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15,947-acre Cocoa Indian River Lagoon section between NASA Causeway and SR 520 with quality-assured NOAA BlueTopo and 2022 Indian River Lagoon topobathymetric contours, exact-polygon FWC fish evidence, mapped seagrass and verified public access. The water tops out around 19 ft. The depth chart is built from real agency bathymetry referenced to NAVD88; directly measured coverage remains distinguished from source interpolation. The channels, holes and drop-offs come from the source data, not a distance-from-shore model. Here's the year, species by species, as the scoring engine sees it.
Cocoa Indian River Lagoon maps at 15,984 acres behind 48.4 miles of shoreline, broken up by 20 islands. That shoreline is heavily fingered (development index 2.7) — bays, points and pockets everywhere, which multiplies the fishable edge. Figure 12.4 mi of water from one end to the other, 3.4 mi at the beam. Its nearest charted neighbour, Central Banana River Lagoon, is 8 mi to the southeast.
Spring puts spotted seatrout in skinny water — 2 to 10 ft is the zone. As the season builds they drop to 4 to 15 ft, wintering in 5 to 19 ft. Spring spotted seatrout concentrate at Weed flat, a prime-rated weed flat around 6 ft. Warm-month bites cluster around early morning. A popping cork + shrimp or a 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 10 ft | dawn & dusk | Weed flat (6 ft) | Topwater walker, Suspending twitchbait |
| Summer | 4 to 15 ft | dawn | 2025 continuous seagrass edge (4 ft) | Popping cork + shrimp, 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) |
| Fall | 3 to 12 ft | dawn | Weed flat (6 ft) | Popping cork rig, Soft plastic jerkbait |
| Winter | 5 to 19 ft | midday & dusk | Surveyed channel edge (14 ft) | Suspending twitchbait (long pauses), Scented plastic crawled on bottom |
Spring red drum (redfish) on Cocoa Indian River Lagoon hold shallow, usually 1 to 8 ft. They move out to 2 to 12 ft in summer and finish the year down in 3 to 15 ft. Put Weed flat first on the milk run — a weed flat near 6 ft that grades prime for summer. The feeding windows run early morning and the evening. The summer box starts with a weedless gold spoon or a paddletail swimbait.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 8 ft | dawn & dusk | Weed flat (6 ft) | Gold weedless spoon, Paddletail on 1/4 oz jighead |
| Summer | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | Weed flat (6 ft) | Weedless gold spoon, Paddletail swimbait |
| Fall | 3 to 19 ft | dawn & midday | Surveyed channel edge (14 ft) | 1/2 oz spoon (schools), Big paddletail |
| Winter | 3 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Surveyed channel edge (14 ft) | Scented soft plastic on 1/8 oz head, Slow-rolled paddletail |
Early season sheepshead use the shallows, holding in 4 to 19 ft. Even in summer they hold at 3 to 15 ft; winter keeps them in 6 to 19 ft. The chart's best answer is Dangerous NOAA charted wreck — wreck, 5 ft, prime for spring. Best bite is early morning. Tie on a small jig + crab piece and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 4 to 19 ft | midday & dawn | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (5 ft) | 1/4 oz jighead + fiddler, Sheepshead jig + shrimp piece |
| Summer | 3 to 15 ft | dawn | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (5 ft) | Small jig + crab piece |
| Fall | 5 to 19 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (5 ft) | Jighead + shrimp, Small crab jig |
| Winter | 6 to 19 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (5 ft) | Heavier jig + crab (deep pilings) |
Come spring, look for snook tight to the bank in 2 to 12 ft. They move out to 3 to 15 ft in summer and finish the year down in 4 to 15 ft. If you only fish one area, make it 2025 continuous seagrass edge: a seagrass edge around 4 ft that scores prime in spring. Best bite is early morning and the evening. A flair hawk jig (passes, night) or a big swimbait in the current is the honest summer answer here.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | 2025 continuous seagrass edge (4 ft) | Paddletail on 1/4 oz head, Suspending twitchbait |
| Summer | 3 to 15 ft | dawn & dusk | 2025 continuous seagrass edge (4 ft) | Flair hawk jig (passes, night), Big swimbait in the current |
| Fall | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | 2025 continuous seagrass edge (4 ft) | Big paddletail (mullet run), Topwater walker |
| Winter | 4 to 15 ft | midday | open water | Slow-rolled paddletail, Scented jerkbait crawled in canals |
Spring puts gray snapper (mangrove snapper) in skinny water — 3 to 19 ft is the zone. Summer fish stay in 3 to 19 ft, and winter fish hold in 3 to 19 ft. Fall gray snapper (mangrove snapper) concentrate at Dangerous NOAA charted wreck, a prime-rated wreck around 5 ft. Warm-month bites cluster around early morning and the evening. A small bucktail or a paddletail covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 19 ft | dawn & dusk | 2025 continuous seagrass edge (4 ft) | Small paddletail, Jighead + shrimp imitation |
| Summer | 3 to 19 ft | dawn & dusk | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (5 ft) | Small bucktail, Paddletail |
| Fall | 3 to 19 ft | dawn & dusk | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (5 ft) | Small vertical jig, Jighead + paddletail |
| Winter | 3 to 19 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (5 ft) | Small jig worked slowly |
Count 18 structure marks on this chart. The deepest, Surveyed channel edge, sits near 14 ft.
Access data: Florida FWC — Boat Ramp Inventory. Confirm conditions and fees locally before you launch.
Season dates, license requirements, and size and bag limits for Florida waters are set by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (saltwater) — and special regulations can apply to Cocoa Indian River Lagoon specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official Florida fishing regulations →
Cocoa Indian River Lagoon is about 19 ft (6 m) deep at its deepest point. The depth chart is built from real agency bathymetry referenced to NAVD88; directly measured coverage remains distinguished from source interpolation. The contours reflect measured and quality-assessed source depths.
Anglers target spotted seatrout, red drum (redfish), sheepshead, snook, gray snapper (mangrove snapper) on Cocoa Indian River Lagoon.
Weed flat is the top-rated area: a weed flat in about 6 ft of water that rates prime for spotted seatrout in spring. Scroll up to the map for the complete spot list by species and season.
For spotted seatrout, the summer bite is best in early morning. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.
Fishing on Cocoa Indian River Lagoon is regulated by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (saltwater). Check the official Florida regulations for current license requirements, season dates, and size and bag limits — special regulations can apply to this specific water.
Central Banana River Lagoon 8 mi · Lake Poinsett 9 mi · Titusville Indian River Lagoon 10 mi · North Banana River Lagoon 11 mi · Fox Lake 13 mi · Lake Winder 14 mi · South Lake 14 mi · South Banana River Lagoon 15 mi · Ruth Lake 17 mi · North Indian River Lagoon 20 mi · Lake Washington 21 mi · Indian River 24 mi
See how Cocoa Indian River Lagoon stacks up: best red drum (redfish) lakes in Florida · best spotted seatrout lakes in Florida · best sheepshead lakes in Florida · best snook lakes in Florida
Browse all Florida fishing maps or see every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: NOAA BlueTopo (NAVD88; 82% measured, 16% source-interpolated). How we build these maps. Fish here with a sonar unit that logs? Send us your depth data and we'll improve this chart, credited to you. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.