Inshore Fishing Report
April is an excellent time of the year to fish our inshore waterways. As spring is upon us, we are greeted with warmer water temperatures which generally leads to more baitfish and more active species for our inshore anglers.
Snook: The inshore Snook bite generally heats up big time for us in April. We are already beginning to see the number of fish caught increase, along with more quality slot sized and over slot fish making a more regular appearance to close out the month of March. A main part to the Snook bite improving in April is that the water temperatures are warming back up for us and remaining at a consistent temperature. The rising temperatures lead to the Snook becoming more active and willing to pursue live baits such as Croakers, Pilchards, Threadfins and Mullet. We also begin to see more live bait around inshore as well as outside of the inlet this time of year. We’ve had some nice sea wall sized mullet around inshore, baits between 6-8”, those who have been pitching them up against the seawalls have had success catching both Snook and Jacks. The good thing about those mullet is that it’s a bit bigger of a presentation so the fish that will feed on them will generally be your slot sized fish and larger. Croakers have been a bit inconsistent here at the shop lately, we are about to get to the time of year where you can count on them being in our tanks on a more regular occasion as they become more plentiful for our catchers as we get into the spring. When they have been available, those fishing croakers around the bridge fenders and concrete pads at the bridges have had success catching Snook with an occasional Grouper in the mix. If you are fishing the fenders with live bait, don’t be afraid to snap on a heavier split shot to hold your bait down there when the current is strong. April and May generally provide us with some good opportunities for those Snook fishing the docks in the St. Lucie River. Typically Croakers and Pilchards will be your best bet for bait if you are fishing in those situations. Those fishing at night and before the sun rises in the morning with artificials in the dock lights have been able to pick off steady numbers of fish too. If you are looking for Snook by land typically your best bet will be in the morning, in the afternoon/evening or at night. Areas such as the Jensen Causeway, Indian Riverside Park, Twin Rivers Park, Joe’s Point and the Ft. Pierce Inlet can all produce a few fish!
Trout & Redfish: Trout fishing has remained productive for those fishing the flats up around the power plant as well as further north in the Ft. Pierce area, don’t be surprised if you find them south of the power plant though! Those wade fishing and fishing from boats have been able to find them on both the east and west side of the river. Some of the hot spots have been Little Mud Creek, Middle Cove, Bear Point and the flats around the spoil islands in Ft. Pierce. Throwing top water plugs first thing in the morning and then switching over to DOA Cals or MirrOlure MirrOdines when the sun gets higher is a tried and true recipe for success. If you prefer to fish live bait, a live shrimp underneath a popping cork should get you a bite too, you may just have to go through a bit more bycatch. Look to target the Trout in areas with good patches of grass or around schools of glass minnows. If you are fishing on the east side of the river, the majority of the Trout will be found out in the open on the flats while those fishing the mangrove lines will have a better shot at Snook and the occasional Redfish. There have been a few Redfish caught around the power plant however the majority of them have been caught around the spoil islands in Ft. Pierce. Those targeting Redfish have had success with artificial shrimp such as Gulps and Thumper Shrimp along with the DOA Cals.
Tarpon: While it is still early, the Tarpon fishing has been on the slower side. There have been a few fish caught by those who have really put their time into it around the bridges, the power plant and the channel edges in between the Jensen & Stuart causeways. We typically start seeing a few more opportunities at Tarpon as we get into April & May as the water temperatures start reaching consistent temperatures in the mid 70s.
Pompano: Those Pompano fishing inshore have still been able to have some success. For those fishing by boat, we’d recommend that you still keep your Pompano jigs on the boat! The Sailfish Flats along with the flats by the power plant have been the most productive areas. Don’t be surprised if you end up skipping a few randomly along a shoreline or on a flat too. For the land based anglers, a few have been picked off by those jigging on the Jensen Causeway east side relief bridge. April can be a good month for those jigging off the relief bridge as we have had good flushes of fish moving through the bridge in past Aprils, we can hope that turns out to be the case again this year. If it does turn out to be the case again, the chartreuse/orange and chartreuse/pink Pompano jigs with a pink or gold teaser have been some of the most popular combinations.
Jacks: We will typically start seeing some of the bigger Jacks showing up in April. You can find them cruising the sea walls, crashing on mullet on the flats and schooled up off the beaches. When you come across them on the beaches, they will typically be the larger ones and it is a blast to see them blow up on a popper.
