Peggy showing off the elusive slot snook that became the dinner guest of honor!

This growing older ain’t for sissies! I suffered a herniated lumbar disc early in January and was unable to function for two plus months. I’m back on the water again, though I really need to be mindful of how I twist and turn my spine.

Recent trips have been enjoyable. A backwater trip with one of my favorite clients, Jean-michele, yielded a few fish on topwater plugs, including a twenty-eight inch spotted seatrout, a short snook and of all things, a mangrove snapper. He experienced quite a few blow-ups on the topwater plugs that did not turn into a bent rod… Such is the way of the topwater lure angler!

Scott agreeing that barracuda can offer a great fight!

Ric joined me on a scouting trip this past Wednesday. The jetty action was fair and we caught lots of jacks hooked a couple of sharks and boated a short snook. Moving inside of the inlet proved futile until the incoming tide turned, then the snook turned on. We boated a couple and lost too many during a really exciting forty-five minute session.

Finally, Scott and Peggy asked to catch their first slot snook. They’ve caught little ones in the past, though the “dinner guest” has always eluded them.

The snook bite was awful at sunrise, but they caught lots of jacks, a nice barracuda, a grouper, jumped three tarpon in the sixty pound range and hooked a few sharks that (thankfully) bit through our leaders. Once again, the action inside the inlet was nil.

Jean-michel posing with his twenty-eight inch trout he took on a topwater walking plug!

Right before tide change I positioned the boat where we caught snook the day before. Our first two baits were smacked, hard, but no hook-ups. The third bait proved magical, at least to Peggy, as she battled her biggest snook ever to the landing net. Yes, it was a keeper!

A few more under-slot snook and a possible top-slot snook taking a bunch of line with her were the only low points of this trip. However, they caught two redfish here as well, which was almost as exciting as for them as the snook!

It was a non-nonstop fishing fest this week as I hit the water all 7 days! A few key trends emerged that I’d like to share:

Snook on Fire! The big snook are absolutely chewing right now! It’s clear they’re gearing up for the spawn, and their appetites are insatiable. If you’re targeting these brutes, be prepared for some intense battles.

Bait Preferences It seems many of the species are feeding on smaller baitfish and shrimp in the 2.5-5″ range. A 3″ paddle tail was a staple in my tackle box this week, and it consistently delivered. Both trout and redfish have been feeding on these small bait and shrimp, similar to the snook.

Shallow Water Action The big redfish are still holding in the shallows, making for some exciting opportunities.

Healthy Ecosystem I’ve also noticed an increase in grass beds, which is a promising sign for the health of the ecosystem.

Get out there and see if you can capitalize on these trends! With the variety of species feeding aggressively, it’s shaping up to be a fantastic time to get on the water.

Good morning, all my Sebastian Inlet fishing/beaching friends; I hope everyone had a great and safe weekend! This week’s report is FINALLY a better one than what has been going on — and I like that! Without any further ado, here you go…

North side

This side the water has been relatively clean and weed-free for a while now, and some fish are biting, mostly on the incoming tide. In the back near the old “steel” area they have been catching sheepshead on cut shrimp and sand fleas. In that area and along the rocks just east of there, around the tide pool there have been a few snook (use live mojarra, incoming tide and the first of the outgoing, if you can find some, as they have been pretty scarce the last week. That’s it for this side as access is limited due to the ongoing jetty construction.

South side

Here, the outgoing tide at the tip is where I have been seeing the most action: blue runner, black margates, sand perch, and sheepshead have been biting cut shrimp. Also over here, same tide I saw some nice lookdowns, small bluefish, Spanish mackerel, being caught on small goofy jigs, also saw a couple of pompano as well, same jigs. The water has cleaned up and had warmed back up to 77/78 degrees. The seaweed has also dissipated somewhat. The incoming tide has produced a few snook on live mojarra — again, if you can find some, they’ve been scarce. Some nice sheepshead have also been caught on cut shrimp and live sand fleas on the incoming tide along the rocks, both sides of the bridge.

