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Spotted seatroutRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all72
- Spotted seatrout72
- Spanish mackerel70
- Florida pompano68
- Red drum68
- Common snook67
- Black drum62
- King mackerel62
- Gray snapper54
- Sheepshead54
- Gray triggerfish49
- Red grouper49
- Atlantic croaker35
- Atlantic tarpon35
- Cobia35
- Crevalle jack35
- Permit35
- Gag grouper20
- Greater amberjack20
- Red snapper20
- Southern flounder20
Best score today · 7 PM · Spotted seatrout
- Now
- 724 PM EST
- Best window
- 5-10 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Flooding0.1 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Gooseneck 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
Thursday, Nov 5 · 9 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
90Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.5 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
100Wind: 5 kt ESEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
96Water temp: 77°F, primeLight: MorningSolunar: Major periodSeas: 0.1 ftSeason & habitat · Spanish mackerel
Species seasonality
99Season: PeakHabitat: Prime structureDepth: Out of range
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 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))
- 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
- Summer flounder Closed (No retention)
- 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
Peak season for Spotted seatrout · 4 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Gooseneck Pass
- Depth
- Up to 3 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Pass · Inner · Semi-exposedPass · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak 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 Gooseneck Pass
Gooseneck Pass is a channel in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth 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 spotted seatrout, Spanish mackerel and Florida pompano. It is peak season now for spotted seatrout, Spanish mackerel, Florida pompano and red drum, and shoulder season for common snook, black drum, king mackerel and gray snapper. Spotted seatrout peak from March through May and from October through November. Spanish mackerel peak from April through May and from October through November. Florida pompano peak from March through May and from October 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.
- 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.
- Florida pompano
- Pompano feed on sand fleas and coquina clams in the trough between the beach and the first sandbar, and around the sandy edges of passes, inlets and bridges. Surf anglers fish a two-hook pompano rig with sand fleas, clams or shrimp, while boat and bridge anglers bounce small jigs along the bottom. The runs follow water temperature, heading north in spring and south in fall as the water cools.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Big Pass74
Channel · 0.5 mi
Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season- Spotted seatrout 74
- Red drum 73
- Spanish mackerel 71
8 kt EH 10:15 PM · 1.2 ftL 3:15 AM · 0.7 ft
- Coon Creek72
Channel · 0.5 mi
Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season- Spotted seatrout 72
- Red drum 69
- Common snook 64
8 kt EH 10:52 PM · 1.6 ftL 3:15 AM · 1.3 ft
- Little Cockroach Bay72
Bay · 0.7 mi
Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season- Spotted seatrout 72
- Red drum 71
- Florida pompano 62
8 kt EH 10:52 PM · 1.6 ftL 3:15 AM · 1.3 ft
- Marys Point66
Cape · 0.5 mi
Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season- Spotted seatrout 66
- Red drum 64
- Florida pompano 63
8 kt EH 10:15 PM · 1.2 ftL 3:15 AM · 0.7 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.