Inshore Fishing Report
Snook season reopened in our region back on February 1st and there have been plenty of slot sized fish caught over the past few weeks. The water has been warming up a bit with some warmer weather in the afternoons so the Snook have been a bit more active and we have seen more productivity from anglers fishing live baits such as Croakers, Pilchards and Threadfins. Don’t be surprised if you start seeing more productivity later in the morning as the weather and water temps warm up. If you’re fishing right around sunset on a chilly morning, start out with your slower presentations such as live shrimp or work some soft plastics to increase your chances. We’ve seen some slot sized and over slots caught around the causeways and there have been some schooled up around docks in both the Indian and St. Lucie rivers. Those fishing the Jensen Causeway for Snook have still been doing well in the evenings focusing on the shadow lines. Artificial shrimp such as Thumper Shrimp and Vudu Shrimp along with paddle tails and flair hawk jigs have been getting thumped for anglers fishing lures. There have been some Snook and Trout caught north of the Jensen causeway on both the east and west side by those wading. There have also been some Trout mixed in with Snook in some of the dock lights.
You can expect to still find some Sheepshead around inshore and on some of the nearshore patch reefs. Live shrimp or fiddler crabs on a jig head will get you the bite when they’re around. You will want to look for them around structure as they will be feeding on the barnacle growth. Typically the more barnacle growth you find, the higher the chance of some Sheepshead being in the area. We’ve been still seeing some Black Drum caught around the bridges on shrimp, fiddler crabs and cut pieces of crab. There have also been some nice sized Redfish that have been caught at the Stuart Causeway. Season is closed on Redfish in our area, but we have been seeing some solid upper slot and over slot sized fish. The Redfish can be caught on live shrimp, croakers, cut bait such as mullet or lady fish as well as crabs.
The inshore Pompano fishing is starting to pick up for us here in the river which is similar to last year’s timing. There has been a good amount of them caught in the inlet over the past week by those both fishing jigs and those fishing bait. Those fishing bait are using a Pompano surf fishing rig with a pyramid sinker baited with either pieces of shrimp, sand fleas, clam or FishBites. You can also look at different style jigs such as the Gulfstream Redfish Jig as they have been working for the Pompano as well. If you are skipping Pompano and not getting bit on the jig, it’s never a bad idea to try bait fishing. There have been Pompano caught on the Sailfish Flats as well as by those jigging from the Jensen and Stuart Causeways. If you’re looking for them on the flats, look around in some of the deeper cuts around the islands as sometimes they will get up in those areas looking to feed. Those Pompano fishing are also running into Spanish Mackerel, Bluefish, Jacks, Bonefish, Ladyfish and more to stay busy. There have also been some schools of big jacks inshore cruising the channels and sea walls looking to feed if you’re looking for a battle!
If you’re looking to book an inshore charter, checkout our charter page, https://snooknookcharters.com/ or give Capt. Justin a call at 772-530-1114. Here’s a few pictures of his clients recent catches!
Offshore Fishing Report
The offshore fishing has really started to pick up for us as we close out the month and we were met with some fishable days which was a huge plus! The surface bite has consisted of Sailfish, Mahi, Blackfin Tuna, Kingfish and a few Wahoo. The Sailfish bite really started to pick up for us with several boats having days of five plus fish landed in the final weekend of the month. The boats who put up the best numbers on the Sails fished to the south of our inlet, but there were fish scattered around from Jupiter to Ft. Pierce. The Mahi fishing seems to be improving as well with some nice sized gaffers making it in the boat. March and April typically provide us with some of our best surface action of the year for Mahis so we hope to see some more fish making their way to us. This time of year you can find both live baiting and trolling ballyhoo to be effective if you’re looking for Mahis and Sails. Running and gunning to look for areas with life is one of the best strategies, look for weedlines, birds overhead, temperature changes in the water, structure or color changes before putting your lines in to give yourself some better odds of hooking into some fish. Trolling can be very effective to find the fish, but if you find yourself a nice edge or condition fishing live baits or throwing the kite up will typically find those fish that may be around. If you’re looking for live bait, give Bryan or Mike with Stuart Live Bait a call the night before you’re going out to reserve some bait, 772-985-0425.
The Blackfin Tuna bite was pretty good throughout the month with Tunas being caught out at PushButton Hill, around the Six Mile reef and around wrecks such as the Rankin. Tunas were caught by those trolling Ballyhoo, trolling feathers and assorted lures as well as on live baits and by those jigging. If you’re looking for them out at Pushbutton, you will tend to see more activity from them up on the surface first thing in the morning. As more boats start to show up, it will drive the Tunas down a little bit and a more effective strategy can be tossing over a jig especially if you start marking fish. There have been a few Wahoo have been around, don’t be afraid to run a planer in your trolling spread to get your bait down a little deeper. Trolling a rigged split tail mullet as a shotgun bait can be an effective strategy as well, typically when that bait gets hit you’ll have a nice Mahi or Wahoo on the other end of the line.
