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Greater amberjackRetention openBay · Florida
Hells Pocket
27.62°N · 80.35°W · Bay · Sebastian Inlet to Jupiter Inlet 0-20 nm
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker73
- Common snook72
- Spot71
- Atlantic tarpon69
- Crevalle jack67
- Gray snapper64
- Red drum63
- Southern flounder62
- Summer flounder62
- King mackerel61
- Weakfish57
- Black drum54
- Red snapper54
- Spotted seatrout54
- Black sea bass53
- Gray triggerfish51
- Little tunny51
- Spanish mackerel51
- Red grouper50
- Cobia49
- Sheepshead49
- Greater amberjack46
- Mahi-mahi43
- Florida pompano42
- Wahoo41
- Bluefish35
- Yellowfin tuna35
- Sailfish34
- Gag grouper20
Best score today · 6 PM · Greater amberjack
- Now
- 4612 AM EDT
- Best window
- 6 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.6 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Hells Pocket 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 · 12 AM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS + Open-Meteo Marine
74Tide: EbbingCurrent: WeakWind & pressure
ECMWF
90Wind: 2 kt SPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
49Water temp: 84°F, warmLight: NightSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 1.1 ftSeason & habitat · Greater amberjack
Species seasonality
40Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)
Greater amberjack
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 28 in, fork length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Closed from Apr 1
- Other
- Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. Open January through March and May through December. Closed in April.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Amberjack, read Sep 13
Other species here
- Atlantic croaker Retention open (50 per day)
- Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
- Bluefish Retention open (3 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 (10 per day)
- King mackerel Retention open (2 per day)
- Mahi-mahi Retention open (5 per day)
- Permit Retention open (2 per day)
- Red drum Catch & release (No retention)
- Red grouper Retention open (3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish combined))
- Red snapper Check regulations
- 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 (50 per day)
- Spotted seatrout Retention open (2 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 Greater amberjack is best here
Shoulder season for Greater amberjack · 9 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Hells Pocket
- Depth
- 1-4 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Outer · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonGreater amberjack
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 Hells Pocket
Hells Pocket is a bay in Sebastian Inlet to Jupiter Inlet 0-20 nm, Florida. Depth is 1-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, outer water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 29 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, common snook and spot. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, common snook, spot and Atlantic tarpon, and shoulder season for weakfish, black drum, red snapper and black sea bass. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Spot peak from September through October.
Tackle & technique
- Greater amberjack
- Amberjack school around wrecks, oil rigs, towers and high-relief reefs in 60 to 250 feet, often suspended well above the bottom. Drop a live blue runner or work a heavy jig through the school, then pump hard, because a big AJ runs straight back into the structure. Heavy conventional gear with 50 to 80 pound line is standard.
- 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.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Little Starvation Cove72
Bay · 1.4 mi
Top: Atlantic tarponPeak season- Atlantic tarpon 72
- Atlantic croaker 68
- Red drum 68
2 kt SL 4:22 AM · 0.4 ftH 9:44 AM · 0.9 ft
- Dark Point71
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 71
- Atlantic tarpon 69
- Atlantic croaker 68
2 kt SWL 3:57 AM · 0.2 ftH 9:23 AM · 0.7 ft
- Martin Cove69
Bay · 0.3 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 69
- Common snook 69
- Spot 67
2 kt SL 4:22 AM · 0.4 ftH 9:44 AM · 0.9 ft
- Barkers Ditch Cove69
Bay · 0.7 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 69
- Common snook 69
- Spot 67
2 kt SL 4:22 AM · 0.4 ftH 9:44 AM · 0.9 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.