T-Dock area

The dock remains closed as of this writing, but all the dredging piping and equipment has been removed, making it easier to fish, and cast net bait. It has been a little slow back here, but there have been a few snook caught on live mojarra and threadfins. Also, anglers have caught a few sheepshead and whiting on cut shrimp on the incoming tide. That’s it, since the T-dock is still closed.

Surf Area, both sides

The water on both sides of the inlet on the beach has cleaned up quite a bit, especially on the north side where it is deeper. I received reports of a few nice black drum, sheepshead, pompano and some whiting caught on the north side roughly 200 yards north of the jetty. Live sand fleas and cut shrimp are the baits to use. Keep an eye out for mullet coming down the beaches because there might be snook and tarpon around the schools. Approximately 200 yards or more down from the south jetty there have been pompano and black drum for those fishing live sandfleas and cut shrimp. Early morning high tide is the time to fish the beaches while the water is high. The cleaner water on this side, along with the very small surf has helped the fishing pick up. Also, I chatted with a couple of anglers who have hooked up with some big sharks here. They are commonly found on this side.

Well, friends, that’s all for this week. I’m glad the conditions and the action are improving. As I have said, when things get better weatherwise, fishing WILL improve as well. Expect hot weather this week, but light and bearable wind and surf for good fishing. Get out there and enjoy everything the park has to offer. Have a great week.

The water temp was 83 degrees when we started this morning and at noon it was 86.5 degrees. Top baits this week for me were Jackhammer chatterbaits, Bass Assassin RSB worms and the Mike Bucca Bull Shad 6″ Trick Shad.

I’m fishing the Bass Assassin RSB worms weightless or with a 1/8oz weight. I’m using a 5/0 VMC Redline EWG hook with an Ande Fluro leader in 20lb test. I am fishing these in the same area that im fishing chatterbaits. I swim the worm just like you wouldd a slow rolled spinnerbait. Gooseberry and black with blue tail are my most productive colors.

I’m fishing the Jackhammers (Green Pumpkin, and Zman EVO Bluegill) on the flats along hydrilla edges in 5′ or less. I only use a 1/2oz Jackhammer with a Green Pumpkin Zako trailer or a Hogfarmer Spunk Shad (Sungill) with the a Bluegill chatterbait. My line of choice is Ande black braid (50lb) and the rod I prefer is a Dobyns Champion 736CB Glass #dobynsrods

The 6″ Mike Bucca Trick Shad in Gizzard Shad color is my go to swimbait this week. I’m fishing these along hydrilla edges near deep water or in canals. It is a fish catcher and it will work all over Headwaters. Get on the Bullshad email mailing list so you can get the bait drop info. The Dobyns Champion XP 736C FH (frog rod) is the best rod I’ve found to throw the 6″ trick shad.

Live bait is still producing giant fish and they are chewing shiners. I’m fishing live bait in deep water on a freeline along thick grass edges.

Call or text me at 304-610-6066 to book a trip of a lifetime. I only have a couple days open for the June Special ($325 for 3 hours)

Tight lines!

Great start to summer break for Alex with a big snook!

Winds finally laid down and we are able to fish the beaches. However, the water temps are in the low 70s on the surface and much cooler below and the action was slow. We did find a few tarpon but they weren’t active due to the colder water temps. The were only a few schools of jacks that were out there and hungry but the bait is scarce so they are on the move. Inshore bite is still good for snook and trout and there’s still some bluefish around in the lagoon and out on the beaches.

The best bet right now is stay inshore and focus on the snook and trout and hit the beaches once that water temp gets back to normal which hopefully be pretty quick.

Bluegills, Bass and Dragonflies! This past week’s full moon gave our yearly bluegill spawn a great kick start for a whole bunch of fun. These fun fighting little creatures are still hesitant to take a small popper pattern on top of the water but rigging your setup Dropper Rig style sure changed the game for me this past week. Not only did the panfish eagerly eat my dropper but the bass responded as well. This action should go on through the early summertime for our areas.

