Waterlands

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Spotted seatroutRetention open

Channel · Florida

Hole in the Wall Pass

27.68°N · 82.52°W · Channel · Tampa Bay waters

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Best score today · 7 PM · Spotted seatrout

84/100Great
Now
663 PM EST
Best window
5-10 PMFlood tide
Tide now
Low0.1 ft

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

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24-hour conditions

Sunday, Nov 15 · 6 PM

Time6P
Score78Great
Tide0.9 ft ▲Flooding
CurrentFlood0.7 kn · toward NNE
Wind7 kn Egusts 23 · steady
Air temp73°Warm
WeatherClear14% cloud
Water76°FPersisted

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

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 yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Spotted seatrout is best here

Peak season for Spotted seatrout · 4 more weeks at peak

Spotted seatrout season by week of the year. Peak season for Spotted seatrout · 4 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Spotted seatrout in Florida →

Spot profile

Hole in the Wall Pass

Depth
Up to 3 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Pass · Inner · ProtectedPass · 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 Hole in the Wall Pass

Hole in the Wall 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 protected.

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, king mackerel, black drum 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

  • South Stop

    Bay · 0.6 mi

    67
    Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season
    • Spotted seatrout 67
    • Red drum 66
    • Florida pompano 57

    9 kt EH 10:15 PM · 1.2 ftL 3:15 AM · 0.7 ft

  • Jump Pass

    Channel · 0.2 mi

    66
    Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season
    • Spotted seatrout 66
    • Spanish mackerel 65
    • Florida pompano 64

    9 kt EH 10:15 PM · 1.2 ftL 3:15 AM · 0.7 ft

  • Big Cockroach Pass

    Channel · 0.6 mi

    66
    Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season
    • Spotted seatrout 66
    • Spanish mackerel 65
    • Florida pompano 64

    9 kt EH 10:15 PM · 1.2 ftL 3:15 AM · 0.7 ft

  • Snag Point

    Cape · 0.5 mi

    59
    Top: Spotted seatroutPeak season
    • Spotted seatrout 59
    • Florida pompano 58
    • Red drum 57

    9 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.