Waterlands

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PermitRetention open

Cape · Florida

Cabbage Patch Point

27.91°N · 82.66°W · Cape · Tampa Bay waters

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Best score today · 6 PM · Permit

77/100Great
Now
675 PM EDT
Best window
5-7 PMEbb tide
Tide now
Ebbing1.2 ft ▼

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 5 PM · now

Time5PNOW
Score67Great
Tide1.2 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.6 kn · toward SE
Wind7 kn ESEgusts 15 · steady
Sea stateCalm0.4 ft · 5 s
Air temp78°Warm
WeatherOvercast96% chance of rain
Water88°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Permit

Retention open
Daily limit
2 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Slot 11 to 22 in, fork length. One fish over 22 inches allowed per person, counted in the bag limit.
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
No more than 2 permit over 22 inches per vessel. Hook and line only in state waters. No multiple hooks with natural bait. No snatching. Outside the Special Permit Zone. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Permit, Florida pompano and African pompano, 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)
  • 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 Permit is best here

Shoulder season for Permit · 1 more week at shoulder

Permit season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Permit · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Permit in Florida

Spot profile

Cabbage Patch Point

Depth
1-4 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonPermit

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 Cabbage Patch Point

Cabbage Patch Point is a cape in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is 1-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are red drum, Atlantic tarpon and common snook. It is peak season now for red drum, common snook, gray snapper and Atlantic croaker, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, permit, southern flounder and black drum. Red drum peak from September through November. Atlantic tarpon peak from May through July. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October.

Tackle & technique

Permit
Permit cruise flat edges and channels in 2 to 6 feet of water in the Keys and Biscayne Bay, and school over wrecks and reefs in 30 to 120 feet, especially during the spring spawn. A live or artificial crab is the standard bait, cast ahead of a tailing fish on the flats or dropped to a school on a wreck. They spook easily in shallow water, so good light and a long, quiet cast are needed.
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.
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 Island Gap

    Channel · 1.1 mi

    74
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 74
    • Red drum 73
    • Common snook 71

    7 kt ESEL 7:58 PM · 0.6 ftH 2:45 AM · 2.4 ft

  • Cedar Point

    Cape · 0.7 mi

    73
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 73
    • Common snook 66
    • Atlantic tarpon 66

    7 kt ESEL 7:58 PM · 0.6 ftH 2:45 AM · 2.4 ft

  • South Gandy Channel

    Channel · 4.2 mi

    73
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 73
    • Common snook 73
    • Gray snapper 70

    6 kt ESEL 7:04 PM · 0.4 ftH 1:57 AM · 2.2 ft

  • Old Tampa Bay

    Bay · 2.8 mi

    68
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 68
    • Common snook 67
    • Red drum 66

    5 kt SEL 7:23 PM · 0.5 ftH 2:43 AM · 2.1 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.