Waterlands

UPDATEDAUTO-REFRESH 5 MIN

Gray snapperRetention open

Cape · Florida

Turtlecrawl Point

27.80°N · 82.77°W · Cape · Tampa Bay waters

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 8 AM · Common snook

77/100Great
Now
6911 AM EDT
Best window
7-10 PMDusk
Tide now
Ebbing1.0 ft ▼

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

Notify me when Turtlecrawl Point scores 75+

Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.

Sign in to set an alert

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 11 AM · now

Time11ANOW
Score69Great
Tide1.0 ft ▼Ebbing
CurrentEbb0.7 kn · toward SW
Wind5 kn Egusts 15 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.6 ft · 3 s
Air temp85°Hot
WeatherMostly cloudy64% cloud
Water86°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Gulf state waters (Escambia through Collier counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Gray snapper

Retention open
Daily limit
5 per day (10 snapper combined)
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 10 in, total length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Open year-round in Gulf and Atlantic state waters. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. Counts toward the 10-snapper aggregate per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. Federal waters have a 12-inch minimum and a 10-fish bag.

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 Retention open (2 per day (4 Gulf grouper 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)
  • 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)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Gray snapper is best here

Peak season for Gray snapper · 1 more week at peak

Gray snapper season by week of the year. Peak season for Gray snapper · 1 more week at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Gray snapper in Florida

Spot profile

Turtlecrawl Point

Depth
3-8 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Inner · Semi-exposedPoint · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonGray 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 Turtlecrawl Point

Turtlecrawl Point is a cape in Tampa Bay waters, Florida. Depth in the nearest water is 3-8 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads point, inner water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 20 species here; the best right now are gray snapper, red drum and common snook. It is peak season now for gray snapper, red drum, common snook and Atlantic croaker, and shoulder season for Atlantic tarpon, crevalle jack, permit and Spanish mackerel. Gray snapper peak from June through September. Red drum peak from September through November. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October.

Tackle & technique

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.
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.
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

  • Cross Bayou

    Bay · 1.7 mi

    78
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 78
    • Atlantic croaker 70
    • Gray snapper 68

    5 kt EL 2:39 PM · 0.6 ftH 7:04 AM · 2.5 ft

  • Long Bayou

    Bay · 0.5 mi

    76
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 76
    • Atlantic croaker 71
    • Gray snapper 69

    5 kt EL 2:20 PM · 0.5 ftH 6:22 AM · 2.2 ft

  • Devils Elbow

    Channel · 2.9 mi

    74
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 74
    • Red drum 72
    • Gray snapper 71

    5 kt EL 3:40 PM · 0.5 ftH 7:18 AM · 2.1 ft

  • Boca Ciega Bay

    Bay · 2.2 mi

    71
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 71
    • Red drum 71
    • Gray snapper 70

    5 kt EL 3:40 PM · 0.5 ftH 7:18 AM · 2.1 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.