Waterlands

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Black drumRetention open

Cape · Florida

Long Point

30.24°N · 85.76°W · Cape · St. Andrews Bay Waterways

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Best score today · 6 PM · Black drum

75/100Great
Now
5511 PM CDT
Best window
11 PM-12 AMFlood tide
Tide now
Flooding1.6 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 11 PM · now

Time11PNOW
Score55Good
Tide1.6 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.4 kn · toward N
Wind5 kn NEgusts 8 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.1 ft · 5 s
Air temp74°Warm
WeatherClear0% cloud
Water86°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

Black drum

Retention open
Daily limit
5 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Slot 14 to 24 in, total length. One fish over 24 inches allowed, counted in the bag limit.
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Hook and line, cast net, seine, spear or gig. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Black Drum, read Sep 13

Other species here

  • Atlantic croaker Retention open
  • 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 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 (3 per day)
  • Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
  • Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
  • Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Black drum is best here

Shoulder season for Black drum · 19 more weeks at shoulder

Black drum season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Black drum · 19 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Black drum in Florida

Spot profile

Long Point

Depth
1-5 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonBlack drum

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 Long Point

Long Point is a cape in St. Andrews Bay Waterways, Florida. Depth is 1-5 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 19 species here; the best right now are gray snapper, red drum and Atlantic croaker. It is peak season now for gray snapper, red drum and Atlantic croaker, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, black drum, red snapper and crevalle jack. Gray snapper peak from June through September. Red drum peak from September through November. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September.

Tackle & technique

Black drum
Black drum root along the bottom around oyster reefs, bridge and pier pilings, channel edges and shallow mud flats. TPWD notes they rarely take artificials, so fish peeled shrimp, crab, clams or sand fleas on a bottom rig and let the fish load the rod before setting the hook. Big spawning schools gather near passes and bay mouths in late winter and spring, and in the Chesapeake and Delaware Bay the large fish show up on the shoals from April into June.
Gray snapper
Mangrove snapper hold tight to mangrove roots, bridge pilings, jetties and reef ledges, from a few feet deep inshore to 150 feet offshore. Chum to pull them out of cover, then freeline or lightly weight a live shrimp or pilchard on fluorocarbon leader, since they shy away from heavy line in clear water. The bite improves at dusk and after dark.
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

  • 76
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 76
    • Atlantic croaker 73
    • Gray snapper 69

    5 kt NEH 2:42 AM · 2.0 ftL 3:01 PM · 0.3 ft

  • Harrison Bayou

    Bay · 0.9 mi

    76
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 76
    • Atlantic croaker 73
    • Gray snapper 69

    5 kt NEH 2:42 AM · 2.0 ftL 3:01 PM · 0.3 ft

  • West Bay

    Bay · 2.3 mi

    74
    Top: Gray snapperPeak season
    • Gray snapper 74
    • Atlantic croaker 73
    • Red drum 73

    5 kt NEH 3:17 AM · 1.9 ftL 2:26 PM · 0.5 ft

  • Shell Point

    Cape · 1.9 mi

    69
    Top: Gray snapperPeak season
    • Gray snapper 69
    • Red drum 69
    • Atlantic croaker 67

    5 kt NEH 2:42 AM · 2.0 ftL 3:01 PM · 0.3 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.