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Florida · Key Largo / Pennekamp

Permit are the hunt — the falling ocean bank and Tavernier Creek; Pennekamp SPAs stay no-take. Heat is the clock — first light or last light.

The first Key. Card Sound and Jewfish Creek to the north, Tavernier Creek to the south. Oceanside banks for bones and permit; Blackwater and Buttonwood for baby tarpon and snook. NOAA 8723689 is Point Charles (predictions). Water temp is Virginia Key 8723214 — there is no live well at Point Charles. Pennekamp is the launch. Adjacent FKNMS SPAs are no-take.

  • ⚠ Extreme water temperature. Fish stress quickly — keep them wet, or don't boat them.
  • ⚠ Thunderstorms in the forecast. Lightning is a stay-tied call. The score is not a safety brief.
  • ⚠ Snook are typically closed to harvest on the SE/Atlantic coast in this window. Verify FWC.
4.7OF 10

Today

medium confidence

Morning line

Key Largo 4.7 this morning. 10 mph E. Thunderstorms · 17%. YOLO day is Tuesday, August 25. Scores are 1–10, not a bite.

Mail it
-1.2-0.6-0.00.61.2HLHLHLHLNOWMon 8 PMTue 8 PMWed 8 PMThu 8 PM
outgoing · 0.86 ftModeled M2 · not a gauge

Wind

NWS

NESW10MPH

From E

Sky

17% rain

Storms

Thunderstorms · 17%

Lightning is a stay-tied call.

Moon

91% lit

Waxing gibbous

mid range · 91%

Water

NOAA 8723214

Water

90.1°

48°92°

Today’s range 1.7 ft

outgoing

0.86 ft modeled

Clock

NOAA 8723689

  • HighTue 1:19 AM · 0.86
  • LowTue 7:19 AM · -0.82
  • HighTue 2:19 PM · 0.79
  • LowTue 8:19 PM · -0.77
  • HighWed 2:19 AM · 0.73

Bahamas tides are modeled from lunar M2. Use them for windows, not a bar crossing.

Monthly YOLO day

Tuesday, August 25 · 8.7

Best remaining dry day this month with a real wind forecast. waxing gibbous · mid · tide range ~1.9 ft · wind to 15 mph · Thunderstorms · 52%

Stay or drive · Key Largo vs IslamoradaOpen the calendarMorning dispatch

Next two weeks

Pulling the 14-day strip…

Where

  • Tavernier Creek

    channel gut · public structure · deep

    6.5

    The south cut toward Plantation Key. Current is the fishery. Channel 5 is the next desk south — do not steal it.

    • — channel gut on a outgoing tide is a classic match.
    • — Thunderstorms — this mark is a stay-tied call, not a window.
    • — In-play: Permit, Tarpon.
    • — Water is hot — deeper guts, passes, and shade hold oxygen and fish.
    skiffspinfly

  • Card Sound / Jewfish Creek

    channel gut · public structure · deep

    6.0

    The north throat. Public bridge and cut current. Not a Biscayne bank and not Islamorada. Baby tarpon and snook on the moving water.

    • — channel gut on a outgoing tide is a classic match.
    • — Thunderstorms — this mark is a stay-tied call, not a window.
    • — In-play: Tarpon.
    • — Water is hot — deeper guts, passes, and shade hold oxygen and fish.
    skiffspinfly

  • Blackwater Sound

    mangrove edge · public structure · mid

    5.2

    Bayside. Baby tarpon and snook along the roots. Not the oceanside slam. Outgoing along the mangrove.

    • — mangrove edge on a outgoing tide is a classic match.
    • — Thunderstorms — this mark is a stay-tied call, not a window.
    • — In-play: Tarpon.
    skiffkayakspinfly

  • Garden Cove / Pennekamp oceanside

    hard flat · public structure · skinny

    4.7

    The park is the launch, not a honey hole. Clean incoming on the named banks. Adjacent FKNMS SPAs are no-take — the red polygons are the legal source.

    • — hard flat on a outgoing tide is a workable match.
    • — Thunderstorms — this mark is a stay-tied call, not a window.
    • — In-play: Permit.
    skiffflyspin

  • Rodriguez Key / Mosquito Bank

    hard flat · public structure · skinny

    4.7

    Named oceanside key and bank. Incoming is the shot. Educated fish, short window, boat traffic from the park.

    • — hard flat on a outgoing tide is a workable match.
    • — Thunderstorms — this mark is a stay-tied call, not a window.
    • — In-play: Permit.
    skifffly

When

  • Outgoing water

    9.1

    Tue 2:19 AM → Tue 9:19 AM

    Moving water in the right part of the day.

