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11,670-acre lower Choctawhatchee Bay section with quality-assured NOAA BlueTopo and Hurricane Michael topobathymetric contours, Destin and East Pass structure, mapped seagrass, charted wrecks and artificial reefs. The water tops out around 46 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 is how the season plays out for each species, straight from the data behind the map.
Traced from the shoreline, Lower Choctawhatchee Bay runs 11,691 acres with 22.3 miles of edge, broken up by an island. Index 1.5 on the shoreline: a few honest points and pockets, nothing labyrinthine. Littoral water — the productive band under ~15 ft — makes up 42% of this chart. Call it 5.9 mi long by 5.2 mi wide at the broadest reach. The nearest mapped water is Choctawhatchee Bay, 11 mi to the east.
Start shallow in spring: sheepshead sit in 5 to 25 ft that time of year. They don't go far with the seasons — 3 to 15 ft covers summer, 10 to 30 ft covers winter. The spot to know is Bay Cones (Bay), an artificial reef in about 23 ft of water that rates prime for sheepshead in spring. Warm-month bites cluster around early morning. Throw a small jig + crab piece until the fish tell you otherwise.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 25 ft | midday & dawn | Bay Cones (Bay) (23 ft) | 1/4 oz jighead + fiddler, Sheepshead jig + shrimp piece |
| Summer | 3 to 15 ft | dawn | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (14 ft) | Small jig + crab piece |
| Fall | 5 to 20 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (14 ft) | Jighead + shrimp, Small crab jig |
| Winter | 10 to 30 ft | midday | Bay Cones (Bay) (23 ft) | Heavier jig + crab (deep pilings) |
Spring spotted seatrout on Lower Choctawhatchee Bay hold shallow, usually 2 to 10 ft. By summer they slide out to 4 to 15 ft, and by winter most fish are in 5 to 20 ft. The chart's best answer is 2011 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge — seagrass edge, 10 ft, prime for spring. Prime time lands in early morning. The summer box starts with a popping cork + shrimp or a 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge).
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 10 ft | dawn & dusk | 2011 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (10 ft) | Topwater walker, Suspending twitchbait |
| Summer | 4 to 15 ft | dawn | 2011 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (10 ft) | Popping cork + shrimp, 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) |
| Fall | 3 to 12 ft | dawn | 2011 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (10 ft) | Popping cork rig, Soft plastic jerkbait |
| Winter | 5 to 20 ft | midday & dusk | Shallow feeding flat (19 ft) | Suspending twitchbait (long pauses), Scented plastic crawled on bottom |
The spring pattern is a shallow one: red drum (redfish) in 1 to 8 ft. As the season builds they drop to 2 to 12 ft, wintering in 3 to 15 ft. Top water on the chart: 2015 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge, a seagrass edge in the 2 ft range, prime in spring. Time it for early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a weedless gold spoon or a paddletail swimbait gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 8 ft | dawn & dusk | 2015 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (2 ft) | Gold weedless spoon, Paddletail on 1/4 oz jighead |
| Summer | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | 2011 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (10 ft) | Weedless gold spoon, Paddletail swimbait |
| Fall | 3 to 20 ft | dawn & midday | Shallow feeding flat (19 ft) | 1/2 oz spoon (schools), Big paddletail |
| Winter | 3 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Shallow feeding flat (19 ft) | Scented soft plastic on 1/8 oz head, Slow-rolled paddletail |
Spring gray snapper (mangrove snapper) on Lower Choctawhatchee Bay hold shallow, usually 3 to 22 ft. By summer they slide out to 4 to 30 ft, and by winter most fish are in 8 to 45 ft. The chart's best answer is Bay Cones (Bay) — artificial reef, 23 ft, prime for fall. Prime time lands in early morning and the evening. The summer box starts with a small bucktail or a paddletail.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 22 ft | dawn & dusk | 2011 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (10 ft) | Small paddletail, Jighead + shrimp imitation |
| Summer | 4 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | Bay Cones (Bay) (23 ft) | Small bucktail, Paddletail |
| Fall | 5 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | Bay Cones (Bay) (23 ft) | Small vertical jig, Jighead + paddletail |
| Winter | 8 to 45 ft | midday | Bay Cones (Bay) (23 ft) | Small jig worked slowly |
In spring, gag grouper run shallow here, mostly 4 to 24 ft. Summer pushes them deeper, 6 to 35 ft, and winter fish settle into 12 to 46 ft. 2011 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge is the standout, a seagrass edge at roughly 10 ft, rated prime for spring gag grouper. Time it for early morning and the evening. You won't need more than a deep-diving plug or a heavy paddletail most summer days.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 4 to 24 ft | dawn & dusk | 2011 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (10 ft) | Diving plug over grass potholes, Paddletail near rubble |
| Summer | 6 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | Bay Cones (Bay) (23 ft) | Deep-diving plug, Heavy paddletail |
| Fall | 9 to 46 ft | dawn | Bay Cones (Bay) (23 ft) | Deep-diving plug, Vertical jig |
| Winter | 12 to 46 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (14 ft) | Heavy vertical jig |
Spring puts gulf flounder in skinny water — 2 to 14 ft is the zone. As the season builds they drop to 4 to 20 ft, wintering in 12 to 40 ft. Summer gulf flounder concentrate at Shallow feeding flat, a prime-rated feeding flat around 19 ft. Warm-month bites cluster around early morning and the evening. A paddletail dragged on bottom or a bucktail + swimming mullet covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 14 ft | dawn | 2011 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (10 ft) | 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail, Bucktail + scented shrimp |
| Summer | 4 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow feeding flat (19 ft) | Paddletail dragged on bottom, Bucktail + swimming mullet |
| Fall | 6 to 28 ft | midday & dusk | Shallow feeding flat (19 ft) | 3/8 oz bucktail + scented grub, Paddletail on a heavier jighead |
| Winter | 12 to 40 ft | midday | open water | Slow jig + scented grub |
Lower Choctawhatchee Bay also holds southern flounder (3 to 18 ft in summer), permit (3 to 35 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
Structure-wise the chart holds 40 features, led in depth by Dangerous NOAA charted wreck at roughly 37 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 Lower Choctawhatchee Bay specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official Florida fishing regulations →
Lower Choctawhatchee Bay is about 46 ft (14 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 sheepshead, spotted seatrout, red drum (redfish), gray snapper (mangrove snapper), gag grouper, gulf flounder, southern flounder, permit on Lower Choctawhatchee Bay.
Bay Cones (Bay) is the top-rated area: an artificial reef in about 23 ft of water that rates prime for gray snapper (mangrove snapper) in fall. Scroll up to the map for the complete spot list by species and season.
For sheepshead, 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 Lower Choctawhatchee Bay 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.
Choctawhatchee Bay 11 mi · Santa Rosa Sound 21 mi · East Bay 26 mi · Karick Lake 33 mi · Bear Lake 35 mi · North Pensacola Bay 35 mi · South Escambia Bay 35 mi · Escambia Bay 36 mi · North Escambia Bay 38 mi · Hurricane Lake 38 mi · Pensacola Bay 39 mi · Middle Pensacola Bay 40 mi
See how Lower Choctawhatchee Bay stacks up: best red drum (redfish) lakes in Florida · best spotted seatrout lakes in Florida · best southern flounder lakes in Florida · best sheepshead lakes in Florida
Browse all Florida fishing maps or see every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: NOAA BlueTopo (NAVD88; 51% measured, 49% 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.