Redfish
Sciaenops ocellatus
Thermal window
—
Present, not peak.
Florida SE: typically 18–27 in, 1/person, 2/vessel. Harvest banned in federal waters. Keys backcountry, not oceanside. Boca Harbor yes.
Florida · Florida Bay / Flamingo
Redfish are the hunt — wind and color decide; slack here is a look, not a grind.
Backcountry. Reds and snook live here, not on the oceanside. Snake Bight, First National, the banks west of Flamingo. Wind and water color decide the day.
- ⚠ This brief is for 2027-01-26. No wind forecast that far out — score is tide, moon, and season. Not a copper day.
- ⚠ Snook are typically closed to harvest on the SE/Atlantic coast in this window. Verify FWC.
Tide + moon
low confidence
Forecast brief for Tuesday, January 26. Back to this morning
Morning line
Flamingo 7.2 on Tuesday, January 26 — tide, moon, and season only. No wind forecast that far out. YOLO day is Friday, August 28. Scores are 1–10, not a bite.
high slack · 0.63 ft · drag or hover for the clockModeled M2 clock — no NOAA gauge on this water. Not a buoy.
Wind
NWS
No wind reading
Sky
NWS
Sky not in
Sky not in
A 20% shower chance is not a cancel. A soaker is.
Moon
85% lit
Waning gibbous
mid range · 85%
Water
No gauge
Water
—
Today’s range 1.4 ft
high slack
0.63 ft modeled
Clock
NOAA 8723970
- HighTue 7:00 AM · 0.65
- LowTue 2:00 PM · -0.67
- HighTue 8:00 PM · 0.70
- LowWed 2:00 AM · -0.73
- HighWed 8:00 AM · 0.76
Bahamas tides are modeled from lunar M2. Use them for windows, not a bar crossing.
Monthly YOLO day
Friday, August 28 · 8.1
Best remaining dry day this month with a real wind forecast. full · spring · tide range ~0.7 ft · wind to 10 mph · Thunderstorms · 51%
Next two weeks
Pulling the 14-day strip…
Where
This pip is that mark on this tide — not the day on the ring.
- 6.8
Snake Bight
grass flat · field manual · skinny
USGS GNIS 291282 (Snake Bight Channel). Flamingo backcountry. Reds live here, not on the oceanside. Wind and color decide it.
USGS GNIS 291282
- — grass flat on a high slack tide is a workable match.
- — In-play: Redfish.
skiffflyspin - 6.4
First National Bank
hard flat · public structure · skinny
A named bank, not a secret. Sight if the water holds.
- — hard flat on a high slack tide is a workable match.
- — In-play: Redfish.
skifffly - 5.9
Flamingo basins / Buttonwood
mangrove edge · public structure · mid
Creeks and basins. Outgoing along the roots. Summer heat: early.
- — mangrove edge on a high slack tide is a secondary match.
- — In-play: Redfish.
skiffkayakspinfly - 5.9
FL - Florida Bay (Flamingo)
mangrove edge · saved map · mid
Snake Bight & the backcountry; campground on site. · flats · GULF ATLAS! - FISH
- — mangrove edge on a high slack tide is a secondary match.
- — In-play: Redfish.
skiffkayakwadeflyspin
When
When is moving water in a good hour — not the day. Today’s ring mixes the best mark, the lead fish, and the best window, then taxes the sky. A strong incoming can sit under a weak day if the wind or the fish is off. Calendar cells are a third recipe: range, moon, and the day’s forecast.
Outgoing water
9.4Tue 9:00 AM → Tue 3:00 PM
Water is moving, but the clock is against you — heat or dark.
Incoming water
9.4Tue 3:00 PM → Tue 10:00 PM
Moving water in the right part of the day.
Outgoing water
7.4Tue 9:00 PM → Wed 4:00 AM
Water is moving, but the clock is against you — heat or dark.
Incoming water
7.4Wed 3:00 AM → Wed 10:00 AM
Water is moving, but the clock is against you — heat or dark.
Outgoing water
9.4Wed 9:00 AM → Wed 4:00 PM
Water is moving, but the clock is against you — heat or dark.
Launch and beach access
County and state ramps near this water. FKNMS no-take is Keys-only, on the legal list.
Flamingo Marina
NPS Everglades National Park
The Florida Bay launch. Park fee. Backcountry permit if you camp.
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 high slack (modeled — NOAA 8723970 Vaca Key, Florida Bay did not answer).
- — Waning gibbous moon — mid tide range. Marsh and passes usually want the extra current of a spring.
5.5
Tarpon
Megalops atlanticus
Thermal window
—
Off-season here.
Florida: catch-and-release. Fish over 40 in must stay in the water. One harvest tag/year only for a potential IGFA record.
Snook
Centropomus undecimalis
Thermal window
—
Closed to harvest — still swims, do not keep. Off-season here.
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.
Great barracuda
Sphyraena barracuda
Thermal window
—
Bycatch and beach noise — not the reason you came. Present, not peak.
Generally unregulated. Ciguatera risk rises with size. Do not keep a big one for the table.
Jack crevalle
Caranx hippos
Thermal window
—
Bycatch and beach noise — not the reason you came. Off-season here.
Generally unregulated. Still, do not leave a pile.
Regs citedFWC saltwater recreational · current FWC regional rules · rolls in 7 days. Snook closures are regional. Boca Grande is not Jupiter. Verify FWC before you keep one.