SEBASTIAN INLET FISHING

It’s THE SNOOKMAN!

Hey there all you Sebastian Inlet fans and anglers! I hope you all enjoyed the great weekend we had. Good news, the fish are starting to show up, and bite! Both sides of the inlet! Plenty of baitfish around, greenies, majorra, and schools of mullet in the late afternoons. The water WAS clean, but over the weekend it got a bit dirty, but still cleaner than it has been, and it should stay pretty decent as looks like this week is going to be pretty nice, SSE winds in the 5-10 range, and seas in the 0-2 ft range, according to my surf reports I monitor, and water temps holding in the 81-84 degree range, which is good for this time of year. The only down side of it all is that most of the fish I saw, and I caught last week were on the incoming high tide phase, which is getting later and later as the week progresses. With all that being said, here are your “action” spots.

North Jetty…

Over here like I mentioned, most of the fish have been caught on the incoming tide. Lots of really nice catch and release snook were being caught on live shrimp, croakers, majorra, and as always, the artificial shrimp jigs, but the majority of the snook have been on live shrimp. They DO get fussy once in a while and only want one bait in particular. That’s what makes them such a challenge. I fished last Wednesday and hooked 10, and landed 7 of those with one monster weighing about 30 pounds. Most of the fish caught that day were bruisers in the 18–22-pound range, 38-40 inches, with a couple pushing the 22-30 pound range. Big girls, and they were pretty tough to land. Also on the incoming tide over the weekend, I saw a few really nice mangrove snappers caught on small shrimp and live and dead greenies around the rocks at the tip, and in the piling’s inlet side of the jetty. Also around the tip, one of my friends was catching some nice lookdowns on tiny shrimp and small greenies. Incoming tide. The outgoing tide the fishing was a bit slower due mostly to the stained ICW water coming out and shutting the bite down. Lot fresh water from all the rain runoff coming out of Sebastian River into the inlet. Some snook and reds were caught on croakers and majorra, and a few of the big jack crevalle that were chasing the schools of mullet. Friday when I was down, and again on Sunday I did see a few nice 16-18 inch spanish mackerel caught on live greenies, incoming tide, beach side, live greenies and spoons. Also on that side of the jetty over the past week I have seen a few big barracuda swimming around looking for a quick snack. One of my friends was fishing for spanish on last Wednesday with a silver spoon and enticed a 47 inch Cuda to hit it! That was fun to watch. Moving on, back around the bait shop area to the cleaning table, on the late afternoon tide there have been schools mullet coming in and the monster jack crevalle have been busting them up! Freelined mullet and top water poppers and 5-6 inch swim baits were getting bit by them. Most of these fish were in the 15-25 pound range! Quite the good fight. For those fishing live shrimp, majorra and greenies, there have been some decent mangrove snappers caught as well. 12-14 inch range on them. Remember, they have to be a minimum of 10 inches overall to be harvested, with a daily bag limit of 5 per person, per day.

South Jetty

For those who are willing to walk the 7 tenths of a mile from the south day use area, up to the jetty, I did get and update from one of my guys who does fish there, on what’s biting. Most of it is the regular species, black margate, small sheepshead, some whiting, spot tail pins, and a few really nice mangrove snapper, all on cut dead shrimp, outgoing and incoming tide. Also being caught on the outgoing at the tip are the jack crevalle, any kind of bait will get them to bite. Incoming along the shoreline the boaters have been catching some catch and release snook on any live bait, croakers being the best.

T-Dock Area

The section of the dock that is open, and the surrounding area has been producing some small sheepshead, mangrove snapper, lane snapper, and a few nice whiting, all on dead cut shrimp around the pilings and the rocks. Either tide has been good. There have been a few snook caught back here, but most of the action has been out front in the inlet.

Surf Area, both sides…

Again, as last week, nobody has been fishing the areas because on the north side, dur to the huge sandbar, there isn’t any water in the surf to fish properly, south side, there is no access due to the parking lot being off limits, and the guys walking up the beach have been fishing the jetty, and not the surf.