Misc: Those running the crab trap buoys and channel markers north of the Jensen Causeway have come across a few Triple Tail, you’ll want to pitch them a live shrimp on either a jig head or free lined if you end up seeing one. Those fishing the bridges with shrimp and fiddler crabs have been able to find some Sheepshead and Black Drum. Sheepshead have still been caught throughout the river on docks and on structures with a good amount of barnacle growth. Fishing structures such as docks and the bridges with shrimp should yield a few Mangrove Snapper. Those jigging for Pompano on the Sailfish Flats have come across a few Bonefish as bycatch. A few of our wintertime species such as Bluefish and Spanish Mackerel have still been hanging around inshore too.
Offshore Fishing Report
April typically kicks off some of the best fishing of the year right outside our inlet. While we don’t have the best conditions to start the month out, once the wind subsides and the seas calm down, we should expect to have some pretty good fishing for both those fishing the surface and on the bottom.
Surface Fishing: Prior to the latest blow, we started to see a few flurries of Mahi caught. We anticipate an increase in both numbers of fish and the size of fish through April and into May. April and May typically provide us with our biggest Mahis of the year. These fish will pop up in groups so be sure to have your pitch baits ready to go! Trolling to find a school of them can be extremely effective, be sure to keep one fish in the water to keep the school around when you do find them. You will see a mixture of boats trolling and fishing live baits by either kite fishing, bump trolling or just drifting this time of year. Look to start your fishing in an area with a condition such as a current rip, color change, temperature change, weedline, floating debris or sign of life such as bait, birds or other marine life. These fish will move around a good bit and can be found as shallow as 60’ out to 400’+ this time of year. If you do plan on trolling, running a rod with a planer in your spread is always a good idea to cover more water and increase your chances at potentially picking off a Wahoo.
Along with the Mahi fishing, the Sailfish action typically picks up a good bit for us come spring time. Also like the Mahi fishing, the numbers of Sails caught was increasing prior to this blow. Look for them in the same areas as you would be looking for your Mahi. Fish will congregate in those areas with a good condition as it might be the right water temperature that they are looking for, a change in current or some bait in that area. Fishing live baits such as Goggle Eyes or Threadfins on kites will be one of your most effective strategies this time of year for those looking to target Sails. Bump trolling live baits will get you some bites too. Those live baiting this time of year typically will put up better numbers than those trolling when it comes to the Sails. There has been some scattered bait around outside of the inlet, we usually will see the amount of bait increase as we get into the spring. If you don’t want to worry about finding bait and get straight to fishing, give Bryan or Mike with Stuart Live Bait a shout the day before, 772-985-0425. They will typically have Goggle Eyes, Threadfins or Pilchards on the water right in the Manatee Pocket.
Those fishing out at Pushbutton have still been picking away at the Blackfin Tunas. The majority of the fish have been caught on live bait, but they can be caught trolling feathers or on jigs when they get down a little deeper. If you are planning to troll for them, your best bet will be getting out there first thing in the morning or in the evening as they tend to start to push deeper in the water column as more boats arrive and as the sun gets higher. When the fish start pushing down, you can send out some live baits with a lead and stagger them at different depths and wait for a Tuna to find your bait. You can also mark the schools of Tunas on your machine and drop jigs to the depths you are marking them at. Kite fishing for the Tunas can be a very effective strategy as your kite will hold your baits over water that you haven’t gone over yet so the fish haven’t had the chance to see your boat and get spooked. If you see them feeding on the surface, throwing a popper at them always makes for a really cool bite and a fun fight. You can find a whole lot of life out at the Hill this time of year! We will also start seeing Blackfins caught in shallower mixed in with the Mahis and Sails this time of year.
Kingfish are a staple in our April offshore scene. They are often found near the reefs and wrecks with better numbers of fish between 60’-90’. Trolling with large spoons, bump trolling live bait or fishing live baits on a double or triple hook are some of the most effective tried and true strategies. They can also tend to be a nuisance to some anglers fishing mono leaders targeting Mahis and Sails as you can come across a school of them and get all your baits cut off.
Bottom Fishing: Our Mutton Snapper bite has been improving which we will typically see come spring time. The majority of them have been caught in the 60’-90’ range. Fishing bottom to the south around the Loran Tower along with the Six Mile has produced a few nice fish. If you are targeting Muttons, you will need some current, they really don’t bite well when there is little to no current. If you have a south tide, you will also notice that the Mutton fishing will be very slow. For your Mutton rig, we typically will fish an “improvised three way swivel”. We will take a regular barrel swivel and have that free on your main line, take another barrel swivel, tie your main line to one end and your leader which should typically be 30-40’ in length to the other end and add your preference of hook to the end of the leader. With the free swivel on your main line, take a foot or two of mono, tie it to the end of the swivel that isn’t on your main line and tie a loop at the end to hold a bank sinker of enough weight to hold the bottom. We like to have the lead free like that so when the fish picks your bait up, it doesn’t immediately feel the weight and spit the bait out. For bait, we typically prefer grunt plugs, to make a grunt plug, catch a grunt, cut the head off along with all the fins and tail and put your hook where the tail would be. The grunt plug is a nice hearty bait that will stay on your hook for a while even after all the smaller ‘picker’ fish start picking away at it. Those smaller ‘picker’ fish will create some commotion and kick up some sand which will get the attention of the Muttons and then they will come in to investigate and typically pick the bait up. Fishing live bait on the bottom can get you the bite as well. Those targeting Muttons have also caught a few Groupers as bycatch, Grouper season opens for us May 1st so hopefully they won’t go too far!
