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31,221-acre Upper 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 public access. The water tops out around 38 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.
Upper Pine Island Sound maps at 31,285 acres behind 124.1 miles of shoreline — 66 islands included. The 5 development index tells the story — a convoluted bank whose fishable edge far outruns the acreage. Every acre of it sits shallower than ~15 ft: one big littoral zone, cover and forage throughout. The basin spans about 10.8 mi end to end and 6.8 mi across at its widest. Its nearest charted neighbour, Captiva Passage, is 3 mi to the southwest.
Come spring, look for sheepshead tight to the bank in 5 to 25 ft. Through summer count on 3 to 15 ft; the winter hold is 10 to 30 ft. Start at 2024 oyster edge. It's an oyster reef holding about 3 ft of water and rates prime come summer. Prime time lands in early morning. A small jig + crab piece is the honest summer answer here.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 25 ft | midday & dawn | 2024 oyster edge (4 ft) | 1/4 oz jighead + fiddler, Sheepshead jig + shrimp piece |
| Summer | 3 to 15 ft | dawn | 2024 oyster edge (3 ft) | Small jig + crab piece |
| Fall | 5 to 20 ft | midday | 2024 oyster edge (4 ft) | Jighead + shrimp, Small crab jig |
| Winter | 10 to 30 ft | midday | 2024 oyster edge (4 ft) | Heavier jig + crab (deep pilings) |
Start shallow in spring: gray snapper (mangrove snapper) sit in 3 to 22 ft that time of year. Warm water sends them out to 4 to 30 ft; cold water stacks them in 7 to 38 ft. Top water on the chart: Dangerous NOAA charted wreck, a wreck in the 2 ft range, prime in fall. Fish it in early morning and the evening and you'll meet the bite. Throw a small bucktail or a paddletail until the fish tell you otherwise.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 22 ft | dawn & dusk | 2024 oyster edge (3 ft) | Small paddletail, Jighead + shrimp imitation |
| Summer | 4 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (2 ft) | Small bucktail, Paddletail |
| Fall | 5 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (2 ft) | Small vertical jig, Jighead + paddletail |
| Winter | 7 to 38 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (2 ft) | Small jig worked slowly |
Early season snook use the shallows, holding in 2 to 12 ft. Expect a summer slide to 3 to 15 ft, then a winter hold in 4 to 15 ft. Put 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge first on the milk run — a seagrass edge near 8 ft that grades prime for spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Tie on a flair hawk jig (passes, night) or a big swimbait in the current and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge (8 ft) | Paddletail on 1/4 oz head, Suspending twitchbait |
| Summer | 3 to 15 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge (8 ft) | Flair hawk jig (passes, night), Big swimbait in the current |
| Fall | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge (8 ft) | Big paddletail (mullet run), Topwater walker |
| Winter | 4 to 15 ft | midday | open water | Slow-rolled paddletail, Scented jerkbait crawled in canals |
Start shallow in spring: spotted seatrout sit in 2 to 10 ft that time of year. Warm water sends them out to 4 to 15 ft; cold water stacks them in 5 to 20 ft. Top water on the chart: 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge, a seagrass edge in the 8 ft range, prime in spring. Fish it in early morning and you'll meet the bite. Throw a popping cork + shrimp or a 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) until the fish tell you otherwise.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 10 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge (8 ft) | Topwater walker, Suspending twitchbait |
| Summer | 4 to 15 ft | dawn | 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge (8 ft) | Popping cork + shrimp, 1/4 oz jighead + paddletail (deep grass edge) |
| Fall | 3 to 12 ft | dawn | 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge (8 ft) | Popping cork rig, Soft plastic jerkbait |
| Winter | 5 to 20 ft | midday & dusk | Surveyed channel edge (7 ft) | Suspending twitchbait (long pauses), Scented plastic crawled on bottom |
When the water first warms, gag grouper slide up into 4 to 24 ft. Summer is a 6 to 35 ft game here, winter a 10 to 38 ft one. Start at 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge. It's a seagrass edge holding about 8 ft of water and rates prime come spring. The feeding windows run early morning and the evening. Keep a deep-diving plug or a heavy paddletail rigged through the warm months.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 4 to 24 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge (8 ft) | Diving plug over grass potholes, Paddletail near rubble |
| Summer | 6 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | 1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge (8 ft) | Deep-diving plug, Heavy paddletail |
| Fall | 8 to 38 ft | dawn | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (2 ft) | Deep-diving plug, Vertical jig |
| Winter | 10 to 38 ft | midday | Dangerous NOAA charted wreck (2 ft) | Heavy vertical jig |
When the water first warms, red drum (redfish) slide up into 1 to 8 ft. By summer they slide out to 2 to 12 ft, and by winter most fish are in 3 to 15 ft. If you only fish one area, make it 1751932800000 oyster bars edge: an oyster reef around 1 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Keep a weedless gold spoon or a paddletail swimbait rigged through the warm months.
| 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 | 2024 oyster edge (3 ft) | Weedless gold spoon, Paddletail swimbait |
| Fall | 3 to 20 ft | dawn & midday | 2024 oyster edge (3 ft) | 1/2 oz spoon (schools), Big paddletail |
| Winter | 3 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Shallow feeding flat (14 ft) | Scented soft plastic on 1/8 oz head, Slow-rolled paddletail |
Upper Pine Island Sound also holds gulf flounder (4 to 20 ft in summer), permit (3 to 35 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
Upper Pine Island Sound carries 51 mapped structure features, topping out (or rather bottoming out) at Shallow feeding flat, about 14 ft down.
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 Upper Pine Island Sound specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official Florida fishing regulations →
Upper Pine Island Sound is about 38 ft (12 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, gray snapper (mangrove snapper), snook, spotted seatrout, gag grouper, red drum (redfish), gulf flounder, permit on Upper Pine Island Sound.
1751932800000 continuous seagrass edge is the top-rated area: a seagrass edge in about 8 ft of water that rates prime for gag grouper in spring. 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 Upper 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.
Captiva Passage 3 mi · Matlacha Pass 8 mi · Lower Pine Island Sound 8 mi · San Carlos Bay 14 mi · Gasparilla Pass 14 mi · Lemon Bay 24 mi · Estero Bay 25 mi · Blackburn Bay 42 mi · Gordon Pass 44 mi · Lake Trafford 45 mi · Little Sarasota Bay 45 mi · Roberts Bay 50 mi
See how Upper 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; 79% measured, 21% 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.