SEBASTIAN INLET FISHING

Good day, all my Sebastian Inlet fishing fans. I hope everyone had a great weekend; the weather sure was nice! Here we go with another installment of what’s happening at the inlet, or in this case, what’s NOT happening. There wasn’t a lot biting at the inlet over the weekend. I spent most of Sunday at the inlet and saw only one fish caught — a small slot snook on the north side, west of the tide pool along the rocks (using live shrimp). The gal who caught it said there were also a couple of redfish caught as well on live shrimp, and only one other slot snook. The fish were caught at the end of the outgoing tide and the beginning of the incoming tide. Nothing else on this side, even at the bridge where sheepshead are usually caught.

South side

Over here it was slow. I saw NO fish caught from the jetty all the way back to the T-dock, not even a jack or blue runner, or any black margates, which are usually always biting. That’s pretty sad, but we have the water temperatures to blame, it had dropped back down to 68 degrees over the weekend, but it was clean, calm and weed-free. I did hear about a couple undersized snook caught early on the outgoing tide on live bait, but only a couple, not the numbers that were being caught. I think the snook all went to school and got educated.

T-Dock area

Back here, it has been slim pickins, possibly because the dredging equipment is making the fish a little skittish with all the activity around it. The incoming tide only produced small bluefish and ladyfish for the anglers, no snook. Zero fish on the outgoing tide.

Surf area, both sides

There weren’t many anglers at the north side, but those who were out caught black drum and a few pompano and whiting. Live sandfleas was the bait of choice. South side of the inlet there weren’t very many folks out there due to the dredge pipes being setup along the beach, but the anglers that were out reported a few nice pompano and whiting, along with the ever present bonnet head sharks. Again, sand fleas was the bait of choice.

That’s all I have for this week. This week is supposed to be pretty nice until Friday, when the winds and surf are anticipated to pick back up and likely churn the water, but you never know. I hope you all have a great week!

Fished inshore with mixed results. Inconsistent cold weather and winds have made the bait scarce and with the bait scarce the gamefish are scarce as well. Inshore we caught a few snook, some trout, jacks, mackerel and ladyfish. Also had a school of black drum in the lagoon but the fish were very picky. Finding them wasn’t too hard, but getting them to eat proved difficult. Overall, the inshore bite was pretty slow, but we did get some good fish. Live bait was key with the snook but everything else came on artificial. We also got a few tripletail off the crab traps in the lagoon.

Beach fishing was decent until the week until the winds started howling and the seas got rough. The seas calmed at the end of the week but the fish were scattered. Looking forward to more consistent weather in the coming weeks and a normal pattern for this time of year.

Big Black drum for Sean, his brother and friends

Another week of inconsistent weather with heavy winds a couple days. Typical spring where the bite changes daily with the weather and the full moon didn’t help the bite much either. We were able to get out on the beach and catch plenty of bait and plenty of Trout, weakfish, macs, blues jacks and even found a few ribbonfish. Bonus catch was about a 6′ hammerhead shark that was most likely in feeding on the mackerel, bluefish and jacks.

Jack got a snook over 40″

The inshore bite was hit or miss with plenty of jacks and some trout with a few snook mixed in. The big black drum have been very picky lately as well.

The upcoming week looks to have similar weather with some cold and windy days followed by some calm winds and warm air temps which will warm the water up a bit and hopefully improve the bite in the lagoon and off the beaches.

Arden, poses with a clean 27-inch catch-and-release snook caught Sunday with live shrimp on the south jetty.

Good morning, Sebastian Inlet fanatics, I hope everyone had a great weekend! The weather was decent again, but the fishing suffered due to the big SSE winds, 15 to 25 mph, along with the three to five-foot surf making things a bit dirty and challenging. But there were some fish caught. The good thing about it is that the water has remained at 71 degrees and didn’t drop any. We have a couple of breezy and big surf days ahead, but the winds should calm down by Wednesday. To that end, here is what I saw over the weekend from Friday through Sunday.

North side under the bridge, legal side of the fence, west side

On the incoming tide, there are still some nice sheepshead being caught on live sandfleas and cut shrimp fishing behind the pilings, and close to the rock shoreline. In the back, west of the tidal pool, the incoming tide has been producing sheepshead and a few black drum on live sandfleas, and cut or live shrimp for the drum. I heard that a few guys caught smaller snook back there as well on live shrimp floating the current. Not much else back here.

South Jetty

All weekend on the south jetty the bite has been hit-or-miss, incoming tide early has been producing quite a few of the undersized snook on live shrimp along the jetty rocks, small thumper jigs have been getting a few as well. I only saw one slot fish caught over the weekend; the rest were too small. Black drum and sheepshead continue to make a showing once in a while, too: use live shrimp and sandfleas. The outgoing tide at the tip always gets crowded, but they have been catching black margates, sheepshead, blue runners, small jack crevalle and a drum or two. Since the water has gotten so dirty, the pesky catfish are around as well. Another species I saw make a showing Friday and Saturday were the big bluefish again. They were a bit farther out than normal, but a big silver spoon or jig did the trick. Also, I saw several smaller, normal size bluefish caught. That is pretty much it for over here.

