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Spotted seatroutRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Common snook75
- Atlantic tarpon73
- Red drum73
- Atlantic croaker71
- Gray snapper71
- Permit67
- Crevalle jack66
- Southern flounder66
- Spanish mackerel66
- Black drum60
- King mackerel60
- Cobia59
- Gag grouper58
- Spotted seatrout57
- Gray triggerfish54
- Red grouper54
- Red snapper54
- Greater amberjack53
- Florida pompano49
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 9 AM · Spotted seatrout
- Now
- 575 PM EDT
- Best window
- 10 PM-12 AMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing0.5 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Beacon 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 · 5 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
100Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.8 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
54Wind: 1 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
47Water temp: 88°F, hotLight: Late afternoonSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.1 ftSeason & habitat · Spotted seatrout
Species seasonality
76Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In rangeRegulations: Retention open
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Spotted seatrout
Retention open- Daily limit
- 3 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Slot 15 to 19 in, total length. One fish over 19 inches per vessel, or per person when fishing from shore, counted in the bag limit.
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- Must stay whole until landed ashore. For-hire captain and crew may not keep a bag limit. Hook and line or cast net only. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Open year-round. Regional rules apply in inland, state and adjacent federal waters. New regional rules took effect April 1, 2026.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spotted Seatrout, 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 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
- 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 Spotted seatrout is best here
Shoulder season for Spotted seatrout · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Beacon Pass
- Depth
- Up to 3 ftNearest water
- Structure
- Pass · Inner · Semi-exposedPass · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonSpotted seatrout
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 Beacon Pass
Beacon Pass is a channel in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth in the nearest water is up to 3 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads pass, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are common snook, Atlantic tarpon and red drum. It is peak season now for common snook, red drum, Atlantic croaker and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, permit, crevalle jack and southern flounder. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from May through July. Red drum peak from September through November.
Tackle & technique
- Spotted seatrout
- Trout hold over grass beds and sandy potholes in 2 to 8 feet of water most of the year and slide into channels, deep creek bends and canals during cold snaps. A live shrimp under a slip or popping cork, a paddle tail on a light jighead, or a topwater walked at first light covers most situations. Keep the drag light because their mouths tear easily.
- 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
- Big Cockroach Pass75
Channel · 0.4 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 75
- Atlantic tarpon 73
- Atlantic croaker 71
1 kt NEL 7:21 PM · 0.2 ftH 1:23 AM · 1.4 ft
- Hole in the Wall Pass75
Channel · 0.8 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 75
- Atlantic tarpon 73
- Atlantic croaker 71
1 kt NEL 7:21 PM · 0.2 ftH 1:23 AM · 1.4 ft
- South Stop72
Bay · 0.3 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 72
- Atlantic tarpon 69
- Atlantic croaker 67
1 kt NEL 7:21 PM · 0.2 ftH 1:23 AM · 1.4 ft
- Cockroach Channel72
Channel · 0.8 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 72
- Atlantic tarpon 72
- Atlantic croaker 71
1 kt NEL 7:21 PM · 0.2 ftH 1:23 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.