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SailfishOff seasonChannel · Georgia
Saint Marys Entrance
30.71°N · 81.43°W · Channel · Coastal waters from Altamaha Sound to Fernandina Beach FL out 20 NM
Species here · tap to switch
- Best of all
- Crevalle jack66
- Atlantic croaker61
- Atlantic tarpon61
- Gray snapper61
- King mackerel61
- Summer flounder61
- Red drum60
- Spanish mackerel57
- Spot56
- Black sea bass54
- Florida pompano54
- Black drum50
- Little tunny50
- Weakfish49
- Gray triggerfish48
- Greater amberjack47
- Red grouper47
- Red snapper47
- Gag grouper46
- Mahi-mahi46
- Sheepshead45
- Cobia42
- Wahoo42
- Bluefish35
- Sailfish35
- Yellowfin tuna35
- Southern flounder30
- Spotted seatrout30
Best score today · 3 AM · Sailfish
- Now
- 3512 PM EDT
- Best window
- 2-6 PMFlood tide
- Tide now
- Ebbing1.3 ft ▼
Data from: NOAA CO-OPS + NDBC + ECMWF + Open-Meteo Marine · Waterlands engine
Notify me when Saint Marys Entrance scores 75+
Checked every morning against the 14-day forecast. Free by push and email.
14-day forecast
Best days to fish
24-hour conditions · rolling from now
Conditions · 12 PM · now
Tide & current
NOAA CO-OPS
52Tide: EbbingCurrent: 1.0 kn ebbWind & pressure
ECMWF
97Wind: 9 kt NEPressure: RisingWater temp & sky
NDBC + Open-Meteo Marine
72Water temp: 84°F, warmLight: OvercastSolunar: Near a majorSeas: 2.8 ftSeason & habitat · Sailfish
Species seasonality
35Off season · capped at 35Season: Off seasonHabitat: Usable structureDepth: Out of rangeRegulations: no rule on file
Current regulations
What you can keep here today
Atlantic state waters (Nassau through Miami-Dade counties)
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 Retention open (1 per day)
- 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 (3 per day)
- Summer flounder Retention open (5 per day)
- Tarpon Catch & release (No retention)
- Wahoo Retention open (2 per day)
Source: FWC · synced today
Seasonality · 52-week view · this week ringed
When Sailfish is best here
Out of season for Sailfish · shoulder season starts in 6 weeks
- Peak
- Shoulder
- Off
- This week
Spot profile
Saint Marys Entrance
- Depth
- 25-60 ftSlope
- Structure
- Channel · Outer · ExposedChannel · 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 Saint Marys Entrance
Saint Marys Entrance is a channel in Coastal waters from Altamaha Sound to Fernandina Beach FL out 20 NM, Georgia. Depth is 25-60 ft, with a slope. Its profile reads channel, outer water and exposed.
Waterlands scores 28 species here; the best right now are crevalle jack, Atlantic croaker and Atlantic tarpon. It is peak season now for crevalle jack, Atlantic croaker, Atlantic tarpon and gray snapper, and shoulder season for Spanish mackerel, black sea bass, Florida pompano and black drum. Crevalle jack peak from July through October. Atlantic croaker peak from August through October. Atlantic tarpon peak from July through September.
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.
- 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.
- 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
- Old Town Reach68
Channel · 2.6 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 68
- Atlantic croaker 67
- Atlantic tarpon 66
9 kt NEH 7:17 PM · 6.7 ftL 1:21 AM · 1.1 ft
- Seaboard Reach68
Channel · 2.9 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 68
- Atlantic croaker 67
- Atlantic tarpon 66
9 kt NEH 7:17 PM · 6.7 ftL 1:21 AM · 1.1 ft
- City Front Reach68
Channel · 3.5 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 68
- Atlantic croaker 67
- Atlantic tarpon 67
9 kt NEH 7:17 PM · 6.7 ftL 1:21 AM · 1.1 ft
- Saint Marys Entrance66
Channel · 0.1 mi
Top: Crevalle jackPeak season- Crevalle jack 66
- Atlantic croaker 61
- Gray snapper 61
9 kt NEH 6:41 PM · 6.4 ftL 1:18 AM · 1.1 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.