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SheepsheadRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Spanish mackerel70
- Common snook64
- King mackerel63
- Black drum62
- Red drum61
- Sheepshead60
- Spotted seatrout59
- Florida pompano58
- Gray snapper57
- Gray triggerfish56
- Red grouper56
- Atlantic croaker35
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Crevalle jack35
- Permit35
- Gag grouper20
- Greater amberjack20
- Red snapper20
- Southern flounder20
Best score today · 6 PM · Sheepshead
- Now
- 6011 AM EST
- Best window
- 5-9 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.3 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Blind 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
Sunday, Nov 15 · 7 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
100Tide: EbbingCurrent: 0.5 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 7 kt NNWPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
78Water temp: 75°F, warmLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeason & habitat · Sheepshead
Species seasonality
62Season: ShoulderHabitat: Usable structureDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Sheepshead
Retention open- Daily limit
- 8 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Minimum 12 in, total length
- Season
- No closed season on file
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Other
- State rules extend into federal waters. 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. A 50-fish vessel limit applies in March and April.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Sheepshead, 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))
- Snook Retention open (1 per day)
- Southern flounder Closed (No retention)
- Spanish mackerel Retention open (15 per day)
- 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 Sheepshead is best here
Shoulder season for Sheepshead · 12 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Blind Pass
- Depth
- 8-10 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Pass · Inner · ProtectedPass · flat bottom
- Season
- Shoulder seasonSheepshead
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 Blind Pass
Blind Pass is a channel in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 8-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads pass, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Spanish mackerel, common snook and king mackerel. It is peak season now for Spanish mackerel, red drum, spotted seatrout and Florida pompano, and shoulder season for common snook, king mackerel, black drum and sheepshead. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. King mackerel peak in May and in October.
Tackle & technique
- Sheepshead
- Sheepshead graze barnacles and crabs off pilings, jetty rocks, bridge supports, oyster bars and nearshore reefs, from a few feet deep out to about 50 feet. Drop a fiddler crab, sand flea or piece of shrimp on a small, strong hook straight down next to the structure with just enough weight to hold bottom. The bite is a light tap, so keep the line tight and set the hook fast.
- 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.
- 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
- Boca Ciega Bay66
Bay · 1.4 mi
Top: Spanish mackerelPeak season- Spanish mackerel 66
- Red drum 61
- Common snook 60
11 kt ESEL 3:12 PM · 0.4 ftH 9:37 PM · 1.7 ft
- McPherson Bayou66
Bay · 3.0 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 66
- Spanish mackerel 63
- Spotted seatrout 62
11 kt ESEL 2:10 PM · 0.5 ftH 9:03 PM · 1.8 ft
- Long Bayou66
Bay · 3.2 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 66
- Spanish mackerel 64
- Spotted seatrout 61
11 kt ESEL 1:52 PM · 0.5 ftH 8:41 PM · 1.8 ft
- Devils Elbow62
Channel · 0.5 mi
Top: Black drumShoulder season- Black drum 62
- Common snook 61
- Red drum 61
11 kt ESEL 3:12 PM · 0.4 ftH 9:37 PM · 1.7 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.