Kayak Fishing Sebastian Inlet State Park

Happy Monday Spacefish!

We are back in the yak this week talking about a place that holds Snook so big you will probably have to climb out of your kayak to properly land, revive, and release them. Let’s talk about one of the world’s most famous Snook fisheries, Sebastian Inlet!

I’ve gotten several personal emails this year from people that read Spacefish each week, some of them are once a year vacationers that spend upwards of a week in the area, some of them were planning a special trip down to the area and looking to squeeze a day of fishing in, and I also am writing this to an audience of people that live up north and dream of a fishing themed Florida road trip, and may be searching the interwebs for a place to get the most bang for their buck. For someone making a summer trip down to the Space Coast, or the Treasure Coast and they want to cross Snook off their bucket list this is the place to go! In the summer the adult Snook pushes out to spawn off the beaches, which means the inlet, is a Snook hot spot. Think of it as a convention of large Snook from southern Space Coast, and Treasure Coast areas.

So I’m going to be short and sweet with the fishing talk this week, tell you about my experiences kayak fishing the inlet, and next week I will be talking about launching from within the state park and fishing the areas around it, which are much more conducive for a day of kayak fishing.

In this piece I will also be highlighting other things to do within the park, so if you’re planning a family trip where you’re spending the night in the Melbourne Beach area, or within the park at the campground you are aware of some cool things to do to pass the time, when you don’t have a line in the water.

Where To Launch

There is a designated kayak/canoe launch area within the Sebastian Inlet State Park. It shares the same parking area with the boat ramp, which is on the south side of the inlet. There is a state park entrance fee, and you can enter the park on both the north and south side of the inlet, but to launch a boat or kayak, you will want to enter the park on the south side, then drive west until you essentially run out of paved driveway. The boat ramp is on the southside of the southside, and the kayak/canoe launch puts you straight into the actual inlet, for those familiar it is just west of the “T-Dock”. Here is the address: 14251 Florida A1A, Vero Beach, FL 32963.

Fishing The Inlet

Let me first make a disclaimer before I talk about my inlet fishing experience, this is place where not only can you fish from foot, it is probably better that you do. So if you’re hopping on this report after a google search because you’re trying to come down here and catch your first Snook, please don’t think that you need a kayak, canoe, SUP, or boat to get it done. My advice is to read the awesome pieces written on Spacefish by the “Snookman” Wayne Landry, who (and I say this quite literally) has forgotten more about landing monster Snook from Sebastian Inlet than I could ever hope to learn over the course of a lifetime. I would also recommend stopping in at Black Dog in Melbourne Beach, and Whitey’s Bait & Tackle located long A1A just north of the Inlet and State Park. Let the experts guide you in the best setup for catching your memory from foot. I am but a poor wayfaring kayak angler that gets excited to catch Snook anyway I can in the quiet backwaters. Which brings me to my next point…

Compared to the quiet serenity of the mangrove shorelines, and creeks that I so often talk about, fishing the inlet from a kayak can be a rude awakening at worst, and a thrilling adventure at best. Let’s get the rude awakening out of the way first. The tides. As much as I’ve talked about tidal flow not being important in the lagoon system, well it makes up for it here, where the tide rips through the small, narrow channelized inlet. Then you have the boats, if you’re in the inlet in a kayak at dawn, keep your head on a swivel there is going to be a parade and procession of big boats entering from all over the place racing offshore, so while you’re fighting the in-going or out-going tides (east or west flow), be ready for big wakes and waves coming at you from the boat channel (north or south flow). If you are in the inlet once the sun comes up, not only will the boats be flying in and out, but now you will be dealing with the throngs of recreational boaters and anglers that will fill the place up by 9 am.

For me, I launched at roughly 5:45 am, and was off the water by 8 am. That’s why I say this report will be short and sweet. I launched and started heading east towards the bridge, this was in the last hour of incoming tide so the water was being pushed into the inlet from the Atlantic. On my 4th cast I hooked into the fish pictured above at the top. I casted to the bushes that were overhanging the rocks, just north of the T-Dock, and this Snook followed it out, and hammered the Heddon Super Spook Jr in Bone Silver. I was about 25 yards away from the rocky shoreline and before I could even blink she ripped drag and was almost back on the rocks ready to snap me off. I was fishing a heavy action bait caster setup with 50 pound braid, and 60 pound Mono leader tied on with an FG knot to pass through the guides. I replaced the factory stocked trebles with VMC heavy duty single in-lines, which I think was absolutely crucial for being able to withstand the runs and head shakes of this fish without bending out. The photo above was taken at 6:07 am. I got out of my kayak to land the fish because she was in the rocks. I tied my kayak up to a smaller rock, unhooked the fish, took the photo, then spent 1-2 minutes reviving her, then was back in the kayak around 6:10.

