Bonefish
Albula vulpes
Thermal window
—
In peak season for this water. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.
Florida: catch-and-release only, hook-and-line only.
Florida · Lower Keys / Key West
Marquesas, Harbor Key, oceanside wrecks, the contentment of long runs. Permit and tarpon country. Summer showers can switch a flat on once it clears.
Forecast
low confidence
Morning line
Key West 8.3 on Saturday, February 27. 7 mph SE. Clear. YOLO day is Tuesday, August 25. Scores are 1–10, not a bite.
Wind
OPEN-METEO
From SE · gust 7
Buoy
NDBC SANF1
Quiet
Sand Key did not report. Witness only — not the tide clock.
Sky
OPEN-METEO
Clear
Clear
A 20% shower chance is not a cancel. A soaker is.
Moon
62% lit
Waning gibbous
neap range · 62%
Water
No gauge
Water
—
Today’s range 1.5 ft
incoming
0.64 ft modeled
Coast
No live coast layer
Red-tide check failed. That is not all-clear — open the agency page before you wade.
Sargassum check failed. Not a GPS pin. Not all-clear.
Clock
NOAA 8724580
Bahamas tides are modeled from lunar M2. Use them for windows, not a bar crossing.
Monthly YOLO day
Tuesday, August 25
Best remaining dry day this month with a real wind forecast. waxing gibbous · mid · tide range ~1.1 ft · wind to 10 mph · Thunderstorms · 47%
Next two weeks
Pulling the 14-day strip…
This pip is that mark on this tide — not the day on the ring.
Marquesas
hard flat · field manual · skinny
Long run, fewer boats. Permit country. Weather window or you don't go.
Harbor Keys / Content Keys
hard flat · public structure · skinny
North of the island. Named banks. Incoming is the shot. Harbor Key Bank is USGS GNIS 299988 just north.
Harbor Key Bank
hard flat · public structure · skinny
USGS GNIS 299988. The named bank north of the Content Keys. Incoming is the shot.
USGS GNIS 299988
Key West oceanside wrecks
wreck edge · public structure · deep
The deep-edge permit game. Falling tide, first of the flood.
When is moving water in a good hour — not the day. First light and last light are named when the clock is the story. 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.
Incoming water
10.0Sat 8:00 AM → Sat 11:00 AM
Moving water in the right part of the day.
Outgoing water
10.0Sat 10:00 AM → Sat 5:00 PM
Moving water in the right part of the day.
Last light · incoming
9.7Sat 4:00 PM → Sat 11:00 PM
Last light on incoming water.
Last light · outgoing
8.7Sat 11:00 PM → Sun 5:00 AM
Last light on outgoing water.
First light · incoming
10.0Sun 5:00 AM → Sun 12:00 PM
First light on incoming water.
County and state ramps near this water. FKNMS no-take is Keys-only, on the legal list.
Garrison Bight / Key West public ramps
City of Key West
The Lower Keys door. Marquesas is a weather-window run from here.
Official sourceNOAA FKNMS management zones — Sanctuary Preservation Areas, Ecological Reserves, Research-Only.
Western Sambo Ecological Reserve
Ecological Reserve — no take
FKNMS GISEastern Dry Rocks
Sanctuary Preservation Area — no fishing / no take (typical SPA)
FKNMS GISEastern Sambo (Research Only)
Research Only — closed except permitted science
FKNMS GISRock Key
Sanctuary Preservation Area — no fishing / no take (typical SPA)
FKNMS GISSand Key
Sanctuary Preservation Area — no fishing / no take (typical SPA)
FKNMS GISBonefish
Albula vulpes
Thermal window
—
In peak season for this water. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.
Florida: catch-and-release only, hook-and-line only.
Permit
Trachinotus falcatus
Thermal window
—
Present, not peak. 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.
Yellowtail snapper
Ocyurus chrysurus
Thermal window
—
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
Thermal window
—
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.
Hogfish
Lachnolaimus maximus
Thermal window
—
Off-season here. This tide stage (incoming) matches how they hunt.
Florida: Atlantic and Gulf bags differ. Monroe County is tighter. Fork-length minimum. Verify FWC.
Mutton snapper
Lutjanus analis
Thermal window
—
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
Thermal window
—
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
Thermal window
—
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.
Next two weeks
Δ0.9ft
rain