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PermitRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Atlantic croaker69
- Red drum69
- Common snook63
- Atlantic tarpon60
- Gray snapper59
- Permit57
- Southern flounder56
- Black drum53
- Crevalle jack50
- Spotted seatrout50
- Red snapper47
- Florida pompano46
- Gag grouper46
- Spanish mackerel45
- Gray triggerfish44
- Red grouper44
- Cobia43
- King mackerel40
- Greater amberjack38
- Sheepshead32
Best score today · 8 AM · Permit
- Now
- 572 AM EDT
- Best window
- 7 AM-2 PMEbb tide
- Tide now
- Flooding2.1 ft ▲
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Hells Half Acre 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, Sep 21 · 10 PM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
79Tide: FloodingCurrent: 0.3 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
95Wind: 3 kt EPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
72Water temp: 87°F, warmLight: NightSolunar: Major periodSeas: 0.4 ftSeason & habitat · Permit
Species seasonality
67Season: ShoulderHabitat: Prime structureDepth: Out of range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
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)
Source: FWC · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Permit is best here
Shoulder season for Permit · 1 more week at shoulder
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Hells Half Acre
- Depth
- Up to 1 ftFlat bottom
- Structure
- Bay · Inner · ProtectedBay · 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 Hells Half Acre
Hells Half Acre is a bay in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth is up to 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, inner water and protected.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, red drum and common snook. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, red drum, common snook and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, permit, southern flounder and black drum. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September. Red drum peak from September through November. 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.
- Atlantic croaker
- Croaker feed on mud and sand bottom along channel edges, oyster bars, piers and deeper holes in bays and sounds, mostly in 5 to 30 feet of water. A two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and shrimp, bloodworm or squid catches them from piers, the surf and small boats. Fish the hours around high tide and into the evening.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Bishop Harbor71
Bay · 0.6 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 71
- Common snook 69
- Gray snapper 66
5 kt NEH 5:50 AM · 2.3 ftL 3:33 PM · 0.6 ft
- Southeast Head69
Cape · 0.9 mi
Top: Red drumPeak season- Red drum 69
- Atlantic croaker 64
- Common snook 63
5 kt NEH 5:50 AM · 2.3 ftL 3:33 PM · 0.6 ft
- Clambar Bay69
Bay · 1.5 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 69
- Red drum 69
- Common snook 63
5 kt NEH 5:50 AM · 2.3 ftL 3:33 PM · 0.6 ft
- Piney Point65
Cape · 2.0 mi
Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season- Atlantic croaker 65
- Common snook 64
- Red drum 61
5 kt NEH 5:50 AM · 2.3 ftL 3:33 PM · 0.6 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.