Well everyone, that’s all for this week, better than what it has been, and should continue to get better as the mangrove snapper and spanish mackerel move in, those two species are our summertime go to catches. I hope you all have a great week! Stay safe, and stay well!! Snookman.

Spent a couple days at icast seeing new products and meeting business partners. Rapala has come out with some new saltwater soft plastics that I’m looking forward to put to the test. Only bad thing is that most of the new products aren’t available till December or January.

The rest of the week of fishing was hit or miss. The beach was a little slow as the bait has spread out and the fish are on the move as well. The water has been extremely clean and clear with top to bottom visibility. There’s been schools to big jacks as well as some schools of tarpon on the beach. The jacks are spawning and can be tough to get to eat a live bait or artificial. The tarpon and kingfish have been tough as well as the winds picked up late week and made the beach a little rough. This week, the tides will be good and should offer some good fishing off the beach as the winds are slowing down and the beach bite should be good again.

Great week of nearshore fishing. The water was flat most of the week but had some rollers later in the week but they didn’t pose any issues as we could still run where we needed to. Tarpon, sharks, jacks and kingfish were on the menu. We are still seeing quite a few tarpon migrating to the north to find where they want to stop for the summer. We hooked a lot of fish on both soft plastics and live bait but it’s easier to keep them hooked on the live bait with circle hooks. Fishing around bait pods has been the key but if you can find the migrating schools stay out in front of them and try not to put too much pressure on the school if they aren’t eating quickly as they will stay spooked and not eat. Kingfish have been in the same areas and we have pulled a couple big kingfish out of 15’ of water on both artificial and live bait. Smaller baits have been the key. Look forward to seeing everyone at ICAST.

Hello all my Sebastian Inlet friends and family, I hope everyone enjoyed a long and happy 4th of July weekend! The weather for us stayed nice for most of us. Here we go with this weeks installment of “what’s up at the inlet”. It’s picking back up a tad as I have mentioned it would. The water has cleaned up really nicely, and it has warmed back up to the 84-85 degrees it needs to be for this time of the year, and some more bait fish have shown up too. Greenies around the jetty, and tiny majorra back at the t-dock that the mangrove snapper like to feed on. Plus, there are still some schools of mullet in the inlet that the BIG jack crevalle and huge redfish are feeding on. So off we go with the action highlights.

North Jetty

Over here most of the action has been split between the clean incoming tide, and the very first couple hours of the clean outgoing before the dirty water takes over the area. Live croakers and majorra have accounted for some catch and release snook and reds on either of those tide frames. In and around the pilings there are some decent mangrove snapper finally showing up on small live shrimp and live and dead greenies, and of course those small live and cut majorras. On the incoming tide also in and around the pilings they are catching some black margates and spot tail pins on cut dead shrimp. For those at the tip fishing tiny hair jigs and swim baits on the incoming the lookdowns are biting. Outgoing at the tip before the water gets dirty, a few snook and reds have been caught on croakers and majorra. Back along the wall between the jetty and bait shop on the incoming tide there have been some of the big jack crevalle caught freelining live mullet in the channel. Also in this area on the incoming with the higher water, they are starting to catch some nice mangrove snapper in the 14-16 inch range on small live baits. It’s about time! Like I have said, they like the warm clean water.

South Jetty

Even though it is still open, and access is limited to the beach south of the inlet day use area, which I mapped today is half a mile down the beach. There has been quite a few anglers fishing the jetty, so something must be around, I’m not walking that far just to find out. The boaters fishing the incoming tide over here are catching snook and redfish, which are both catch and release now.

Surf Area, both sides

The south side beach has been vacant of anglers due to the access area to get to it being fenced off for the construction in the area. The north side beach area as I have pointed out several times has been also absent of anglers just because there isn’t any water depth over there to fish it good. That huge sandbar runs from the north jetty all the way up the beach for about a half mile, and out about ¾ of the way to the tip of the north jetty, making it only about 2-3 feet deep on the north side, and most of the fish are going to be further out, and you have to cast farther. Most people don’t know that, ot know how to read the water like I can. Been doing it a long time.

