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2,223-acre Southwest Sarasota Bay section with quality-assured NOAA and USACE survey contours, Big Sarasota Pass and GIWW structure, charted wrecks, and mapped seagrass and oyster habitat. The water tops out around 25 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. Below is the species-by-species picture, pulled from the same data the map uses.
Drawn out, this is 2,227 acres of water rimmed by 29.8 miles of bank, broken up by 8 islands. A development index of 4.5 means a maze of bays and points: far more casting targets than a round bowl of the same size. 97% of the surface is littoral (under ~15 ft) — cover, weeds and forage water. Call it 3.7 mi long by 2.2 mi wide at the broadest reach. The nearest mapped water is Big Sarasota Pass, 2 mi to the south.
The spring pattern is a shallow one: sheepshead in 5 to 25 ft. The depth story barely changes: 3 to 15 ft through summer, 8 to 25 ft in winter. Top water on the chart: Channel Marker Reef (Bay), an artificial reef in the 6 ft range, prime in spring. Time it for early morning. Summer baits: a small jig + crab piece gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 25 ft | midday & dawn | Channel Marker Reef (Bay) (6 ft) | 1/4 oz jighead + fiddler, Sheepshead jig + shrimp piece |
| Summer | 3 to 15 ft | dawn | 1751932800000 oyster bars edge (2 ft) | Small jig + crab piece |
| Fall | 5 to 20 ft | midday | Channel Marker Reef (Bay) (6 ft) | Jighead + shrimp, Small crab jig |
| Winter | 8 to 25 ft | midday | Jantzen 5(Bay) (10 ft) | Heavier jig + crab (deep pilings) |
Start shallow in spring: snook sit in 2 to 12 ft that time of year. Warm water sends them out to 3 to 15 ft; cold water stacks them in 4 to 15 ft. Top water on the chart: 1751932800000 patchy seagrass edge, a seagrass edge in the 1 ft range, good in spring. Fish it in early morning and the evening and you'll meet the bite. Throw a flair hawk jig (passes, night) or a big swimbait in the current until the fish tell you otherwise.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 patchy seagrass edge (1 ft) | Paddletail on 1/4 oz head, Suspending twitchbait |
| Summer | 3 to 15 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 patchy seagrass edge (1 ft) | Flair hawk jig (passes, night), Big swimbait in the current |
| Fall | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 patchy seagrass edge (1 ft) | Big paddletail (mullet run), Topwater walker |
| Winter | 4 to 15 ft | midday | open water | Slow-rolled paddletail, Scented jerkbait crawled in canals |
Early season spotted seatrout use the shallows, holding in 2 to 10 ft. Expect a summer slide to 4 to 15 ft, then a winter hold in 5 to 20 ft. Put 1751932800000 patchy seagrass edge first on the milk run — a seagrass edge near 1 ft that grades prime for spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning. Tie on a popping cork + shrimp or a 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 10 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 patchy seagrass edge (1 ft) | Topwater walker, Suspending twitchbait |
| Summer | 4 to 15 ft | dawn | 1751932800000 patchy seagrass edge (1 ft) | Popping cork + shrimp, 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) |
| Fall | 3 to 12 ft | dawn | 1751932800000 patchy seagrass edge (1 ft) | Popping cork rig, Soft plastic jerkbait |
| Winter | 5 to 20 ft | midday & dusk | Surveyed channel edge (6 ft) | Suspending twitchbait (long pauses), Scented plastic crawled on bottom |
Start shallow in spring: red drum (redfish) sit in 1 to 8 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 2 to 12 ft, and winter fish settle into 3 to 15 ft. The spot to know is 1751932800000 oyster bars edge, an oyster reef in about 1 ft of water that rates prime for red drum (redfish) in spring. Warm-month bites cluster around early morning and the evening. Throw a weedless gold spoon or a paddletail swimbait until the fish tell you otherwise.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 8 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 oyster bars edge (1 ft) | Gold weedless spoon, Paddletail on 1/4 oz jighead |
| Summer | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 oyster bars edge (2 ft) | Weedless gold spoon, Paddletail swimbait |
| Fall | 3 to 20 ft | dawn & midday | 1751932800000 oyster bars edge (NaN ft) | 1/2 oz spoon (schools), Big paddletail |
| Winter | 3 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Surveyed channel edge (6 ft) | Scented soft plastic on 1/8 oz head, Slow-rolled paddletail |
Early season gray snapper (mangrove snapper) use the shallows, holding in 3 to 22 ft. Expect a summer slide to 3 to 25 ft, then a winter hold in 4 to 25 ft. Put Channel Marker Reef (Bay) first on the milk run — an artificial reef near 6 ft that grades prime for fall. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Tie on a small bucktail or a paddletail and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 22 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge (11 ft) | Small paddletail, Jighead + shrimp imitation |
| Summer | 3 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | Channel Marker Reef (Bay) (6 ft) | Small bucktail, Paddletail |
| Fall | 4 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | Channel Marker Reef (Bay) (6 ft) | Small vertical jig, Jighead + paddletail |
| Winter | 4 to 25 ft | midday | Channel Marker Reef (Bay) (6 ft) | Small jig worked slowly |
Spring puts gag grouper in skinny water — 4 to 24 ft is the zone. As the season builds they drop to 4 to 25 ft, wintering in 6 to 25 ft. Spring gag grouper concentrate at 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge, a prime-rated seagrass edge around 11 ft. Warm-month bites cluster around early morning and the evening. A deep-diving plug or a heavy paddletail covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 4 to 24 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge (11 ft) | Diving plug over grass potholes, Paddletail near rubble |
| Summer | 4 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | Channel Marker Reef (Bay) (6 ft) | Deep-diving plug, Heavy paddletail |
| Fall | 5 to 25 ft | dawn | Channel Marker Reef (Bay) (6 ft) | Deep-diving plug, Vertical jig |
| Winter | 6 to 25 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (10 ft) | Heavy vertical jig |
Southwest Sarasota Bay also holds gulf flounder (4 to 20 ft in summer), permit (2 to 25 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
44 pieces of structure are mapped here — Dangerous NOAA charted wreck, around 17 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 Southwest Sarasota Bay specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official Florida fishing regulations →
Southwest Sarasota Bay is about 25 ft (8 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, snook, spotted seatrout, red drum (redfish), gray snapper (mangrove snapper), gag grouper, gulf flounder, permit on Southwest Sarasota Bay.
Channel Marker Reef (Bay) is the top-rated area: an artificial reef in about 6 ft of water that rates prime for gray snapper (mangrove snapper) in fall. 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 Southwest Sarasota 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.
Big Sarasota Pass 2 mi · Roberts Bay 4 mi · North Sarasota Bay 9 mi · Little Sarasota Bay 9 mi · Longboat Pass 11 mi · Blackburn Bay 12 mi · Manatee River Estuary 12 mi · Manatee River 13 mi · Terra Ceia Bay 16 mi · Lower Tampa Bay 20 mi · Bunces Pass 24 mi · Pass A Grille Channel 27 mi
See how Southwest Sarasota Bay 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.