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Common snookRetention openSpecies here · tap to switch
- Best of all67
- Common snook67
- Gray snapper62
- Atlantic croaker61
- Red drum60
- Atlantic tarpon58
- Black drum52
- Southern flounder52
- Gag grouper51
- Permit51
- Red snapper51
- Spanish mackerel50
- Crevalle jack48
- Gray triggerfish48
- Red grouper48
- Spotted seatrout43
- Greater amberjack42
- King mackerel42
- Cobia38
- Florida pompano38
- Sheepshead35
Best score today · 8 PM · Common snook
- Now
- 672 AM EDT
- Best window
- 7-11 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.6 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Howard Point 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
Sunday, Sep 27 · 9 AM
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
98Tide: FloodingCurrent: 1.4 kn floodWind & pressure
ECMWF
99Wind: 5 kt NEPressure: SteadyWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
84Water temp: 86°F, warmLight: DawnSolunar: Between periodsSeas: 0.4 ftSeason & habitat · Common snook
Species seasonality
75Season: PeakHabitat: Poor fitDepth: In range
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)
Snook
Retention open- Daily limit
- 1 per day
- Possession
- Not published
- Size
- Slot 28 to 33 in, total length
- Season
- Sep 1 to Nov 30, 2026
- Annual quota
- Not published
- Changes
- Catch & release from Dec 1
- Other
- Snook permit and saltwater fishing license required. Must stay whole until landed ashore. For-hire captain and crew may not keep a bag limit. Hook and line only. Closed December 1 through the end of February and May 1 through August 31. Open March 1 through April 30 and September 1 through November 30. Regional rules apply in inland, state and adjacent federal waters.
From FWC Recreational Regulations: Snook, 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)
- 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 Retention open (2 per day (10 snapper combined))
- Sailfish Retention open (1 per day (1 billfish combined))
- Sheepshead Retention open (8 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 yesterday
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Common snook is best here
Peak season for Common snook · 5 more weeks at peak
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Howard Point
- Depth
- 4-10 ftNearest water
- Structure
- Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
- Season
- Peak seasonCommon snook
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 Howard Point
Howard Point is a cape in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth in the nearest water is 4-10 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.
Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are common snook, gray snapper and Atlantic croaker. It is peak season now for common snook, gray snapper, Atlantic croaker and red drum, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, black drum, southern flounder and gag grouper. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Gray snapper peak from June through September. Atlantic croaker peak from July through September.
Tackle & technique
- 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.
- Gray snapper
- Mangrove snapper hold tight to mangrove roots, bridge pilings, jetties and reef ledges, from a few feet deep inshore to 150 feet offshore. Chum to pull them out of cover, then freeline or lightly weight a live shrimp or pilchard on fluorocarbon leader, since they shy away from heavy line in clear water. The bite improves at dusk and after dark.
- 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.
Nearby spots
Other spots within an easy run
- Clearwater Pass71
Channel · 2.1 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 71
- Atlantic croaker 65
- Atlantic tarpon 63
4 kt ESEL 3:16 AM · 1.8 ftH 9:16 AM · 2.9 ft
- Point Pleasant67
Cape · 0.0 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 67
- Gray snapper 62
- Atlantic croaker 61
4 kt ESEL 4:06 AM · 1.4 ftH 9:44 AM · 2.7 ft
- Shell Point66
Cape · 1.2 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 66
- Gray snapper 60
- Atlantic croaker 59
4 kt ESEL 4:48 AM · 1.4 ftH 10:35 AM · 2.7 ft
- McKay Point66
Cape · 2.2 mi
Top: Common snookPeak season- Common snook 66
- Gray snapper 60
- Atlantic croaker 59
4 kt ESEL 4:48 AM · 1.4 ftH 10:35 AM · 2.7 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.