My choice of tackle is a 5wt fly rod with floating line but if the winds make it too cumbersome, then I switch it up to using an ultra-light spinning outfit and tie on a Beetle spin to keep the action going. The bass are still crushing the topwater lures aggressively in the first couple of hours of the morning but once the sun gets up it all stops so changing tactics to dragging a worm along the bottom will keep the bite going on for a while. The heat has once again been a big factor of “Early On” and “Early Off” for my fishing adventures now until fall arrives.

Capt. Joe and Capt. Dylon were hard at it this week putting our customers on some awesome fish! There were so many different species caught like kingfish, dolphin, grouper, tuna, cobia, this list goes on. There is live bait scattered along the beach from the basins to condos to the bite. If you can’t get live bait, minnows are also working just fine. The reefs are producing all the fish from Pelican to 8A. It’s a great time to get offshore right now!

The lagoon is still looking a little rough from the algae plant. However, offshore has been a lot of fun with really calm seas. There are lots of kingfish being caught as well as cobia. It’s exciting to see some large lane snappers have moved in on the reefs too. Along the beach we’re getting schools of bait fish with tarpon starting to move into them. It’s a great time of year to get out and catch some nearshore and offshore fish. I have dates available in June. You can reach me at 386-295-5991 or go right to my website FatFishGuide.Com

Results from this past weekend’s CFSA Tournament… congrats to all the winners!

I definitely believe summer is here in the Central Florida area with the past few days in the mid to upper 90s. Although it’s been a bit toasty the weather hast been the only thing that’s been hot. We have had a good bite from Daytona Beach south into New Smyrna Beach and Mosquito Lagoon, boating some nice trout, redfish and snook along with the occasional large Jack. Targeting the oyster beds and shorelines though out the backwaters of New Smyrna Beach area has been working well with live bait and artificials both doing the trick. The grass flats of Mosquito Lagoon have been alive with life like mullet and pinfish, which both have been working well to trigger a bite.

It looks as though clear skies are in store into this week with a high pressure sitting over Florida keeping the rain away. The bite should continue into next week as not much looks to be in for change

Here’s the latest update on local fishing before we get into thick of the weekend!

Here’s the latest update on local fishing before we get into thick of the weekend!

Offshore:
Mahi, black-fin tuna, kingfish, cobia, and grouper are all being aught offshore right now. Mahi and tuna are a little deeper in 250-300 feet. Grouper are being caught in 200 feet using big live bait. Kingfish and cobia are on the reefs. Pogies have been in the bite.

Nearshore:
There were some tarpon and big jack caught along the beach this week. We are starting to see better numbers of bait too.

Surf:
The beach has been producing a lot of whiting, palometas, and sharks. Oh, and of course, the pesky catfish love the dirty water. The best bait has been frozen shrimp rigged on a white-float pompano rig. Depending on the wave height, a 3–5 oz pyramid sinker has been working just fine.

Lagoons:
It is gator season! Gator trout that is! The last week has been some phenomenal, speckled sea trout fishing here on the space-coast, with some rainfall, lighter winds, and a huge influx of finger mullet the fishing has sparked up in general.

Freshwater:
The Shad spawn is happening, and the bass are aggressively hungry for the early part of the day. If you are in an area where the feeding frenzy is going on, it’s truly amazing fun to be had. I don’t think it makes any difference what you throw because it gets eaten violently. Once the sun comes up it’s pretty much over and the fishing starts instead of catching.

Went surf fishing from 8:30am – 2pm low tide near Pineda area. The surf was pretty dirty, but finally barely any seaweed. Caught a few whiting and margate using frozen shrimp on a double drop rig without the beads and floats. Around 1pm caught a really nice bonnethead, biggest one I’ve landed using cut pieces of spotted crab that i grabbed burying himself in the sand. The hot temps are awesome! Some small waves, light wind from south. Definitely recommend heading to the beaches.