Monday, September 28 · NOAA station 8729045 (Laird Bayou, East Bay)
Tides live · forecast as of 11:54 PM CT
Tide now
1.9 ft
· Slack water
Next high
12:04 AM
1.9 ft · in 10m
Next low
10:07 AM
0.4 ft · in 10h 13m
Wind
4 mph NE
Light breeze · gusts 12
Fishing score
44 /100
Fair
drag to pan · scroll or pinch to zoom · hover for detail
| Day | Tide | Time | Height |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon, Sep 28 | Low | 8:54 AM | 0.6 ft |
| Tue, Sep 29 | High | 12:04 AM | 1.9 ft |
| Tue, Sep 29 | Low | 10:07 AM | 0.4 ft |
Today in Laird Bayou, no high tide falls within the calendar day, and low tide bottoms out at 8:54 AM (0.6 ft).
The sun rises at 6:33 AM and sets at 6:31 PM, under a waning gibbous (93% illuminated). Tidal range is in the middle of its two-week cycle.
Tomorrow starts with a high tide at 12:04 AM (1.9 ft) — see the 7-day outlook below to plan the week.
Best windows today
dawn bite window · light wind
Waning Gibbous
93% illuminated
Moderate tidal range this week.
68°F
Clear
Light breeze — Great fishing conditions
Today
87° / 64°
Best: 5:30 AM–7:30 AM
Tue, Sep 29
89° / 64°
Best: 5:30 AM–7:30 AM
Wed, Sep 30
89° / 70°
Best: 5:30 AM–7:30 AM
Thu, Oct 1
89° / 74°
Best: 5:30 AM–7:30 AM
Fri, Oct 2
84° / 76°
Best: 5:30 AM–7:30 AM
Sat, Oct 3
87° / 75°
Best: 6:00 AM–8:00 AM
Sun, Oct 4
87° / 75°
Best: 6:00 AM–8:00 AM
Activity ratings reflect typical feeding seasons — not legal seasons. Regulations, closures, and size/bag limits change; always check current FWC regulations before keeping any fish.

Redfish
Sciaenops ocellatus
Season: Year-round, best in fall
Baits: Cut mullet, Live shrimp, Gold spoons
Sight-fish tailing reds on shallow flats on a flooding tide. Fall schools push bait against oyster bars and grass edges.

Spanish Mackerel
Scomberomorus maculatus
Season: Spring and fall runs
Baits: Silver spoons, Gotcha plugs, Live pilchards
Find birds working bait and cast fast-moving metal through the frenzy. Wire or heavy fluoro — their teeth are scissors.

Gulf Flounder
Paralichthys albigutta
Season: Spring and fall, best in the fall run
Baits: Bull minnows, Live shrimp, Gulp on a jighead
Drag baits slowly across sandy potholes and channel edges. Count to three on the bite before setting — they chew first.

Spotted Seatrout
Cynoscion nebulosus
Season: Year-round, best in cooler months
Baits: Live shrimp under a popping cork, Soft plastics, Topwaters
Drift grass flats in 2–6 feet with a popping cork ahead of the drift. Gator trout hunt alone in skinny water at dawn.

Florida Pompano
Trachinotus carolinus
Season: Fall – spring surf runs
Baits: Sand fleas, Fresh shrimp, Pompano jigs
Surf fish the troughs on an incoming tide with sand fleas — the Florida winter classic. Look for diving birds over sandbars.
Matched to the species feeding at Laird Bayou right now.

Surf Rods
Okuma Tundra Surf Spinning Rod — 7 ft, 2-Piece
Okuma build the Tundra as a surf series and say so themselves — they describe it as favoured by catfish anglers and cost-conscious surf anglers.

Soft Baits
Zoom Fluke 4" — Smokin' Shad, 10-Pack
Same darting soft-jerkbait profile in the standard body, in a translucent shad pattern that covers most clear-water situations.

Terminal Tackle
Eagle Claw Lazer Sharp Offset Circle Sea Hook — 4/0, 50-Pack
The circle hook does the work for you: no strike, just let the rod load and the hook finds the corner of the jaw on its own.

Tools
Rapala 8" Super Stainless Steel Pliers
Eight inches of stainless with an internal spring that holds the jaws open, so you can work one-handed while the other hand is busy holding a fish.
The next high tide at Laird Bayou is shown live in the tide chart above, from NOAA station 8729045.
Low tide in Laird Bayou today is at 8:54 AM (0.6 ft).
Today's best fishing window at Laird Bayou is 5:30 AM–7:30 AM (rated Good, 63/100), driven by dawn bite window, light wind. The score blends tide movement, dawn/dusk light, moon phase, wind, and water temperature.
In September, the most active species at Laird Bayou are Redfish, Spanish Mackerel, Gulf Flounder. See the species section above for baits, techniques, and seasons.
Yes — Laird Bayou (NOAA station 8729045) is the closest official tide prediction station to Panama City, Florida, so these are the tide times anglers and boaters in Panama City plan around.
Predictions come directly from NOAA CO-OPS harmonic predictions for station 8729045 (Laird Bayou, East Bay) and are the same data used in official tide tables. Actual water levels can vary with storms and barometric pressure, so treat predictions as planning guidance, not navigation data.
Laird Bayou is one of the Florida Panhandle tide stations in NOAA's official prediction network. The chart above shows the live prediction for station 8729045 (Laird Bayou, East Bay) — the same harmonic data printed in official tide tables — paired with local weather, water conditions, and our fishing score so you can time a session here without cross-referencing three sites. Laird Bayou is the closest NOAA tide station to Panama City, Florida — if you fish, paddle, or boat out of Panama City, these are the tide predictions to plan around.