Inshore Fishing
Summertime fishing is now upon us! This time of year provides some of the best Snook fishing you can find in our area as they are in their yearly summer spawn and are ready to feed. You can expect to find big breeder Snook schooled up in the St. Lucie Inlet, at the hole in the wall, on the beaches, on local nearshore wrecks and reefs and at the causeways. It is always important to practice safe catch and release practices when dealing with these large breeder fish to ensure a healthy release for the fish. Using heavier tackle, circle hooks and reviving the fish before release will give it a great opportunity to swim off strong. Fishing with live baits such as Croakers or Pilchards seems to provide anglers with the best results when targeting Snook in the Summer. We should have a steady supply of Croakers throughout the summer. If you haven’t given them a shot yet, you’re missing out on a chance at a trophy Snook! For all of your Pilchard needs, contact Bryan with Stuart Live Bait at 772-985-0425. He is sitting in the Manatee Pocket every morning on a white Carolina Skiff. For those who like to fish with artificials, Swimbaits such as Hogy Pro Tails, No Live Bait Needed Paddle Tails or Lil Mullets are great options whether you are fishing inshore or off the beach for Snook. If you are looking to fish a hard bait, Yozuri Crystal Minnows are also a great option for fishing around the bridges or casting from the beaches or jetties for Snook.
Tarpon fishing should also begin to pick up for anglers this month. We have heard about some being caught around the causeways. Try to shoot for an evening outgoing tide as crabs have been pushing through the bridges on the outgoing tides and have been met by some hungry Tarpon. You can also expect to find more Tarpon showing up in the inlet as well as the crossroads. Live crabs or large mullet are great options to fish in those areas. For those looking to fish up river by the power plant, you can typically find some cooperative Tarpon around Big Mud. Fishing Pilchards, Mullet or crabs will all work for live bait options up that way. If you are looking to fish artificials, DOA Terror Eyz or Baitbusters are a great choice in that area.
If you are looking to do some meat fishing and put some fish in the box, we have begun to see a lot more keeper Mangrove Snappers being caught inshore which is expected this time of year. Look for them around structures such as the bridges, older docks with growth and channel markers. You can get them on live shrimp and when you need to pick through smaller fish, you can fish a small pilchard to catch the larger fish in the group.
There have been some Trout reported up towards Nettles Island and farther up towards Bear Point. We’ve heard them caught on live pilchards, shrimp, topwaters and artificials such as DOA Cals and artificial shrimp. If you are looking for an arm workout, there have been plenty of big jacks cruising the seawalls. Toss out a live bait or work a top water and hold on! Other species that have been making the inshore catch list include; Flounder, Spanish Mackerel, Bonefish and more! It is a great time of year to get out there and get on some fish!
Offshore Fishing
The winds have finally been calming down providing more fishable days here for anglers out of the St. Lucie Inlet. The surface fishing has remained solid. Plenty of Mahis, Sailfish, Kingfish, Blackfin Tuna and the occasional Wahoo have been making the catch list. Mahi fishing should continue to be productive throughout the month of June. You can catch them trolling or live baiting this time of year. A lot of anglers have been finding success by kite fishing. If you are looking to get in on some of our summertime Sailfish action, live bait fishing this time of year typically yields better results. Look for color changes, thermocline, current edges, temperature changes, weedlines, debris and birds for a better shot at finding some fish. As we get into the summer, you can expect to find more Blackfin Tuna out at Pushbutton Hill. You can troll small squid chains or feathers, chum them up with live baits or jig for them to try to get a nice sushi dinner! Kingfishing has remained hot south of the inlet in 60-90ft. You can also run the beach this time of year and look for bait and typically run into some good Kingfish action in shallow water. You can also expect to find Permit, Tarpon, big Jacks, Snook, Bonita and Cobia running the beach.
We are also getting into the best time of year for bottom fishing. The Snapper fishing really heats up during the summer months. Anglers can expect to find some nice sized Mangrove and Mutton Snapper typically in the 65ft-85ft range. The Loran Tower is a great area to try and you can expect to find some fish at the six and eight mile reefs. Fishing long leaders is a good idea for targeting Snapper this time of year as the water typically clears up and the fish can tend to be a bit leader shy. Live Pilchards, Threadfins, Grunts and even Croakers on the bottom are great options for targeting nice sized Snapper, Grouper and even Cobia. If you are looking for dead bait options, Grunt plugs and butterflied ballyhoo or mullet are good options as well. Be sure to reel fast as you can expect to find a lot of sharks and goliath groupers around the wrecks and reefs that want to get a bite of your fish! You can also expect to run into some good Vermillion Snapper fishing throughout the summer. You can catch them on chicken rigs with pieces of squid. You can pick away at them up in shallow areas in the 60-90ft range and also find some nice sized Vermillions out at Pushbutton Hill.
Surf Fishing
It is a great time of year to load up and hit the sand as anglers can expect to find a lot of action from the beaches. Our Whiting and Croaker fishing has continued to heat up for those looking to fill up a cooler! They are delicious, easy to catch and can provide a great meal for the entire family. These fish are mainly going to be caught right up in the first trough 10-15 yards from the shoreline at most. On clear and calm days, you can even see them schooled up right on the shoreline and sight cast to them. Pieces of shrimp and bloodworm flavored FishBites have been the best bait options. You can either fish them on a double hook rig and wait for the bite or even just fish a piece of shrimp on a jig head when conditions permit.
The Snook have been showing up on the beach as well. You can also find them cruising the first trough. If you catch a smaller Whiting or Croaker, you can free line it on another rod and find some nice sized fish. We typically get some bait showing up on the beach during June as well, you can bring a rod rigged with a sabiki, load up a bucket of Pilchards and pitch them out for Snook and Jacks cruising the beach. When bait is present, you can also fish artificials in the mornings and evenings. A lot of anglers will park at Bathtub Beach and walk south towards the inlet casting lures the whole way in the mornings and evenings and find some quality fish. As we get deeper into the summer, the glass minnows will start loading up on the beaches and will be followed by Tarpon.
We hope you all have a great month and catch em’ up! We are here for any questions!