T-Dock area

Remember, folks, the T-Dock is closed for the duration of the dredging project, and the adjacent parking area, but the shoreline area around it is open for fishing. Back here I didn’t see anything caught. However, chatting with a couple of my friends, they caught some undersized snook and redfish on the incoming, and very beginning of the outgoing tide on live shrimp and thumper jigs. One of my friends did catch some black drum and a pompano on Friday before it got all messed up. So that’s pretty much all for back here.

Surf Area, both sides

As you may have guessed, it has been all blown out, rough and dirty.

That’s all I have for this week. We really need the weather to calm down and remain that way. As the water continues to warm up, fishing will pick up. Cheers, everyone!

Greg, owner of Snookside Charters (left) and an inlet regular showing off one of the many black drums caught in the boat at the tip of the north jetty.

Hello, all you Sebastian Inlet fishing fans. I hope everyone enjoyed the awesome weather we had all weekend. With that said, here’s what’s going on and what’s NOT going on at the inlet.

Let’s begin with news about the dredging project: The T-Dock and surrounding parking area is closed for the duration of the project. The dredge, barges and tug have launched in that area, with dredging expected to begin this week. Wooden ramps constructed over the dredge pipes at the south jetty allow access for those with fishing carts, as well as the handicapped folks. With that, here is the report:

North side

Under the bridge, on the LEGAL side of the fence on the incoming tide the sheepshead bite has been pretty good, with many fish in the two to three-pound pound range caught on live sandfleas around the pilings and rocks. There aren’t many places to fish as it can get busy and dangerous on the rocks, so be careful. Small undersized snook are being caught in that area as well on live shrimp. Back in the back there have been a few black drum, sheepshead caught on live sandfleas and shrimp on the incoming tide. Small undersized snook are back here as well, live shrimp for them.

South jetty

In the early morning, during the incoming tide, the snook bite has been decent on live shrimp. Most fish as always for this time of year are undersized, but I did see several mid- slots caught on Saturday and Sunday. They were 29 to 30-inch fish. On Saturday, I was there during the incoming tide and saw a couple of 14 to 16-inch flounder caught. The outgoing tide at the tip on both days was producing small snook, redfish, black drum, black margates, sheepshead and sand perch, live and cut shrimp and sandfleas were the baits of choice.

Back in the back on this side around the cleaning table I did see a couple of really nice black drum caught on live shrimp. The 20 to 24-inch fish were caught on the incoming tide. One of my regulars said that he caught some nice pompano back there on small thumper jigs, one of them he said was 18 inches, nice one! Small snook and some redfish round out the mix for back here, again, incoming tide, and the very beginning of the outgoing.

Surf, both sides

The surf fishing the most part still remains slow, with the water still cleaning up from the blow we had last week. The water quality has cleaned up greatly and as of this report is back up to 72 degrees where it should be.

That’s it for this week. Expect rain and winds on Monday, but it should settle down by Wednesday through the weekend. After Tuesday, it should be sunny and comfy again. So, get out there, grab your gear and go fishing, or just enjoy the beach. Be safe everyone!

Bill and his friends from New Jersey with some big black drum

Good week of fishing inshore and nearshore. Nearshore bite was good with plenty of bluefish, mackerel, jacks and sharks. Plenty of action on artificial baits as well as live bait for the sharks and mackerel. Inshore action was fairly good with some schools of big black drum in the lagoon along with some pompano, trout and snook.

Mr Conneen with a Tripletail he brought home for dinner.

Tripletail were on some of the crab trap buoys as well. Best bite was artificial but we did get some bigger snook on live bait. Paddle-tails from DOA and Rapala provided most of the action along with some bucktails from VMC for the pompano and mackerel. This week’s weather looks decent and we will be back out on the beach to see what we can get into and the snook bite inside should be heating up.

Armando caught this 27 3/4-inch snook and a 26-inch spotted seatrout at the south jetty. He used live shrimp on the incoming tide.

Hello there, Sebastian Inlet fishing junkies. I hope everyone had a great weekend! Here we go with the first report for March:

Fishing on Friday and Saturday was pretty good, but the activity dropped off Sunday when the NNE winds picked up. The water was clean, but still a bit cool at 69; that was good for Friday and Saturday. On the north side west of the bridge I saw plenty of very nice sheepshead being caught, in the two to three-pound range, and plenty just over the minimum. Live sandfleas were the bait of choice. In that same area there was a decent snook bite on live shrimp as well, the first of the outgoing tide. Many small snook, but I did see a couple of slots taken. And remember, folks, under the bridge there is a fence blocking access to the east side of the bridge marked with a NO TRESPASSING sign, as that area is a designated construction area. Please be mindful of that. Thanks.

