On Foot Angler

As requested, here is a brief lesson snook fishing.

Snook are unquestionably a warm water or tropical species. Though these guys can be caught year round in much of their range, they certainly are most aggressive and abundant in water above 75 degrees. Spawning takes place in and around inlets and neighboring beaches with adequate depth and current. Typically this happens between late May and early August peaking around the full moons of those months. Spawning fish are by far the largest, most aggressive, most easily caught. With schools of snook numbering into the hundreds or even thousands, the competition is fierce making for fast action. Ethically, I prefer not to target snook around the spawn to avoid stressing or inadvertently killing them. This means fishing the new moon periods between the spawning moons. Dark nights make the fish more aggressive. A new moon with a positive tide of +2.0 or more at peak high will mean heavy outgoing current at the switch, thus concentrating the fish in areas of slower water. The boulders and washouts along the bottom of deep water inlets and passes are where the snook will hunker down during the strongest tides.
Bucktailing in areas of high current, being sure to occasionally knock the jig against the rocks, can be deadly effective during positive tides. This is particularly true if you are targeting keepers in season. Bigger snook, however, are much lazier. They will nearly always be caught in the slow water. Bottom fishing with fresh dead mullet, live croakers, pinfisj, pigfish or grunts will get you into the giants. Lure fishing with 6-9 inch swim baits, Magnum sizes of bombers, wind cheaters, x-raps and shad raps is equally effective.
courtesy of Big Dave's land based lessons. How to get tight!