Waterlands

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Red grouperRetention open

Bay · Florida

Washburn Cove

27.97°N · 80.52°W · Bay · Volusia-Brevard County Line to Sebastian Inlet 0-20 nm

LOADING MAP

Best score today · 7 PM · Red grouper

79/100Great
Now
453 PM EDT
Best window
7-9 PMHigh slack
Tide now
Low0.4 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: Fri · 80

24-hour conditions · rolling from now

Conditions · 3 PM · now

Time3PNOW
Score45Good
Tide0.4 ftLow
Current0.3 knmodeled · toward SW
Wind7 kn NEgusts 15 · steady
Sea stateLight chop1.2 ft · 7 s
Air temp84°Hot
WeatherOvercast97% chance of rain
Water83°FObserved

Current regulations

What you can keep here today

Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)

IN EFFECT NOW

Red grouper

Retention open
Daily limit
3 per day (3 Atlantic grouper and tilefish combined)
Possession
Not published
Size
Minimum 20 in, total length
Season
No closed season on file
Annual quota
Not published
Changes
Closed from Jan 1
Other
Private-vessel anglers need the State Reef Fish Angler designation. Special rules apply in Biscayne National Park. No more than 3 grouper and tilefish combined per person per day. Reef fish gear rules apply. Land with head and fins intact. Open May 1 through December 31. Closed January 1 through April 30.

From FWC Recreational Regulations: Groupers, 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 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)
Always check with FWC ↗Fishing license ↗

Source: FWC · synced today

Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed

When Red grouper is best here

Shoulder season for Red grouper · 5 more weeks at shoulder

Red grouper season by week of the year. Shoulder season for Red grouper · 5 more weeks at shoulder.
  • Peak
  • Shoulder
  • Off
  • This week

Red grouper in Florida →

Spot profile

Washburn Cove

Depth
3-4 ftFlat bottom
Structure
Bay · Outer · Semi-exposedBay · flat bottom
Season
Shoulder seasonRed grouper

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 Washburn Cove

Washburn Cove is a bay in Volusia-Brevard County Line to Sebastian Inlet 0-20 nm, Florida. Depth is 3-4 ft, with a flat bottom. Its profile reads bay, outer water and semi-exposed.

Waterlands scores 29 species here; the best right now are Atlantic croaker, common snook and crevalle jack. It is peak season now for Atlantic croaker, common snook, crevalle jack and spot, and shoulder season for mahi-mahi, Florida pompano, wahoo and Spanish mackerel. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Common snook peak from April through May and from September through October. Crevalle jack peak from July through October.

Tackle & technique

Red grouper
Red grouper live on low limestone ledges and potholed live bottom across the West Florida Shelf, mostly in 60 to 250 feet. Drift to find hard bottom, then anchor and fish live pinfish, grunts or squid on the bottom with stout conventional tackle. Reel hard right after the bite, because they dive into holes, and use a descending device on fish released from deep water.
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.
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

View all on map →
  • Snag Harbor

    Bay · 1.2 mi

    65
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 65
    • Atlantic tarpon 65
    • Atlantic croaker 64

    7 kt NEH 8:27 PM · 0.4 ftL 3:23 AM · 0.4 ft

  • South Snag Harbor

    Bay · 1.6 mi

    65
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 65
    • Atlantic tarpon 65
    • Atlantic croaker 64

    7 kt NEH 8:27 PM · 0.4 ftL 3:23 AM · 0.4 ft

  • Hog Point

    Cape · 0.8 mi

    62
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 62
    • Atlantic tarpon 60
    • Atlantic croaker 59

    7 kt NEH 8:27 PM · 0.4 ftL 3:23 AM · 0.4 ft

  • Rock Point

    Cape · 1.6 mi

    62
    Top: Common snookPeak season
    • Common snook 62
    • Atlantic tarpon 60
    • Atlantic croaker 59

    7 kt NEH 8:27 PM · 0.4 ftL 3:23 AM · 0.4 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.