Waterlands

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SailfishRetention open

Cape · Florida

False Cape

28.59°N · 80.58°W · Cape · Volusia-Brevard County Line to Sebastian Inlet 0-20 nm

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Best score today · 8 PM · Sailfish

75/100Great
Now
356 AM EDT
Best window
3 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
High3.9 ft

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 6 AM · now

Time6ANOW
Score35Fair
Tide3.9 ftHigh
Current0.1 knmodeled · toward N
Wind0 kn WNWgusts 2 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.6 ft · 7 s
Air temp74°Warm
WeatherOvercast88% cloud
Water83°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Sailfish

Retention open
Daily limit
1 per day (1 billfish combined)
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 63 in, lower jaw fork length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
Report landed billfish to NOAA within 24 hours. A federal HMS Angling Permit is needed in federal waters, not in state waters. Sailfish you plan to release may not be removed from the water in federal waters, or in state waters if you hold an HMS permit. 1 billfish per person per day. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Billfish, Tuna, and Swordfish, read Sep 13

Other species here

  • Atlantic croaker Retention open (50 per day)
  • Black drum Retention open (5 per day)
  • Bluefish Retention open (3 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 (10 per day)
  • Greater amberjack Retention open (1 per day)
  • King mackerel Retention open (2 per day)
  • Mahi-mahi Retention open (5 per day)
  • Permit Retention open (2 per day)
  • Red drum Catch & release (No retention)
  • Red grouper Retention open (3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish combined))
  • Red snapper Check regulations
  • 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 (50 per day)
  • Spotted seatrout Retention open (2 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 Sailfish is best here

Out of season for Sailfish · shoulder season starts in 6 weeks

Sailfish season by week of the year. Out of season for Sailfish · shoulder season starts in 6 weeks.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Sailfish in Florida

Spot profile

False Cape

Depth
3-35 ftNearest water
Structure
Point · Outer · ExposedPoint · slope
Season
Off seasonSailfish

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 False Cape

False Cape is a cape in Volusia-Brevard County Line to Sebastian Inlet 0-20 nm, Florida. Depth in the nearest water is 3-35 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads point, outer water and exposed.

Waterlands scores 29 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, spot and common snook. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, spot, common snook and Atlantic tarpon, and shoulder season for Florida pompano, mahi-mahi, red snapper and wahoo. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Spot peak from September through October. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October.

Tackle & technique

Sailfish
Sailfish feed along reef edges and color changes, usually in 80 to 240 feet off Southeast Florida and farther out along the Gulf and Carolina shelf edge. Fly live goggle-eyes, pilchards or threadfins from kites, or slow-troll live ballyhoo, on non-offset circle hooks. In winter the best bite often comes the day or two after a cold front, when north wind stacks bait along the edge.
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.
Spot
Spot school over mud and sand in bays, tidal creeks and channels and around piers and bridges, generally in less than 25 feet of water. Fish a two-hook bottom rig with small hooks and bits of bloodworm or shrimp, and move until you find a school. In fall the biggest fish run out of the sounds past piers and inlets, and the bite can go all day.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Jack Davis Cut

    Channel · 2.0 mi

    75
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 75
    • Spot 71
    • Common snook 60

    0 kt WNWL 11:57 AM · 0.9 ftH 6:07 PM · 4.1 ft

  • Barge Channel

    Channel · 2.3 mi

    75
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 75
    • Spot 71
    • Common snook 60

    0 kt WNWL 11:57 AM · 0.9 ftH 6:07 PM · 4.1 ft

  • Pintail Creek

    Bay · 1.6 mi

    72
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 72
    • Spot 70
    • Red drum 58

    0 kt WNWL 11:57 AM · 0.9 ftH 6:07 PM · 4.1 ft

  • Bluebill Creek

    Bay · 1.9 mi

    72
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 72
    • Spot 70
    • Southern flounder 58

    0 kt WNWL 11:57 AM · 0.9 ftH 6:07 PM · 4.1 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.