Waterlands

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SpotRetention open

Bar · Florida

Walter L Hudson, Junior Artificial Reef

28.32°N · 80.55°W · Bar · Volusia-Brevard County Line to Sebastian Inlet 0-20 nm

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 9 AM · Spot

75/100Great
Now
603 AM EDT
Best window
7-11 AMEbb tide
Tide now
Flooding2.4 ft ▲

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

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14-day forecast

Best days to fish

Best: today · 75

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 3 AM · now

Time3ANOW
Score60Good
Tide2.4 ft ▲Flooding
Current0.1 knmodeled · toward N
Wind2 kn SSWgusts 4 · steady
Sea stateLight chop0.7 ft · 7 s
Air temp75°Warm
WeatherOvercast93% cloud
Water83°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Spot

Retention open
Daily limit
50 per day
Possession
Not published
Size
Not published
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Other
50 per person per species. No minimum size. Open year-round.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Spot and Atlantic croaker, 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
  • 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)
  • 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)
Always check with FWC ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: FWC · synced yesterday

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Spot is best here

Peak season for Spot · 5 more weeks at peak

Spot season by week of the year. Peak season for Spot · 5 more weeks at peak.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
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Spot profile

Walter L Hudson, Junior Artificial Reef

Depth
40-45 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Reef · Outer · ExposedReef · flat bottom
Season
Peak seasonSpot

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 Walter L Hudson, Junior Artificial Reef

Walter L Hudson, Junior Artificial Reef is a bar in Volusia-Brevard County Line to Sebastian Inlet 0-20 nm, Florida. Depth is 40-45 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads reef, outer water and exposed.

Waterlands scores 29 species here; the best right now are gray snapper, Atlantic croaker and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for gray snapper, Atlantic croaker, Atlantic tarpon and king mackerel, and shoulder season for red snapper, gray triggerfish, black sea bass and red grouper. Gray snapper peak from June through September. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from July through September.

Tackle & technique

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.
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

View all on map →
  • Shortys Pocket

    Bay · 4.1 mi

    74
    Top: Atlantic croakerPeak season
    • Atlantic croaker 74
    • Spot 72
    • Common snook 70

    2 kt SSWH 5:40 AM · 3.9 ftL 12:03 PM · 0.9 ft

  • Sprig Point

    Cape · 4.7 mi

    73
    Top: Atlantic tarponPeak season
    • Atlantic tarpon 73
    • Red drum 72
    • Southern flounder 71

    2 kt SSWH 5:40 AM · 3.9 ftL 12:03 PM · 0.9 ft

  • Shortys Banks

    Bar · 4.6 mi

    70
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 70
    • Atlantic croaker 69
    • Atlantic tarpon 68

    2 kt SSWH 5:40 AM · 3.9 ftL 12:03 PM · 0.9 ft

  • Shell Point

    Cape · 5.0 mi

    70
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 70
    • Atlantic croaker 68
    • Atlantic tarpon 68

    2 kt SSWH 5:44 AM · 3.4 ftL 11:48 AM · 0.9 ft

Open in the tide map

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.