On This Water

Florida · Islamorada / Matecumbe

Bonefish should be the day — oceanside permit and bones, or Channel 5 current — not a Texas marsh sentence.

The mecca. Oceanside bones and permit, bayside backcountry, Channel 2 / Channel 5 current, wrecks for permit. Most pressured fish in the hemisphere.

  • This brief is for 2026-11-22, not this morning. Wind is a forecast. Observed water versus the table is a today-only instrument.
  • FKNMS no-take water in this box: Cheeca Rocks, Alligator Reef, Hen and Chickens + 3 more on the map. The red polygons are the legal source — do not fish them.
8.7OF 10

Forecast

low confidence

Forecast brief for Sunday, November 22. Back to this morning

Morning line

Islamorada 8.7 on Sunday, November 22. 12 mph ESE. Clear. YOLO day is Monday, August 31. Scores are 1–10, not a bite.

Mail it
-0.9-0.5-0.00.40.9LHLHLHLHSun 7 AMMon 7 AMTue 7 AMWed 7 AM
incoming · -0.60 ftModeled M2 · not a gauge

Wind

OPEN-METEO

NESW12MPH

From ESE · gust 13

Sky

OPEN-METEO

Clear

Clear

A 20% shower chance is not a cancel. A soaker is.

Moon

95% lit

Waxing gibbous

mid range · 95%

Water

No gauge

Water

48°92°

Today’s range 1.2 ft

incoming

-0.60 ft modeled

Clock

NOAA 8723970

  • LowSun 7:00 AM · -0.67
  • HighSun 1:00 PM · 0.63
  • LowSun 8:00 PM · -0.59
  • HighMon 2:00 AM · 0.58
  • LowMon 8:00 AM · -0.56

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

Monthly YOLO day

Monday, August 31 · 8.7

Best remaining dry day this month with a real wind forecast. waning gibbous · mid · tide range ~0.7 ft · wind to 15 mph · Thunderstorms · 63%

Next two weeks

Pulling the 14-day strip…

Where

  • FL - Long Key State Park (Keys)

    sand dropoff · saved map · mid

    8.3

    Oceanfront camping with bonefish flats at the tent. Reserve far ahead. · camp-surf · GULF ATLAS! - FISH

    • sand dropoff on a incoming tide is a workable match.
    • In-play: Bonefish, Hogfish, Yellowtail snapper.
    structurespinwade
  • Islamorada oceanside flats

    hard flat · field manual · skinny

    7.7

    The mecca. Big, few, educated. Clean incoming, sun at your back. Lorelei is intel, not a mark.

    • hard flat on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • In-play: Bonefish.
    skifffly
  • Tea Table / Indian Key fills

    hard flat · public structure · skinny

    7.7

    Named fills and banks. Incoming is the shot. Pressure is the tax. Indian Key Channel is USGS GNIS 284511.

    • hard flat on a incoming tide is a classic match.
    • In-play: Bonefish.
    skiffflyspin
  • Robbie's / Islamorada bayside

    mangrove edge · field manual · mid

    6.3

    Tarpon roll under the breakfast dock. That is a tourist fact. The backcountry behind it is the fishery.

    • mangrove edge on a incoming tide is a workable match.
    skiffspinfly
  • Channel 2 / Channel 5

    channel gut · public structure · deep

    6.1

    Moving water. Permit and tarpon on the fall and the first of the flood. Channel Five is USGS GNIS 280292 just south.

    • channel gut on a incoming tide is a workable match.
    skiffflyspin
  • Channel Five

    channel gut · public structure · deep

    6.1

    USGS GNIS 280292. The named cut. Current is the whole fishery. Adjacent FKNMS polygons are no-take.

    USGS GNIS 280292

    • channel gut on a incoming tide is a workable match.
    skiffflyspin

When

  • Incoming water

    9.5

    Sun 8:00 AMSun 3:00 PM

    Moving water in the right part of the day.

  • Outgoing water

    9.2

    Sun 3:00 PMSun 9:00 PM

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

  • Incoming water

    8.1

    Sun 9:00 PMMon 4:00 AM

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

  • Outgoing water

    9.5

    Mon 3:00 AMMon 10:00 AM

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

  • Incoming water

    9.5

    Mon 9:00 AMMon 4:00 PM

    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.

  • 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
  • Founders Park / Islamorada

    Village of Islamorada

    Public ramp, bayside. The oceanside flats are a run from here.

    Official source

Legal water

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

  • Cheeca Rocks

    Sanctuary Preservation Area — no fishing / no take (typical SPA)

    FKNMS GIS
  • Alligator Reef

    Sanctuary Preservation Area — no fishing / no take (typical SPA)

    FKNMS GIS
  • Hen and Chickens

    Sanctuary Preservation Area — no fishing / no take (typical SPA)

    FKNMS GIS
  • Davis Reef

    Sanctuary Preservation Area — no fishing / no take (typical SPA)

    FKNMS GIS
  • Conch Reef

    Sanctuary Preservation Area — no fishing / no take (typical SPA)

    FKNMS GIS
  • Conch Reef (Research Only)

    Research Only — closed except permitted science

    FKNMS GIS

+ 3 more zones on the map.

Why — and who

  • Tide is incoming (modeled — the NOAA gauge did not answer).
  • Clear. Sky is workable.
  • Wind 12 mph ESE. Work the leeward shore. Fly gets harder.
  • Waxing gibbous moon — mid tide range. Sight water often prefers a moderate range and clean water over a huge spring.

Bonefish

Albula vulpes

8.4

Thermal window

64°92°

In peak season for this water. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.

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

Hogfish

Lachnolaimus maximus

6.6

Thermal window

66°90°

Present, not peak. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.

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

Yellowtail snapper

Ocyurus chrysurus

6.6

Thermal window

66°90°

Present, not peak. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.

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

Tarpon

Megalops atlanticus

4.8

Thermal window

68°94°

Off-season here. This tide stage (incoming) 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

4.8

Thermal window

66°92°

Off-season here. This tide stage (incoming) 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.

Mutton snapper

Lutjanus analis

4.8

Thermal window

66°90°

Off-season here. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.

Florida: typically 18 in, inside the snapper aggregate. Verify FWC.

Great barracuda

Sphyraena barracuda

5.8

Thermal window

66°92°

Bycatch and beach noise — not the reason you came. Present, not peak. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.

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

Jack crevalle

Caranx hippos

4.8

Thermal window

64°94°

Bycatch and beach noise — not the reason you came. Off-season here. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.

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.