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17,401-acre Lower Pine Island Sound section with quality-assured NOAA direct survey soundings and assessed contours, exact-polygon FWC fish occurrence, mapped seagrass and oyster habitat, charted structure, and verified named-water public access. The water tops out around 24 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. What the data behind the map says about each species, season by season:
Spring puts sheepshead in skinny water — 5 to 24 ft is the zone. Summer fish stay in 3 to 15 ft, and winter fish hold in 7 to 24 ft. Summer sheepshead concentrate at 2024 oyster edge, a prime-rated oyster reef around 2 ft. Warm-month bites cluster around early morning. A small jig + crab piece covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 24 ft | midday & dawn | 2024 oyster edge (2 ft) | 1/4 oz jighead + fiddler, Sheepshead jig + shrimp piece |
| Summer | 3 to 15 ft | dawn | 2024 oyster edge (2 ft) | Small jig + crab piece |
| Fall | 5 to 20 ft | midday | 2024 oyster edge (2 ft) | Jighead + shrimp, Small crab jig |
| Winter | 7 to 24 ft | midday | 2024 oyster edge (2 ft) | Heavier jig + crab (deep pilings) |
Come spring, look for spotted seatrout tight to the bank in 2 to 10 ft. Expect a summer slide to 4 to 15 ft, then a winter hold in 5 to 20 ft. Start at 2021 continuous seagrass edge. It's a seagrass edge holding about 3 ft of water and rates prime come spring. Prime time lands in early morning. A popping cork + shrimp or a 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) is the honest summer answer here.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 10 ft | dawn & dusk | 2021 continuous seagrass edge (3 ft) | Topwater walker, Suspending twitchbait |
| Summer | 4 to 15 ft | dawn | 2021 continuous seagrass edge (4 ft) | Popping cork + shrimp, 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) |
| Fall | 3 to 12 ft | dawn | 2021 continuous seagrass edge (3 ft) | Popping cork rig, Soft plastic jerkbait |
| Winter | 5 to 20 ft | midday & dusk | Surveyed channel edge (10 ft) | Suspending twitchbait (long pauses), Scented plastic crawled on bottom |
Come spring, look for gray snapper (mangrove snapper) tight to the bank in 3 to 22 ft. Expect a summer slide to 3 to 24 ft, then a winter hold in 4 to 24 ft. Start at Dangerous NOAA charted wreck. It's a wreck holding about 3 ft of water and rates prime come fall. Prime time lands in early morning and the evening. A small bucktail or a paddletail is the honest summer answer here.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 22 ft | dawn & dusk | 2021 continuous seagrass edge (3 ft) | Small paddletail, Jighead + shrimp imitation |
| Summer | 3 to 24 ft | dawn & dusk | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (3 ft) | Small bucktail, Paddletail |
| Fall | 3 to 24 ft | dawn & dusk | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (3 ft) | Small vertical jig, Jighead + paddletail |
| Winter | 4 to 24 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (3 ft) | Small jig worked slowly |
Spring puts snook in skinny water — 2 to 12 ft is the zone. Warm water sends them out to 3 to 15 ft; cold water stacks them in 4 to 15 ft. 2021 continuous seagrass edge is the standout, a seagrass edge at roughly 3 ft, rated prime for spring snook. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. A flair hawk jig (passes, night) or a big swimbait in the current covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | 2021 continuous seagrass edge (3 ft) | Paddletail on 1/4 oz head, Suspending twitchbait |
| Summer | 3 to 15 ft | dawn & dusk | 2021 continuous seagrass edge (3 ft) | Flair hawk jig (passes, night), Big swimbait in the current |
| Fall | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | 2021 continuous seagrass edge (3 ft) | Big paddletail (mullet run), Topwater walker |
| Winter | 4 to 15 ft | midday | open water | Slow-rolled paddletail, Scented jerkbait crawled in canals |
The spring pattern is a shallow one: gag grouper in 4 to 24 ft. The depth story barely changes: 4 to 24 ft through summer, 6 to 24 ft in winter. Top water on the chart: 2021 continuous seagrass edge, a seagrass edge in the 4 ft range, prime in spring. Time it for early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a deep-diving plug or a heavy paddletail gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 4 to 24 ft | dawn & dusk | 2021 continuous seagrass edge (4 ft) | Diving plug over grass potholes, Paddletail near rubble |
| Summer | 4 to 24 ft | dawn & dusk | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (3 ft) | Deep-diving plug, Heavy paddletail |
| Fall | 5 to 24 ft | dawn | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (3 ft) | Deep-diving plug, Vertical jig |
| Winter | 6 to 24 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (3 ft) | Heavy vertical jig |
When the water first warms, permit slide up into 3 to 24 ft. There's no big seasonal slide here — summer means 2 to 24 ft, winter 6 to 24 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Shallow feeding flat: a feeding flat around 20 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and midday. Keep a crab fly or a crab imitation rigged through the warm months.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 24 ft | dawn | Shallow feeding flat (20 ft) | Small crab fly, Shrimp-pattern jig |
| Summer | 2 to 24 ft | dawn & midday | Shallow feeding flat (20 ft) | Crab fly, Crab imitation |
| Fall | 3 to 24 ft | dawn | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (3 ft) | Crab imitation, Shrimp-pattern jig |
| Winter | 6 to 24 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (3 ft) | Crab imitation worked deep |
Lower Pine Island Sound also holds gulf flounder (4 to 20 ft in summer), red drum (redfish) (2 to 12 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
83 pieces of structure are mapped here — Surveyed channel edge, around 22 ft, is the deepest of them.
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 Pine Island Sound specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official Florida fishing regulations →
Lower Pine Island Sound is about 24 ft (7 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, gray snapper (mangrove snapper), snook, gag grouper, permit, gulf flounder, red drum (redfish) on Lower Pine Island Sound.
2021 continuous seagrass edge is the top-rated area: a seagrass edge in about 4 ft of water that rates prime for gag grouper in spring. Every other rated spot, per species and season, is on the map above.
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 Pine Island Sound 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.
San Carlos Bay 7 mi · Upper Pine Island Sound 8 mi · Captiva Passage 8 mi · Matlacha Pass 8 mi · Estero Bay 18 mi · Gasparilla Pass 22 mi · Lemon Bay 32 mi · Gordon Pass 36 mi · Lake Trafford 41 mi · Blackburn Bay 50 mi · Little Sarasota Bay 53 mi · Roberts Bay 57 mi
See how Lower Pine Island Sound 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; 80% measured, 19% 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.