  • Incoming water

    8.2

    Tue 9:19 AM → Tue 4:19 PM

    Water is moving, but the clock is against you — heat or dark.

  • Outgoing water

    9.1

    Tue 3:19 PM → Tue 10:19 PM

    Water is moving, but the clock is against you — heat or dark.

  • Incoming water

    9.1

    Tue 9:19 PM → Wed 4:19 AM

    Moving water in the right part of the day.

  • Outgoing water

    9.1

    Wed 3:19 AM → Wed 10:19 AM

    Moving water in the right part of the day.

Launch and beach access

County and state ramps near this water. FKNMS no-take is Keys-only, on the legal list.

  • John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park

    Florida State Parks

    Key Largo launch. Adjacent SPAs are no-take — check the red polygons.

    Official source

  • Harry Harris Park / Tavernier

    Monroe County Parks

    County park on the oceanside at the south end of Key Largo. Tavernier Creek is the cut.

    Official source

Legal water

NOAA FKNMS management zones — Sanctuary Preservation Areas, Ecological Reserves, Research-Only.

No FKNMS polygon in this box. Mainland Florida, Louisiana, Texas, Mexico, and the Bahamas are not Keys sanctuary closures.

Why — and who

  • — Tide is outgoing (modeled — the NOAA gauge did not answer).
  • — Water 90.1°F. Heat is the locator: early, late, deeper.
  • — Thunderstorms · 17%. Lightning is a stay-tied call.
  • — Wind 10 mph E. Castable. Sight-fishing is on if the sun is out.
  • — Waxing gibbous moon — mid tide range. Sight water often prefers a moderate range and clean water over a huge spring.

Hogfish

Lachnolaimus maximus

7.0

Thermal window

90.1°

66°90°

In peak season for this water. Water 90°F is the hot edge for this fish. This tide stage (outgoing) matches how they hunt.

Florida: Atlantic and Gulf bags differ. Monroe County is tighter. Fork-length minimum. Verify FWC.

Yellowtail snapper

Ocyurus chrysurus

7.0

Thermal window

90.1°

66°90°

In peak season for this water. Water 90°F is the hot edge for this fish. This tide stage (outgoing) matches how they hunt.

Florida: typically 12 in total length, inside the snapper aggregate. Verify FWC.

Tarpon

Megalops atlanticus

5.2

Thermal window

90.1°

68°94°

Present, not peak. Water 90°F is the hot edge for this fish. This tide stage (outgoing) matches how they hunt.

Florida: catch-and-release. Fish over 40 in must stay in the water. One harvest tag/year only for a potential IGFA record.

Permit

Trachinotus falcatus

5.2

Thermal window

90.1°

66°92°

Present, not peak. Water 90°F is the hot edge for this fish. This tide stage (outgoing) matches how they hunt.

Florida: hook-and-line. Special Permit Zone (Keys) is tighter than the rest of the state — typically C&R. Verify FWC.

Bonefish

Albula vulpes

3.4

Thermal window

90.1°

64°92°

Off-season here. Water 90°F is the hot edge for this fish. This tide stage (outgoing) matches how they hunt.

Florida: catch-and-release only, hook-and-line only.

Snook

Centropomus undecimalis

1.8

Thermal window

90.1°

56°92°

Closed to harvest — still swims, do not keep. Present, not peak. Water 90°F is the hot edge for this fish. This tide stage (outgoing) matches how they hunt.

Region matters. SE/Atlantic (Jupiter, Biscayne): typically 28–32 in, 1/day, closed Dec 15–Jan 31 and June 1–Aug 31. Charlotte Harbor / Southwest (Boca Grande): typically 28–33 in, closed Dec 1–end of Feb and May 1–Sep 30. Snook permit required. Verify FWC.

Jack crevalle

Caranx hippos

5.8

Thermal window

90.1°

64°94°

Bycatch and beach noise — not the reason you came. In peak season for this water. Water 90°F is the hot edge for this fish. This tide stage (outgoing) matches how they hunt.

Generally unregulated. Still, do not leave a pile.

Great barracuda

Sphyraena barracuda

5.8

Thermal window

90.1°

66°92°

Bycatch and beach noise — not the reason you came. In peak season for this water. Water 90°F is the hot edge for this fish. This tide stage (outgoing) matches how they hunt.

Generally unregulated. Ciguatera risk rises with size. Do not keep a big one for the table.

Regs citedFWC saltwater recreational · current FWC regional rules · rolls in 8 days. Snook closures are regional. Boca Grande is not Jupiter. Verify FWC before you keep one.