I started pushing my way back against the tide and got about 50 yards further down from where I hooked the first one, and hooked another of nearly identical size, but maybe an inch or two longer, and a little more girthy in the middle. This one hit the topwater plug within 5 yards of where it landed and attempted to run south against the flow of the tide, which worked really well for me, because instead of getting a tropical sleigh ride, I was able to let the pull of the Snook counteract with the flow of the tides and was provided with a natural anchor. With this natural anchorage, combined with a heavy whoopin stick of a rod, heavy braid and leader I was able to get her turned to me quickly and had her subdued beside my kayak within 2 minutes. She was too big for my net, so I gripped her with my boga grips, tied my kayak around my waste with my rope and was able to walk my kayak to the rocks and had a nice gentleman out walking his dog, stopped to watch the spectacle unfold offer to take my picture, which he texted to me afterwards.

So by 6:30 am, I had caught the 2 biggest Snook of my life, I was about ready to call it a day, and go grab some breakfast, when I saw a school of Jacks busting bait at the surface so I spent the next 30-40 minutes catching a few of them and having fun. I got off the water around 7:30, having covered less than a mile of distance, met my wife and kids in Melbourne Beach to go swimming at a pool in my parents neighborhood and have a family fun day.

Family Activities in the Park

So when you’re looking for family things to do around fishing, there are several things to do in the park, such as go down to the beach, or spend time in the tidal pool which seems to be a big summer attraction for families with kids that like to swim. There is also a restaurant on the north jetty/pier side if you’re looking to come in from the heat for a few minutes and grab a sandwich, burger, and a cold drink between fishing spurts. Once I went back to Melbourne Beach and swam with my kids in the pool. We loaded up and went back down to the park where we spent the next few hours checking out these two awesome museums.

Sebastian Fishing Museum

This museum is within the boundaries of the state park, and it is right behind the office that you have to pay the admittance fee to get into the park on the boat ramp/kayak launch side. This museum is free, and it is well worth the time to go in and look around. Especially if you are really into “fishing stuff” not only does this place give you the history of Sebastian Inlet and the history of commercial fishing in the area over the last 100+ years, it also houses some really cool older rods, reels, lures and fishing tackle. Really cool place to visit and well worth walking into.

McLarty Treasure Museum

Ok, so we all know why our area is called the “Space Coast” but much to my chagrin over the last few years as a U.S. and World History teacher, many don’t know why the area just south of us is called the “Treasure Coast.” In 1715 the Spanish Treasure Fleet wrecked off the coast of Florida 2 miles south of current day, Sebastian Inlet. Spain was arguably the foremost world power in the 1500’s-this wreck. The wreckage of this fleet was a crippling blow to Spain, and would also be the moment that birthed the “Golden Age of Piracy” where a Pirate Republic being led by Benjamin Hornigold, Edward Teach (aka Blackbeard), Charles Vane, Jack Rackham, and others in Nassau were trying to challenge the established order of Kings and Empires and create a republic built on enlightenment ideals such as limited government, natural rights, and self-reliance (sound familiar?). Either way, from the moment this treasure fleet wrecked, Spain found themselves on the backfoot and it wouldn’t take long for England to become top dog in the “New World” and the rest as they say, is history.

You can visit this site, go into the museum (2 dollar entry fee) and see many of the historical relics such as cannons, weapons, jewelry, and of course Spanish Doubloons (Gold coins). My kids loved it, and they loved being able to go out on the deck of the pirate ship outside of the museum, overlooking the beach.

Conclusion

Sebastian Inlet is a wonderfully unique fishery, with some really cool stuff to do nearby! It’s not a place you can spend hours fishing from a kayak, but it’s a great place to check off a bucket list, whether that be your first Snook, or like me, your biggest Snook! Next week we will be talking about launching from the inlet and getting into the mangrove shorelines and islands around the inlet. Thanks for reading, I hope you have a great week, beat the heat, stay out of the rain, and experience the joy of feeling something tugging at your rod (that’s what she said). Until next time!