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15,208-acre North Pensacola Bay section with quality-assured NOAA direct survey soundings and assessed contours, FWC fish evidence, mapped estuarine habitat, charted structure, and verified public access. The water tops out around 33 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 follows comes from the same scoring engine that paints the spots above.
The outline encloses 15,237 acres, worked by 21.3 miles of shoreline. Its 1.2 shoreline index means few bank features; the contours below do the pattern work. Roughly 37% of the water is 15 ft or less, the band where the food chain lives. The basin spans about 7.7 mi end to end and 4.6 mi across at its widest. Pensacola Bay sits 4 mi west — the closest neighbouring chart.
Come spring, look for red drum (redfish) tight to the bank in 1 to 8 ft. Expect a summer slide to 2 to 12 ft, then a winter hold in 3 to 15 ft. Start at Gravel shoal. It's a gravel shoal holding about 4 ft of water and rates prime come fall. Prime time lands in early morning and the evening. A weedless gold spoon or a paddletail swimbait is the honest summer answer here.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 8 ft | dawn & dusk | 2017 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (4 ft) | Gold weedless spoon, Paddletail on 1/4 oz jighead |
| Summer | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | 2017 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (4 ft) | Weedless gold spoon, Paddletail swimbait |
| Fall | 3 to 20 ft | dawn & midday | Gravel shoal (4 ft) | 1/2 oz spoon (schools), Big paddletail |
| Winter | 3 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Gravel shoal (4 ft) | Scented soft plastic on 1/8 oz head, Slow-rolled paddletail |
The spring pattern is a shallow one: spotted seatrout in 2 to 10 ft. Midsummer fish sit out in 4 to 15 ft before dropping to 5 to 20 ft for winter. The spot to know is 2017 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge, a seagrass edge in about 4 ft of water that rates prime for spotted seatrout in spring. Plan around early morning in the warm months. Summer baits: a popping cork + shrimp or a 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 10 ft | dawn & dusk | 2017 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (4 ft) | Topwater walker, Suspending twitchbait |
| Summer | 4 to 15 ft | dawn | 2017 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (4 ft) | Popping cork + shrimp, 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) |
| Fall | 3 to 12 ft | dawn | 2017 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (4 ft) | Popping cork rig, Soft plastic jerkbait |
| Winter | 5 to 20 ft | midday & dusk | Shallow feeding flat (20 ft) | Suspending twitchbait (long pauses), Scented plastic crawled on bottom |
When the water first warms, sheepshead slide up into 5 to 25 ft. There's no big seasonal slide here — summer means 3 to 15 ft, winter 10 to 30 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Dangerous NOAA charted wreck: a wreck around 18 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning. Keep a small jig + crab piece rigged through the warm months.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 25 ft | midday & dawn | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (18 ft) | 1/4 oz jighead + fiddler, Sheepshead jig + shrimp piece |
| Summer | 3 to 15 ft | dawn | Gravel shoal (4 ft) | Small jig + crab piece |
| Fall | 5 to 20 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (18 ft) | Jighead + shrimp, Small crab jig |
| Winter | 10 to 30 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (18 ft) | Heavier jig + crab (deep pilings) |
When the water first warms, gulf flounder slide up into 2 to 14 ft. Summer is a 4 to 20 ft game here, winter a 10 to 33 ft one. Start at Shallow feeding flat. It's a feeding flat holding about 20 ft of water and rates prime come summer. The feeding windows run early morning and the evening. Keep a paddletail dragged on bottom or a bucktail + swimming mullet rigged through the warm months.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 14 ft | dawn | 2017 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge (4 ft) | 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail, Bucktail + scented shrimp |
| Summer | 4 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow feeding flat (20 ft) | Paddletail dragged on bottom, Bucktail + swimming mullet |
| Fall | 6 to 28 ft | midday & dusk | Shallow feeding flat (20 ft) | 3/8 oz bucktail + scented grub, Paddletail on a heavier jighead |
| Winter | 10 to 33 ft | midday | Deepest basin (31 ft) | Slow jig + scented grub |
11 pieces of structure are mapped here — Deepest basin, around 31 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 North Pensacola Bay specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official Florida fishing regulations →
North Pensacola Bay is about 33 ft (10 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 red drum (redfish), spotted seatrout, sheepshead, gulf flounder on North Pensacola Bay.
2017 patchy (discontinuous) seagrass edge is the top-rated area: a seagrass edge in about 4 ft of water that rates prime for spotted seatrout in spring. Open the map above to see every rated spot for each species and season.
For red drum (redfish), the summer bite is best in early morning and the evening. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.
Fishing on North Pensacola 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.
Pensacola Bay 4 mi · South Escambia Bay 4 mi · Middle Pensacola Bay 5 mi · Escambia Bay 7 mi · Pensacola Bay Mouth 9 mi · East Bay 10 mi · North Escambia Bay 10 mi · Santa Rosa Sound 15 mi · Perdido Bay 18 mi, AL/FL · Perdido Pass 27 mi, AL · Wolf Bay 28 mi, AL · Lower Choctawhatchee Bay 35 mi
See how North Pensacola Bay stacks up: best red drum (redfish) lakes in Florida · best spotted seatrout lakes in Florida · best sheepshead lakes in Florida · best gulf flounder lakes in Florida
Browse all Florida fishing maps or see every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: NOAA BlueTopo (NAVD88; 67% measured, 33% 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.