How We Research

Most fishing sites do not tell you where their information comes from. This one does, because the difference between a guide worth reading and a guide worth ignoring is entirely a question of sourcing.

Every size limit, bag limit and season date on this site is taken from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission species pages — the primary source, not a summary of a summary.

• Each entry in the season and limit checker carries the date it was last checked against FWC. If that date is old, treat the number as suspect.
• Where a rule differs by coast or region, the difference is shown rather than averaged away. Redfish vessel limits and the nine seatrout regions are the usual traps.
• Where state and federal waters diverge — which is most of the offshore reef species — that is called out explicitly.
• Nothing here is a substitute for FWC. Confirm before you keep a fish.

Tide data comes live from NOAA CO-OPS, pulled from the nearest official station to each region and named on the page so you can check the station yourself. Solunar feeding windows are computed in your browser from standard sun and moon position maths — not fetched from a third-party service that might quietly disappear or start charging.

Solunar theory is a model, not a guarantee. It is a useful way to pick between a dawn trip and a mid-morning one. It will not make fish bite.

Gear guides here are built from published specifications, warranty and service terms, long-run owner feedback, and how a piece of tackle matches the specific job the guide is about — a leader for tarpon, a reel that lives in salt spray, a rod that has to throw a popping cork all day.

What that is not: a claim that every item has been personally fished to destruction. Where something has been used first-hand, the guide says so plainly. Where the recommendation is research-led, it does not pretend to be anything else. A recommendation you can weigh is worth more than one you have to take on faith.

These draw on FWC biological data and stock information, published work from Florida marine research institutions, established regional technique — the accumulated practice of people who fish a given water — and direct time on the water where it applies.

Where a technique is contested among good anglers, the guide says it is contested instead of picking a side and stating it as fact.

Some guides embed video from established channels. Those are other people’s work, credited to them, included because seeing a retrieve is worth more than reading about one. They are not this site’s footage and are never presented as such.

Product links are affiliate links: buy through one and the retailer pays a commission at no extra cost to you. No brand pays for coverage, placement or a rating, and no brand reviews a guide before it publishes. Every page carrying affiliate links says so at the top.

Regulations shift, seasons get reopened by emergency order, and a guide written in March can be wrong by June. Corrections are made and re-dated rather than quietly edited. If you find an error — particularly on a limit or a season — send it in.

Written by Captain. Not a licensed charter captain — see About for what that name does and does not mean.