45
- Gray triggerfish44
- Red grouper44
- Greater amberjack43
- Bluefish35
Best score today · 9 AM · Cobia
- Now
- 539 AM EDT
- Best window
- 9-10 AMDawn
Data from: ECMWF · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Whiddens Pass 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 · 9 AM · now
- —
Tide & current
Wind & pressure
ECMWF
97Wind: 3 kt NNEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
94Light: DawnSolunar: Major periodSeason & habitat · Cobia
Species seasonality
67Season: ShoulderHabitat: Prime structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
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
- Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
- Bonefish Catch & release (No retention)
- Crevalle jack Retention open
- Florida pompano Retention open (6 per day)
- Gray snapper Retention open (5 per day (10 snapper combined))
- Permit Retention open (2 per day)
- 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)
- Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Cobia is best here
Shoulder season for Cobia · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Whiddens Pass
- Depth
- About 3 ftNearest water
- Structure
- Pass · Inner · Semi-exposed
- Season
- Shoulder seasonCobia
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 Whiddens Pass
Whiddens Pass is a channel in Lake Okeechobee, Florida. Depth in the nearest water is about 3 ft. Its profile reads pass, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 25 species here; the best right now are common snook, Atlantic tarpon and Atlantic croaker. It is peak season now for common snook, Atlantic tarpon, Atlantic croaker and crevalle jack, and shoulder season for weakfish, little tunny, Spanish mackerel and black drum. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from July through September. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October.
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.
- 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 tarpon
- Tarpon roll along beaches, in passes and channels, and under bridges from late spring through fall, and in South Florida some fish stay through winter in warm canals and backcountry rivers. Live crabs, mullet or pinfish drifted through a pass on the outgoing tide, or a fly or soft plastic cast ahead of a rolling string of fish, are the main approaches. Use a long heavy leader, bow to the jumps, and keep big fish in the water for release.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Brice Fine Pass71
Channel · 0.5 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 71
- Crevalle jack 66
- Atlantic tarpon 62
3 kt NNE
- Dynamite Pass69
Gut · 4.5 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 69
- Crevalle jack 64
- Atlantic tarpon 60
3 kt NNE
- Cochrans Pass69
Channel · 4.8 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 69
- Crevalle jack 65
- Atlantic tarpon 60
3 kt NNE
- Observation Shoal63
Bar · 3.2 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 63
- Crevalle jack 57
- Atlantic tarpon 53
3 kt NNE
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.