T-Dock area

With the very end of the dock being closed off, the walkway remains open to fish. Either tide has been producing finally, some decent mangrove snappers, along with some sheepshead still. Live greenies, majorra, either live or cut are producing fish. On the rocks along the shoreline as well is producing mangroves and sheepshead, spot tail pins and black margates.

Well folks, that’s it for this report, a lot better than it has been, lets just hope it stays getting better. This week is supposed to be another hot one, the winds and surf are supposed to be pretty nice and mild, so the water should remain pretty clean, so I’m hoping things get even better. Everybody have a great week!

Another good week fishing the nearshore beaches and reefs. We did well on tarpon, jacks and cobia and there are some kingfish mixed in as well. Nearshore reefs and wrecks had some cobia on them and they were hungry. Hooked 5 in a short time until the bull sharks got a hold of one and the bite shut off.

Schools of big jacks are along the beaches as well. Some schools are easily spooked but there are some that the bite has been good. Looking like another good week of weather to get out and chase the jacks, tarpon and sharks as well as hunting for the kingfish and cobia again.

Great summertime fishing on the beach with light west winds and calm seas. There has been plenty of bait on the beach, however the water temps have been cold. Despite the cold water, the tarpon have been around in decent numbers. The bite wasn’t super good all week, but putting in the time brought good results. Along with the tarpon, there have been some sharks mixed in as well. Hammerhead, blacktip, black nose and sharp nose sharks have all been in the mix. A few kingfish have been around as well but running fluorocarbon leaders hasn’t helped us land any of those fish. We should have another good week of weather this week and look forward to getting out and running the beaches.

Good morning Sebastian Inlet fans, hope you all enjoyed your HOT weekend! The fishing again wasn’t hot, but the weather was. Lol. I’d like to start off with a few announcements and reminders. The bait shop is now open for business with all kinds of live bait most days, until they sell out. They still don’t have a phone yet, but they are open. And also, finally the concession/restaurant is back open! Another item I’d like to mention is that the small greenies and pilchards are showing up around the jetty. Please when cast netting them, take only what you can use and quickly throw back any not needed! DO NOT leave them to die on the jetty, it is a park rule, as well as an FWC ruling. Please be a good steward of our marine resources, they won’t last forever! Cast netting is a privilege put there, don’t abuse it! Also for those fishing the tip of the jetty on the outgoing tide, we have been having issues with the jetty anglers and the boaters getting lines tangled, you don’t need to let out hundreds of feet of line to catch the fish that are sitting right under your feet! In doing that your line gets involved with the boat anglers that are fishing a ways out, they are not in your way! Please be mindful of this, and be respectful so we can all fish and have a good time. Remember, the boats have the right of way out there, us anglers DO NOT! The jetty was built to help boaters navigate the inlet safely. The fishing deck was built to allow the public access to the jetty/ocean. Fishing out there is a PRIVILEGE, NOT A RIGHT, and can be revoked at any time. Rude and bad behavior out there will not be tolerated! That’s it for your attention to this matter. Be safe, be curious to your fellow anglers! Another note, all you anglers that fish for sharks and Goliaths, it is against park rules, and FWC rules to leave all your dead baits laying on the deck to rot in the sun. All of it must be placed in a container of some kind, or thrown back in the water, or placed out of sight. Please respect the jetty and its appearance, help us keep it clean so it doesn’t get shut down. Thanks everyone. We appreciate it. Now for the fishing action, or lack of, yes again.

North Jetty

Over here over the weekend the fishing was pretty slow, plenty of bait, just nothing chasing them. Greenies everywhere, still some small schools of mullet around, but the water quality again has got things curtailed. Lots of that snot weed around and getting on everything, plus the rain runoff on the outgoing tide was making the water tingy and dirty. The early morning high tide at the tip had been producing some catch and release snook on croakers. For those fishing small shrimp, greenies and tiny jigs there have been some lookdowns being caught. Also there has been some Spanish mackerel showing up too on the beach side of the jetty, live greenies and gotcha lures are the key baits. The mangrove snapper haven’t made a showing yet, but some small ones are being caught on shrimp and greenies. Also there are still some decent sheepshead around the pilings as well as some black margate and spit tail pinfish. The outgoing tide has been a bust due to all the river/C54 runoff, the first part of it is clean, then it gets dirty. Some catch and release snook are being caught as well ad some big jack crevalle.

