Florida /

Choctawhatchee Bay

Bay in Florida · 72,802 acres · near Destin, Fort Walton Beach, Freeport, Longwood

Choctawhatchee Bay is an estuary on the Emerald Coast of the Florida Panhandle, lying within Okaloosa and Walton counties. It runs east to west for about 27 miles, is 1 to 6 miles wide, covers about 129 square miles and ranges from 10 to 43 feet deep. Most of its fresh water comes from the Choctawhatchee River, whose watershed covers about 5,350 square miles of northwest Florida and southern Alabama. East Pass, just west of Destin, is the bay's only direct opening to the Gulf of Mexico. It is an artificial channel opened in 1929 where there had previously been an intermittent opening. The bay also connects to the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway on the east and to Santa Rosa Sound on the west. The Mid-Bay Bridge links Destin and Niceville, and the US 331 bridge links Freeport to the coast.

Okaloosa and Walton counties, the cities of Destin, Fort Walton Beach, Niceville and Valparaiso, and Fred Gannon Rocky Bayou State Park run public launches around the shore, including Ross Marler Park, Meig's Park, Lincoln Park, Choctaw Beach Park and Grady Brown Bayfield Park. Joe's Bayou Boat Launch in Destin has five ramps on 1.5 acres and charges a $25 daily launch fee. Destin residents can get a free pass.

Anglers fish the bay for red drum, spotted seatrout, sheepshead, Spanish mackerel, flounder and mullet, and oysters are harvested both commercially and recreationally. Large parts of the bay are designated Class II waters for shellfish. Seagrass beds support many fish species.

Boating rules

Rules change; check with the agency or town before you go.

Launches

Community

Where people who fish, boat and paddle Choctawhatchee Bay talk about it. Lake associations, clubs and local groups will be added as we find them.

Sources

  1. Choctawhatchee Bay (Ruth and Handley) - U.S. Geological Survey
  2. Choctawhatchee Bay - Wikipedia
  3. Joe's Bayou Boat Launch - City of Destin

Researched October 13, 2026 from the sources above. Written content CC BY 4.0. Something wrong? Corrections are welcome.