Waterlands

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Black sea bassShoulder season

Bay · Florida

Max Hoeck Creek

28.66°N · 80.65°W · Bay · Volusia-Brevard County Line to Sebastian Inlet 0-20 nm

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Best score today · 8 AM · Black sea bass

77/100Great
Now
603 PM EDT
Best window
3 PM-12 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding2.5 ft ▲

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

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24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 3 PM · now

Time3PNOW
Score60Good
Tide2.5 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.2 knmodeled · toward SSW
Wind8 kn NEgusts 17 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.5 ft · 7 s
Air temp82°Warm
WeatherOvercast98% chance of rain
Water83°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

No rule for Black sea bass is on file here yet, so its status is unknown, not closed. Confirm limits with FWC before you keep a fish.

Species rules 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
  • 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 (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)

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Black sea bass is best here

Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder

Black sea bass season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Black sea bass · 1 more week at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Black sea bass in Florida

Spot profile

Max Hoeck Creek

Depth
Under 1 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Estuary · Inner · ProtectedEstuary · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonBlack sea bass

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 Max Hoeck Creek

Max Hoeck Creek is a bay in Volusia-Brevard County Line to Sebastian Inlet 0-20 nm, Florida. Depth is under 1 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads estuary, inner water and protected.

Waterlands scores 29 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, crevalle jack and red drum. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, crevalle jack, red drum and spot, and shoulder season for black drum, black sea bass, Florida pompano and gray triggerfish. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Crevalle jack peak from July through October. Red drum peak from August through November.

Tackle & technique

Black sea bass
Black sea bass hold tight to wrecks, reefs, rock piles and jetties, from 15 feet inshore in late spring to well over 100 feet on offshore wrecks in late fall. Anchor or drift right over the structure and fish a two-hook high-low rig with squid or clam, or bounce a small jig on the bottom. The biggest males sit on the highest relief.
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.
Crevalle jack
Jacks roam in schools through inlets, passes, bays, river mouths and along beaches, pushing bait to the surface, and big fish also hold on nearshore reefs and wrecks. Watch for birds and surface blowups, then cast a popper, a spoon or a bucktail into the school and retrieve fast. Bring heavy spinning tackle, because a jack over 15 pounds runs hard and fights for a long time.

Nearby spots

Other spots within an easy run

  • Eddy Creek

    Bay · 0.8 mi

    77
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 77
    • Crevalle jack 75
    • Spot 75

    8 kt NEH 6:07 PM · 4.1 ftL 12:20 AM · 1.0 ft

  • 76
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 76
    • Crevalle jack 75
    • Red drum 75

    8 kt NEH 6:07 PM · 4.1 ftL 12:20 AM · 1.0 ft

  • Eddy Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    74
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 74
    • Atlantic tarpon 73
    • Atlantic croaker 72

    8 kt NEH 6:07 PM · 4.1 ftL 12:20 AM · 1.0 ft

  • Gallinipper Point

    Cape · 1.4 mi

    74
    Top: Red drumPeak season
    • Red drum 74
    • Atlantic tarpon 73
    • Atlantic croaker 72

    8 kt NEH 6:07 PM · 4.1 ftL 12:20 AM · 1.0 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.