June is here along with our hot summertime temperatures. Luckily for us, the fishing can be just as hot! June provides anglers shots at not only good numbers of fish but opportunities at some bigger fish too. With the warmer temperatures comes warmer water temperatures too and you will find that your better fishing can come early in the morning and in the evenings for those fishing inshore.
Inshore Fishing Report
Snook: As a reminder, Snook season closed in our area on June 1st and will reopen again on September 1st. June provides us with some of the best Snook fishing of the year. Not only do we see a lot of fish caught, we see a lot of trophy sized Snook caught. If you’re looking to knock a 40” Snook off your bucket list, you’ve got a good shot at it! Please remember to handle these breeder Snook with care as they will be providing us with our Snook population for years to come. Fishing circle hooks, limiting their time out of the water along with reviving them if necessary are all crucial to a strong release of the fish. We will see a lot of fish moving towards the inlet and schools heading outside the inlet to spawn on the beaches and on some of the nearshore wrecks and reefs. We have begun to see fish start staging up and moving towards the inlets. As of June 1st, a few fish have been caught in and around the inlet but the larger schools should be showing up soon. If you are planning on Snook fishing during the heat of the day, you will want to focus on areas with deeper water and moving current as they will tend to favor those areas to stay cool.
For our anglers fishing from boat, areas in and around the St. Lucie Inlet such as the Hole in the Wall, the south side detached jetty and alongside the north side jetty all should be productive as we get into the summer. Live Croakers are typically one of the best bait choices for those targeting Snook this time of year and we plan to have a steady supply of them through the summer weather permitting. Threadfins and Pilchards can be great choices as well. Don’t be afraid to try fishing dead baits with an egg sinker if you aren’t getting bit on the live bait, you might surprise yourself! Heading outside the inlet when the water is clear and running the beach either north or south to look for schools up in shallow can be productive and makes for some great sight fishing opportunities. Once the schools start hitting the inlet in numbers, you can expect to find them on some of the nearshore wrecks such as Bullshark barge out to some of the numbers in 60’. As these fish have begun staging for their spawn, they will typically stop at the causeways on their way towards the inlet, fishing the concrete blocks and fenders can be quite productive in June. Bouncing around docks with deeper water and steady current can be good too, try fishing docks with sport fish boats or larger center console boats. Typically they will hold some fish as they will have your deeper water. If you want to head out in the evening or at night, dock light fishing can be really good this time of year as a lot of the fish that stay in the river will be more inclined to feed at night in the lights when it cools down.
For our land based anglers, the Jensen Causeway, Ft. Pierce Inlet, Indian Riverside Park and the beaches are all solid summertime choices. If you’re heading to Jensen Causeway, the night and evening Snook bite has been more productive than during the daytime. During the outgoing tide we have finally started to see a few crabs and shrimp that have been passing through that the fish key in on. You can freeline live shrimp or crabs when they pass through to match what the Snook are feeding on. Focusing on the shadow lines with artificial shrimp or paddle tails can get you some bites too. If you’re heading to Ft. Pierce Inlet, live Croakers once again will be a great option as the Snook will typically be sitting on the bottom. The Croakers naturally will swim down to their zone, you may need to add a little weight for when the current starts picking up such as a larger split shot if you are fishing the river side of the jetty, but if you are fishing the beach side, you should be in good shape just free lining them. Live pilchards will also work if you see some bait schools around. Indian Riverside Park is typically going to be a morning bite this time of year, Pilchards and Croakers around the dock will typically lead to some success when the fish are around. The beach can provide some fun Snook fishing during the summer. You can fish artificials such as white paddle tails, Yozuri Crystal Minnows or Rapala X-Raps or twitch baits in the morning before the sun gets high and in the evenings to cover a lot of water. When the sun gets higher in the sky, they will tend to prefer a live bait. It is always a good idea to bring a rod rigged with a sabiki in case a school of bait comes by. If you are able to catch some live bait, you can simply free line it up in the first trough. If you are Whiting or Croaker fishing and catch a smaller one, you can go ahead and free line them as well to give you a shot at a big one!
