Waterlands

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Spanish mackerelRetention open

Cape · Florida

Lands End

30.08°N · 85.65°W · Cape · St. Andrews Bay Waterways

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Best score today · 6 AM · Florida pompano

75/100Great
Now
748 AM CST
Best window
8-10 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.5 ft ▼

Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine

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24-hour conditions

Saturday, Nov 14 · 4 PM

Time4P
Score62Good
Tide0.2 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentSlack0.1 kn
Wind15 kn ESEgusts 30 · steady
Air temp71°Warm
WeatherMostly cloudy74% cloud
Water75°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Spanish mackerel

Retention open
Daily limit
15 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 12 in, fork length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Beach or haul seine, cast net, hook and line, or spear. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spanish Mackerel, 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 Closed (No retention)
  • 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 Closed (No retention)
  • Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
  • Sheepshead Retention open (8 per day)
  • Snook Retention open (1 per day)
  • Southern flounder Closed (No retention)
  • Spot Retention open
  • Spotted seatrout Retention open (3 per day)
  • Summer flounder Closed (No retention)
  • Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
  • Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)

Source: FWC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Spanish mackerel is best here

Peak season for Spanish mackerel · 2 more weeks at peak

Spanish mackerel season by week of the year. Peak season for Spanish mackerel · 2 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Spanish mackerel in Florida →

Spot profile

Lands End

Depth
1-20 ftSlope
Structure
Point · Inner · ProtectedPoint · slope
Season
Peak seasonSpanish mackerel

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 Lands End

Lands End is a cape in St. Andrews Bay Waterways, Florida. Depth is 1-20 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads point, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 19 species here; the best right now are Spanish mackerel, red drum and king mackerel. It is peak season now for Spanish mackerel, red drum, spotted seatrout and Florida pompano, and shoulder season for king mackerel, gray snapper, sheepshead and black drum. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. Red drum peak from September through November. King mackerel peak in May and in October.

Tackle & technique

Spanish mackerel
Spanish mackerel school along beaches and around inlets, jetties, piers and bridge-tunnel structures, and along tide rips in 5 to 40 feet of water once the water climbs above about 68 degrees F. Troll small spoons or cast metal jigs and retrieve fast, or look for birds diving on bait and cast into the school. FWC calls for a 30 to 60 pound monofilament leader because their teeth cut light line.
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.
King mackerel
Kings roam from beaches and pier ends out to reefs, wrecks and ledges in 40 to 200 feet, usually feeding in the upper half of the water column. Slow-troll live menhaden, blue runners or cigar minnows on a light wire stinger rig, or pull spoons and ribbonfish past bait schools. Look for clean green water above 68 F with bait and birds on it.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Fred Bayou

    Bay · 3.7 mi

    77
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 77
    • Spotted seatrout 73
    • Spanish mackerel 72

    11 kt ENEL 3:50 PM · 0.3 ftH 5:20 AM · 1.6 ft

  • Smack Bayou

    Bay · 3.6 mi

    76
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 76
    • Spanish mackerel 72
    • Spotted seatrout 72

    9 kt ENEL 1:46 PM · 0.2 ftH 3:59 AM · 1.4 ft

  • Military Point

    Cape · 3.5 mi

    75
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 75
    • Red drum 73
    • Spotted seatrout 71

    8 kt ENEL 3:50 PM · 0.3 ftH 5:20 AM · 1.6 ft

  • Palmetto Point

    Cape · 3.0 mi

    73
    Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season
    • Spanish mackerel 73
    • King mackerel 70
    • Red drum 69

    9 kt ENEL 1:46 PM · 0.2 ftH 3:59 AM · 1.4 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.