South Jetty

No report… Limited access.

T-Dock area

Back here there has been some action, most on the cleaner incoming tide. The T dock is closed indefinitely for some safety issues, but the area around it is accessible. Some snook and big jack crevalle are being caught on live mullet and majorra. Along the rocks sue to the tiny majorras starting to show up finally, there have been some decent mangrove snapper being caught. Live shrimp, greenies and the tiny majorra are the baits of choice. Also there have been some decent sheepshead along with black margate being caught on dead shrimp along the rock shoreline.

Surf Area, both sides

No report, nobody had been out fishing the areas around the jetties.

So that’s all for this week folks. It’s supposed to be another decent, but hot week with our afternoon showers, so if you do get out, be careful, and have a great time!

Finally into our summer patterns for more than a couple days. Calm seas and afternoon thunderstorms with some bait on the beach and gamefish close behind. The tarpon are plentiful as are the sharks but the jacks aren’t as thick as they should be. The bait isn’t as thick as we’d like to see but where you find the bait you should be able to find some tarpon.

Good morning, all my Sebastian Inlet friends and fans! I hope everyone had a great weekend! The weather was good, but not so much the fishing, again. I was down 3 days, and saw very little action! So this will be a brief one…

One of the key reasons is the water quality. When it isn’t what it should be, the fish just aren’t happy and comfortable. All the rain runoff coming out on the outgoing tide, and the persistent westerly winds blowing the warm surface ocean water away from shore, and the water temps dropping down to 77 degrees over the weekend, has things on a shutdown everywhere! There’s plenty of bait around, small greenies around the jetty, and some schools of mullet still coming down the beach, but no predators messing with them. About the only thing I saw different this weekend versus last weekend is a couple small spanish mackerel and lookdowns caught on the north jetty tip on the incoming tide, and a couple of catch and release snook and reds in the very early morning hours on live croakers, outgoing at the tip. Nothing else has changed from last week, everywhere. So, like I always say, I tell it like I see it, if it is good, you’ll know, if it is bad, you’ll know. No fluff from me. So, that’s all I have for this week.

The week is supposed to be nice and calm on the water, mild winds, small surf, and the pesky afternoon thunderstorms. So, if you go out, be careful and stay hydrated! It WILL be warm. Everyone have a great week, and happy first week of SUMMER!

I had the pleasure of joining a beach tarpon charter with Capt. Glyn Austin and his guest, Tony, this last Friday. From the moment they scooped me at the inlet, the experience was equally as beautiful as it was exhilarating.

Massive schools of hundreds of tarpon lined the coast, just barely breaking the surface tension of the water. Countless sea turtles were doing the nasty like it was 1969, everywhere. The sunrise spectacular, and the sea, calm and clear. We didn’t waste any time in getting right to business with lines in the water.

Poor Tony… After fighting two massive +100lb tarpon for what seemed like hours, Capt. Glyn showed him no mercy, putting him immediately on a school of gear busting, ball breaking jacks. Tony answered the call with what could only be sheer determination and power of will.

Between epic battles, Tony emphatically said to me several times, “It’s your turn next, man!”

I rebuked his offer, without reluctance, “sorry bro, I’m strictly taking pictures today.”

I thought he was just being generous, but upon reflection, I’m pretty sure he was fishing for a breather! Dude needed a break! Tony, if you’re reading this, my bad, brother!

What an awesome time! If you want to cross this epic fishing experience off your bucket list, I’ve got two critical pieces of advice:

1) Book a trip with Capt. Glyn Austin of Going Coastal Charters. Capt. Glyn is the man. He knows better than anybody how to put you on these magnificently beautiful, bruisingly powerful specimen.

2) Take at least one friend with you so you don’t have to hurt yourself trying to avoid looking like a soft ass b*tch when you’re dying from exhaustion and there’s nobody else to whom you can pass off the rod. There’s no shame in not being as tough as Tony (I know I’m not!)