In the back, north side also, anglers were catching smaller snook on the incoming tide with live shrimp. A few black drum and sheepshead were caught as well. That’s pretty much if for the north side. Also, on the north side where the beach joins the jetty, that area of the north jetty is also labeled, ‘NO PRESSPASSING, STATE PARK BOUNDRIES.’ Do not climb through the area under the jetty to fish on the other side, it is designated as a construction area and is off limits as well.

South jetty, from the tip and along the seawall: Over here last week the snook bite has been really good from Wednesday through Saturday, and tapering off on Sunday while I was there. I am glad to see the snook wanting to play! Everyone using live shrimp pretty much caught some. Granted 90 percent were undersized, but I saw many slot fish caught. Live shrimp, thumper jigs did the trick! The incoming tide was the time to be there.

On Sunday, for whatever reason, the bite for snook just went away — very slow, but a few were caught early morning. In the afternoon while I was there, a huge school of croakers moved in and came up the beach, birds diving in them nonstop, and the bigger snook were around as well to feed on them. The snook action wasn’t hot by any means, but I did see several nice upper slot fish caught. It got crowded and many fish were hooked and lost. Also fishing along the rocks on the inlet side on Saturday they caught plenty of black drum, snook, big sheepshead, some whiting and pompano. Use live baits, either shrimp or sandfleas. At the tip of the jetty on the outgoing tide it was all about the black margates, small jack crevalle, blue runners and hand sized sand perch. Cut shrimp was the bait for them.

The T-Dock area has been slow. I did hear about a few snook caught, mostly small, with a couple of keepers, live mojarra and shrimp. Sunday when I was back there, they were catching quite a few croakers and whiting at the end of the incoming tide. Use cut shrimp.

That’s all I have for this report. Expect high winds and rough seas Tuesday through Thursday. If you do get out to fish, it might be roughed up a bit. Have a great week, everyone.

It’s been slow at the T-dock, but Snookman says snook and sheepshead are a possibility.

Good morning, Sebastian Inlet fishing folks. I hope you all had a great weekend. The weather was nice and the fishing was decent. With that said, here we go with this week’s installment.

The north side in the back was slow, but anglers were catching nice sheepshead on cut shrimp along the rocks. A few small snook and redfish were reported fishing live shrimp on the incoming tide, back by the trees. Redfish you still can’t keep, and the snook were too small, but still fun to catch. The north side beach, before it got rough and dirty, was producing black drum, whiting and pompano for those fishing sand fleas and shrimp. That was last week. Conditions calmed down and cleaned up during the weekend and the boats fishing the NE tip on the outgoing tide and the SE tip on the incoming have been doing pretty good on black drum, redfish and undersized snook, but a few keepers were caught according to my charter captains. All on live shrimp.

The snook action has been at the south jetty last week, and continued over the weekend. Plenty of undersized fish were caught, with a few keepers mixed in to keep it interesting. Live shrimp was the key bait of choice. The outgoing tide on the beachside was the area. Also, on the incoming tide, there were plenty of snook caught as well. Again, use live shrimp. There are plenty of fish, but most were under the 28 minimum to keep. Also, I saw fun-sized redfish in the mix, along with sheepshead, whiting and black margates and small bluefish at the tip on cut shrimp, outgoing tide. Along the beach on this side, the pompano were biting until the surf became roughed up and dirty. However, it should clean back up this week — it didn’t look too bad on Sunday. The water temperature has dropped back down to 65 over the weekend, but should warm up when the east winds return. On the ‘plus” side, it didn’t affect the bite this time!

It’s been slow around the T-dock and cleaning station, with only a few nice sheepshead and black drum caught. The snook bite has improved slightly, with nice fish caught at night and the wee hours of the morning. Flair jigs have been the lure of choice.

That’s all I have for this week — still holding steady from last week’s report. Hopefully the fishing will improve when the weather and water warm up. Have a great week. Get out and fish!

After a couple weeks of warmer temps and good fishing inshore and nearshore the winds increased and the temperatures dropped last week making it tougher inshore and too rough to fish off the beach. The pompano bite was good in the lagoon along with good trout and snook bite as well. We focused on deeper shorelines that had bait and were able to find good action with paddle tails and jerk baits rigged on 1/4 ounce jig heads. There was also some pompano in the inlet as well as plenty of jacks, some mackerel and bluefish.

With the forecast being similar this week looking for more of the same, but if we can get out on the beach. We can also get into more mackerel, some spinner sharks and black tips and look for some tarpon along the beach.

Early in the week we had some pretty good weather that allowed us to get off the beach and chase the tarpon and play with some Blacktip sharks. Topwater and live bait both worked on the sharks and we caught a few tarpon on live bait as the sharks were thick and hard to get the tarpon to eat. The inshore bite was pretty good with a few snook and plenty of trout, jacks, bluefish and a few pompano. Snook were eating live bait most of the time but we still managed a few on soft plastics but mostly smaller fish. Winds picked up later in the week and the bite got tougher as it does this time of the year with daily changes in weather conditions and wind direction.

This week the winds are high with a few fronts but the bait has been around pretty good and the rain will push more bait out of the creeks and into the lagoon which should help the bite when the temperatures stabilize.