Gulf temps hit 75–76°F; speckled trout over 20 inches on FL's Forgotten Coast

What's Biting

What's Next

With Gulf water holding at 75–76°F and seas running flat at 2 feet, the next several days look favorable for both inshore and nearshore work along the Florida Gulf Coast. Light 9–11 mph winds allow comfortable access to flats, passes, and nearshore structure alike — a window anglers should use while it holds.

Inshore, the speckled trout bite that Sport Fishing Mag highlights along the Forgotten Coast is likely to persist and could strengthen as May deepens. Fish over 20 inches have been responding well to artificials; keep casts focused along grass flat edges and marsh pockets during the first and last 90 minutes of daylight. As air temperatures push into the upper 80s on land, Coastal Angler Magazine advises shifting toward late-afternoon and evening sessions — launching after 4 p.m. lets you avoid midday surface-heat stratification and puts you on the water when bait schools push onto the flats in fading light.

Around Boca Grande Pass and Charlotte Harbor — the waters Coastal Angler Magazine's Capt. Dave Stephens singles out as May favorites — tidal movement is your most important variable. The waning gibbous moon is still driving meaningful tidal amplitude through mid-week. The 90-minute window on either side of peak current, especially on the incoming tide, tends to concentrate fish at pass mouths and along channel drop-offs. As the moon approaches last quarter by late week, tidal amplitude will soften slightly; the early-morning window will become proportionally more productive.

Nearshore, Gulf water in the 75–76°F range is crossing the temperature threshold where Spanish mackerel and cobia typically begin showing in numbers on reefs and hard bottom in 15–40 feet. No specific nearshore report appeared in this week's feeds for the Gulf, so treat those targets as opportunistic rather than a sure bet — but conditions are ripe. A live well stocked with scaled sardines or threadfin herring gives you a fast-switch option when a mark is holding fish.

For the weekend, current buoy readings suggest calm-to-moderate seas may continue. Watch for any build in southerly wind that could push wave heights toward 3–4 feet; the current 2-foot reading leaves room. Check your local marine forecast before committing to a longer offshore run.

Context

May is historically one of the strongest months on Florida's Gulf Coast, and present conditions appear to be tracking close to the seasonal norm. Water temperatures in the 75–76°F range — what our NOAA buoy readings show today — align well with typical early May Gulf surface temps, which generally run 2–4°F warmer than the 72–73°F readings common in late March and April and sit well below the mid-80s that arrive by July.

For speckled trout, this is an established peak window on the panhandle and Nature Coast. Sport Fishing Mag's Forgotten Coast feature captures exactly what regulars expect: fish in the 20-inch-plus class moving onto flats and marsh edges as bait schools arrive and water warms. The fact that this activity is being reported now, in early May rather than tapering into a summer lull, suggests the season is on schedule.

Boca Grande Pass carries a decades-long reputation as one of the premier tarpon fisheries in the world, with peak activity historically running from late April through June and cresting in May. Coastal Angler Magazine's Capt. Dave Stephens flagging Charlotte Harbor as a May favorite is fully consistent with this established pattern — the pass and surrounding flats draw guides and tournament anglers from across the country during this stretch. No specific tarpon catch data appeared in this week's feeds, but the timing and water temperature align precisely with when the bite is expected to be at its height.

One signal worth monitoring: Sport Fishing Mag notes that undeveloped, marsh-heavy shoreline is key to holding trout in warmer months. If surface temps climb into the low 80s ahead of schedule, fish will likely compress into deeper grass and structure earlier than typical. At 75–76°F today, there is still comfortable room before that shift — but it is worth watching as the month progresses.