Tarpon: With some crabs starting to flow through the causeways, it can really get the Tarpon bite going. You will want to focus on fishing the outgoing tides if you’re looking to find them there. Free line a crab with a small cork for your best results if you are fishing around the bridges. There has been some good Tarpon fishing for the guys running the beaches, they have been able to find some nice schools of cooperative fish. Look to find them rolling on the surface and fish live baits such as Mullet or Threadfins. Those running the beaches have also found schools of big Jacks and an occasional Cobia. There have been some Tarpon caught inshore around the power plant too. For those fishing live bait, larger live mullet will typically be your best option. If you are looking to throw artificials, the tried and true DOA Terror Eyz and DOA Baitbusters are always reliable choices.
Snapper: We typically get some nice sized Mangrove Snapper inshore during the summer. Look for them around structures like bridges or docks. You will typically need to weed through a lot of the smaller ones if you are fishing with live or dead shrimp, but if you put your time in you should be able to find a few for the cooler. Fishing with a small pilchard, pinfish or mullet with the tail clipped on a jighead or knocker rig can also help you weed through some of the smaller fish and find the bigger ones that are able to eat a bigger bait.
Trout: The Trout fishing has slowed down a bit with the warmer water temperatures, but those who have been after them have still been able to find a few. Those wading the east and west side of the river have been productive in the mornings before the sun gets high throwing artificials. Anglers fishing the west side of the river have been focusing on hitting the ends of the docks where the water is a little deeper.
Offshore Fishing Report
Mahi: The Mahi fishing has been pretty good over the past few weeks. We’ve seen steady numbers of fish, just not very many big ones have been around for us this spring. We have had a lot of schoolie sized fish around with some decent gaffers in the mix. Occasionally a larger bull or cow will pop up though! A lot of the Mahis that have been caught have been found in schools so be sure to have your pitch bait ready in case a school pops up. The Mahi have been found from 60’ out to 400′ + here lately with a good bit of the action coming in around 120’. Depths can change with the conditions and current though. You will always want to try to find yourself fishing in a good condition to improve your chances. Conditions such as a current rip, color change, temperature change, weedline, floating debris or signs of life such as bait, birds or other marine life are all positive things to look for and will typically hold some fish. Live baiting for your fish definitely becomes more abundant this time of year with kite fishing, bump trolling and drifting all being effective strategies. Bait has been a bit hit or miss lately so if you want to get to fishing before it gets scorching hot, give Bryan and Mike with Stuart Live Bait a shout to reserve your baits the night before, 772-985-0425.
Sailfish: Our summertime Sailfish bite appears to have joined us again this year! Steady numbers of Sails have been caught with it not being uncommon to get a few shots at them per trip. Live baiting has been most productive for them and they have been caught in the same areas that the Mahi have been caught. Typically once you find a good condition, it will hold more than just one species as there is something in that zone that the fish are liking. Don’t be afraid to look for the Sails in shallow, the bite can be pretty good in the 60’-80’ range here in the summer. The fish have been caught north of the inlet, straight out front as well as south. Typically offshore of the Loran Tower is good for at least one or two shots at a Sail this time of year.
Blackfin Tuna: Steady reports of Blackfin Tunas are still coming in from Pushbutton Hill with an occasional Skipjack Tuna and some Atlantic Bonito that we typically see during the summer. Trolling first thing in the morning can be effective before all the boats show up and drive the fish down, but live baiting is typically most effective this time of year. Plenty of anglers are able to catch them on jigs too when they are down deeper in the water column. There have also been some Blackfins caught in shallower with reports from 110’-160’. Typically the fish that are caught in shallower are going to be the bigger Tunas in the 20lb+ class.