March and April also bring Cobia and Permit to our area. If you are looking to get into the Permit, fishing live crabs will be your best bet either on a jig head or free lined. Areas to look for them include the boils off the Power Plant and the nearshore reefs in the 60’ range. Our Cobia fishing can also be excellent this time of year. You will see them caught on a lot of the reefs and wrecks as they are cruising through. If you are bottom fishing, it is always a good idea to have a rod rigged with a Cobia jig in case one swims by. Many boats will be anchored up on some of the nearshore reefs such as the Sandpile looking to find them. You will be able to catch them on pretty much any live baits (pilchards, threadfins, blue runners, grunts, etc), crabs, select shrimp or Cobia jigs. Always be on the lookout for sharks as you may see them swimming on the back of the sharks as well. If you are planning on targeting Permits or Cobia, be prepared with some heavy tackle as the sharks will most likely be in pursuit of your fish. If you notice a cold water upwelling and see the bottom temperature start dipping into the 60s, running the beach to look for Cobia is always a solid option.
Bottom fishing has been providing some steady action. We’ve still had some quality Lane Snappers around on some of the nearshore reefs as well as on the six and eight mile. Fishing chicken rigs with squid or sardines will get you the bite when they’re around. Mangrove Snapper fishing has been improving and those fishing long leaders for Muttons have been picking off some nice sized Muttons up to 15lbs that we’ve been seeing. The Vermillion bite out at Pushbutton has remained consistent with anglers catching their limits on chicken rigs with squid.
If you’re looking to book an offshore charter, checkout DayMaker Charters, https://www.stuartflfishingcharters.com/ or give Capt. Nick Cremasco a call at 772-380-3455. Here’s a few pictures of his recent catches!
Surf Fishing Report
The Pompano fishing has remained steady and it seems more fish are starting to hit our beaches. Over the past few years, the March through April stretch has provided us with our best Pompano bite of the year. As we get into the spring Pompano bite, sometimes the afternoon bite can be more productive than the morning bite. So don’t be afraid to hit the beach in the afternoon if you can’t get out in the morning. FishBites have remained to be the most consistent bait this year if you are targeting Pompano. The majority of the fish have been in the deeper troughs 80-100 yards off the beach. The hot flavors have consisted of Powerlime Crab, EZ Flea, Electric Chicken Crab and Pink/Flesh Crab. The Permit bite off our beaches has slowed down over the past month, but we really haven’t had the proper water color for them due to some of the swells we have been getting. The Permit will be more likely to be found when we have cleaner, clearer water conditions. We can expect to see the Whiting and Croaker bite to improve as we get into the spring months as well. Pieces of shrimp as well as Bloodworm and Shrimp FishBites will get the job done for them. There have still been some Spanish Mackerel and Bluefish caught from the surf by those throwing spoons in the morning. If you’re looking to get in on the surf fishing action and learn from a true pro, you can book a charter with Capt. Paul Sperco, you can give him a call at 609-903-8243.
Don’t forget, the 4th Annual Sand Spike Shootout is scheduled for March 23rd & 24th and the headquarters and weigh station for the event will be right here at the Snook Nook. The Sand Spike Shootout is a two day Pompano and Whiting tournament benefiting the Indian Riverkeeper and presents opportunities to win some great prizes. If you’re interested in signing up you can visit the following link to get registered, https://www.theindianriverkeeper.org/sand-spike-shootout/
Lake Okeechobee Fishing Report – Capt. Angie Douthit
Bass and crappie fishing has been on fire with record number big bass, quantity of bass and
crappie limits being caught, so if you haven’t had the chance to book your next fun-filled and
educational day fishing Okeechobee now is the time to book your trip. I can accommodate 3
people and multi trips as well as meeting customers to suit their schedule and offer deep hotel
discounts and refer you to the best “eats” when in town. The month of April typically kicks off
the start of the bluegill spawn time of year which runs through till September, I highly
recommend avoiding the summer months due to daily rainstorms and high heat temps, with
that said, the months of April, May and early June are really good months to consider fishing
and less traffic at the ramps and on the lake. Areas to try when bass fishing have been some
areas on the Shoal; Monkey box and Dupree bar; around Dyess ditch; parts of Horse Island;
North end of Tin House; 2 nd point; parts of Kings bar and Grassy. If your fishing the east side try
areas around Nub N Slough; Hendry Creek and around J & S back in. Keep in mind, water
clarity/color. Areas for crappie fishing has been pretty much the same areas as for the bass and
again, keep in mind the water clarity/color. Bass lures to consider are: worms; swim
baits/swim jigs; shallow jerk baits (hard/soft); some top water; flipping/pitching (isolated
cover); shallow crank baits. Color schemes are shad; bluegill; crawdad and tilapia. When using
the Indian Praire boat ramp use extra caution when loading/unloading your boat and with no
place to safely to get in/out of your boat. Glades County will hopefully fix it soon. The other
three boat ramps used on the west/north sides are in great shape which is Harney Pond canal
located in Lakeport and Scott Driver and Okeetantie located on the River in Okeechobee. To
book your next exciting and fun day fishing Okeechobee call 863-228-7263 or log onto
www.southfloridabassfishing.com where you can find more trip information, customer
reviews, pics, rates and etc. A big thank you to my sponsors: Toho Marine; Mercury; BnM
Poles; Real Magic; Lews; Bullet Weights; Gene Larew; Pradco Brands; Mid-South Tackle; Maui
Jim; Gill and Rapala.
