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Red snapperClosedSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Spotted seatrout70
- Common snook68
- Red drum67
- Black drum64
- Spanish mackerel58
- Gray snapper57
- Sheepshead55
- King mackerel51
- Florida pompano50
- Gray triggerfish49
- Red grouper49
- Atlantic croaker35
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Crevalle jack35
- Permit35
- Gag grouper20
- Greater amberjack20
- Red snapper20
- Southern flounder20
Best score today · 7 AM · Red snapper
- Now
- 203 AM EST
- Best window
- 6-11 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.1 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Garrison Channel 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
Monday, Nov 16 · 2 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
99Tide: FloodingCurrent: SlackWind & pressure
ECMWF
97Wind: 5 kt SWPressure: FallingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
60Water temp: 76°F, primeLight: NightSolunar: Between periodsSeason & habitat · Red snapper
Species seasonality
47Closed season · capped at 20Season: ShoulderHabitat: Poor fitDepth: Out of range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Red snapper(private recreational)
Closed- Daily limit
- No retention
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Not published
- Season
- Aug 1, 2026 to Jan 4, 2027
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Retention open from Nov 7
- Other
- Closed between the 2026 open days. The fall season is daily September 1 through October 4, then weekends and holidays only through January 4, 2027. The 2027 season has not been announced.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Snappers, 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))
- 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)
- 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 Red snapper is best here
Shoulder season for Red snapper · 25 more weeks at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Garrison Channel
- Depth
- Up to 35 ftSlope
- Structure
- Channel · Inner · ProtectedChannel · slope
- Season
- Shoulder seasonRed snapper
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 Garrison Channel
Garrison Channel is a channel in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is up to 35 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are spotted seatrout, common snook and red drum. It is peak season now for spotted seatrout, red drum, Spanish mackerel and Florida pompano, and shoulder season for common snook, black drum, gray snapper and sheepshead. Spotted seatrout peak from March through May and from October through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Red drum peak from September through November.
Tackle & technique
- Red snapper
- Red snapper school over rigs, wrecks, artificial reefs and natural ledges, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Anchor or drift over the structure, chum, and drop cut or live cigar minnows, sardines or squid on circle hooks, using as little weight as the current allows. Federal rules require circle hooks with natural bait in the Gulf and a descending device or venting tool on board.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Hillsboro River Channel (historical)70
Channel · 0.5 mi
Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season- Spotted seatrout 70
- Common snook 68
- Red drum 67
8 kt EL 3:53 AM · 1.0 ftH 10:06 AM · 2.4 ft
- Ybor Channel66
Channel · 0.7 mi
Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season- Spotted seatrout 66
- Common snook 63
- Red drum 62
8 kt EH 9:09 AM · 2.6 ftL 4:08 PM · 0.5 ft
- Sparkman Channel63
Channel · 0.6 mi
Top: Common snookShoulder season- Common snook 63
- Spotted seatrout 63
- Red drum 62
8 kt EH 9:09 AM · 2.6 ftL 4:08 PM · 0.5 ft
- Seddon Channel62
Channel · 0.7 mi
Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season- Spotted seatrout 62
- Common snook 60
- Red drum 58
8 kt EH 9:08 AM · 2.6 ftL 4:00 PM · 0.5 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.