Kingfish: There have been a ton of Kingfish caught over the past few weeks with them becoming a nuisance for those who aren’t targeting them. The majority of the action has been over reefs and wrecks in 60’-90’, even the Sandpile has been hot for the Kings in the mornings. We’ve had some sardines around so if you’re looking to target them, that will be one of your best bets if you can catch a few because they haven’t been lasting long once they get put on a hook.
Bottom Fishing: Our bottom fishing was really starting to pick up in the first half of the month, but we were greeted with a cold water upwelling that has really slowed the bite down over the past two weeks. These upwellings are not uncommon during the summer so don’t get too discouraged. If you are fishing the reef and feel your weight and notice that it is cold or find yourself pulling up slime weed, those are tell-tale signs of a cold water upwelling and you may want to look for warmer bottom. A positive thing that the upwellings bring us is that the Cobias will typically hit the beaches and look for turtles, sharks and rays to stick with for the guys running the beach.
Snapper: Once we get past the cold water, expect the Mutton Snapper fishing to pick back up on the reefs in the 70’-90’ range, the Loran Tower was producing some nice fish before the cold water came through. You will want to fish a long leader, typically about 40’ of 40lb as they do get line shy. Live baits along with larger dead baits such as grunt plugs, butterflied Ballyhoo and Bonito strips are some of the go to choices. Fishing a larger dead bait is very effective because it allows you to keep bait on your hook while the “pickers” such as grunts and smaller reef fish pick away at your bait. Those fish picking at the bait will also get the Mutton’s attention and they will come over to check out what they are feeding on and will eat the bait. One of the easiest and most effective Mutton rigs would be a three way swivel that you will tie your main line to, a short piece piece of mono tied off the branch swivel to connect your weight to and then the 40’ of leader, and a hook of your choice to the bottom part of the swivel. You will want to make sure that your bait is holding to the bottom so don’t be afraid to use a heavy lead. Expect the Mangrove Snapper bite to pick up in June and July as last year we had a pretty good Mangrove bite. Typically you will find your nicer Mangroves on structure in 80’-110’. Live sardines, live pilchards and dead sardines are all effective bait choices. Vermillions have been picked off at Pushbutton on chicken rigs with squid, we tend to also find them in shallower at times during the summer.
Grouper: For those targeting Grouper, Gag Grouper will close at 12:01 a.m., (local time) on June 26th, Snowy Grouper will close at 12:01 a.m., (local time), on June 9th. Red Grouper, Black Grouper & Scamp Grouper all remain open until 12/31 while Yellowedge remains open year round. Those targeting Grouper have had success, with some of the bigger fish coming out of Ft. Pierce. Ft. Pierce has not had as much current as we have had out front allowing baits to be presented better. arget depths range from 50 to 180 feet, with 120 to 160 feet being particularly productive for those looking to target Gags, Scamps & Reds. Fishing big cut baits, whole squids and larger live baits will weed out a lot of the smaller fish and isolate your catches to mainly Grouper and Amberjacks. You will want to fish heavy tackle to get these fish off the bottom and past the sharks, 80-125lb leader, heavy line, plenty of drag and leads heavy enough to keep your bait pinned to the bottom will help find the result that you are looking for. Don’t bring a knife to a gunfight when targeting Grouper! Methods such as slow pitch jigging are also extremely effective. If you’re looking to target Snowy Grouper or Yellowedges, look for ledges out at Pushbutton and deeper and fire a deep drop rig down with whole squids to see if you can get one to cooperate.
Surf Fishing Report
The Whiting fishing off the beach has been on fire to close out the month with both good numbers and good sized fish being caught. The red bloodworm Fishbites along with pieces of shrimp on a double hook whiting/croaker rig has been the ticket to getting the bite. Fishing two hours before the high tide and the first two hours of the outcoming tide has been the most productive windows. These fish have all been close to the beach, typically in the 10 yard range so be sure not to over cast. You will see some Croakers mixed in with the same area as well. We typically have to deal with a good bit of weeds fishing from the surf in the summer, if you hit a beach and you notice a lot of weeds in the water, make a move to the next beach as it may be weed free.