Aside from Muttons, those fishing the reefs with chicken rigs have been able to stay busy catching Lane Snappers, Triggerfish, Sea Bass, Mangrove Snapper and a variety of other reef fish. We’ve had a few Cobia around on the nearshore reefs in the 60’ range. The numbers have certainly been far from red hot, but those who have put their time in have been rewarded with a few fish. You will typically find the Cobias on the backs of Bull Sharks. Those targeting them will set a drift and have a spread of live baits with one on the surface, one mid-water column and one towards the bottom. Always have a rod with a Cobia jig ready as well in the event one swims by the boat. Jigging around the reef or wreck with a Cobia jig will get you the bite too if you are able to get one’s attention. You will also find Cobias on the tide lines, with Manta Rays and with Leatherback Turtles.
Surf Fishing Report
When conditions have permitted, those who have hit the beach have been met with some pretty good fishing. Pompano, Croakers & Whiting have been on the catch lists. April is typically a pretty good month for those Pompano fishing off our beaches. With the water temperatures warming up a bit, the Pompano will tend to feed a little closer to shore in the 50-70 yard range. Make sure you stagger your casting distances to determine which zone the fish are feeding in as there are days where they will still be more predominant in the 80-100 yard range. If you can’t get out in the morning, the afternoon bite in the spring can also be very productive. Clean light green to light blue water is key for the Pompano. Focusing your fishing around the high tide is a very good idea too. When the water is very clean this time of year, fishing a Pompano rig without the floats can be a very good strategy. For bait, Fishbites Electric Chicken Flea, standard EZ Flea and Pink/Flesh Crab have been the most popular options. Those fishing natural baits have had success with sand fleas and fresh shrimp. Those targeting the Whiting and Croakers have found them in the first trough fishing around the high tide mark. Pieces of shrimp along with Shrimp flavored Fishbites has been the ticket for them.
Lake Okeechobee Fishing Report – Capt. Angie Douthit
Over these past few months Okeechobee’s water level continues to get lower and lower and
most, if not all bass and pan fishing will be done in the Kissimmee River and the canals such as
Indian Praire; Harney Pond and J&S. This is a great time to brush up on your deep diving crank
baits; Carolina rigging and throwing jigs working the ledges and drop-offs. A good color choice
are Junebug plastics and skirts for the jigs; white; watermelon/red; tilapia; plum and red bug.
The pan fish have already started spawning, catching them on live-red wiggler worms and
crickets on light spinning gear tipped with 4lb mono line. Fishing around the moon phase,
catching the bream when they are the most active on/around the beds will provide non-stop,
fun action and is a good time to take the kids and enjoy a beautiful day on the water and fresh
caught fish to take home for some tasty meals. The two main areas to launch when fishing on
the north-end of the lake are the Scott Driver boat ramp located in Okeechobee on the
Kissimmee River and Harney Pond canal, located on the west-end in Lakeport. Areas that are
still accessible and easily to get to if you’re wanting to fish out in the lake: East side of Kings bar;
West-side of Grassy; outside grass edge from Buckhead to 4 th point; outside grass edge of Tin
house on down and past Indian Praire; and outside edge of the Shoal area. As the water
temperature starts heating up, typically June moving forward, can pose a challenge when bass
fishing with live bait (shiners) due to the water temperature difference between the holding
tank water that the shiners are kept in before purchasing your bait and the lake water
temperature. Fishing deeper water such as the Kissimmee River is a good choice for this time of
year to help keep the bait alive longer. To book you’re next fun time on the water call 863-228-7263.
You can check out my website at www.southfloridabassfishing.com I can accommodate
groups; multi-day trips; offer one-person and Veteran discounts; provide all tackle; ice; bottled
water; sunscreen and raingear if needed. For all your tackle needs and bait stop by Big Water
Bait & Tackle store located in Lakeport near the Harney pond canal boat ramps.
