Beach Fishing With Paul Sperco Palm Beach/Martin County Area

Reports during the week showed a good snook bite but your chance of taking home a slot fish ends at 12 midnight on Wednesday, May 31st. On Monday, Jeff Smith, our fly fishing guru from Bass Pro Shops, landed two nice snook on a fly rod at Tiger Shores beach. We are entering into the time of year for the “fly-rodders” to get into some great action at the beach. If anyone needs new equipment or tips on catching fish from the beach on a fly rod , Jeff is the guy to see to get you outfitted. He will gladly share his great knowledge for fly-rodding in our area. Contact him at Bass Pro Shops, Port St Lucie. I also heard from Jerry Tenski who attended the seminar last Saturday. Jerry fished Monday morning at Bathtub Beach and was successful in landing a nice snook live-lining a small jack in the first trough. If you are going to target snook this weekend Tiger Shores, Santa Lucea, and Bathtub Beaches are good areas to try. The snook are staging for their summer spawn and the beaches closet to our inlets will be holding fish as they move to those spawning locations. Casting artificials early in the morning and then switching over to live baits like croakers, greenies, and pinfish as the day moves on should provide great snook action. Break out the Fishbites and cut shrimp and fish the first trough during the day to fill a cooler with tasty whiting and croaker. 

Sebastian Inlet Report

05-30-17 TUESDAY: SNOOK, MACKEREL AND SNAPPER

We had a gorgeous weekend at the inlet and the trend continues. Winds are blowing out of the West-Southwest at 4 mph, gusting to 7 and the water is clean and calm. It would be a great day to get out and do a little fishing! 

Sarah Sams at the Sebastian Inlet Bait and Tackle Shop reported a decent Snook bite over the weekend and a few were landed on the tide change this morning. Snook remain the most targeted species and time is running out to land a keeper before the season closes on June 1st. Snook, a few Spanish Mackerel and Snapper have been landed from the north jetty but overall, the bite remains slow.

The Best Bait for Beach fishing

Surf Fishing: This bait will catch EVERYTHING!

Sebastian Inlet Report

05-25-17 THURSDAY: SNOOK, SNAPPER, JACKS AND TROUT 
Dark clouds are hanging over the inlet this morning and we have intermittent rain showers. Winds are blowing out of the South at 4 mph, gusting to 10 and there is a moderate chop on the water. NOAA is calling for small craft to exercise caution through 4:00 p.m. today, it's still bumpy out there. We are experiencing extreme tides due to the new moon tonight. Tomorrow is a new day and the forecast is calling for a beautiful weekend. Get out and wet a line!

The bite from the jetties has been slow. Snook are starting to gear up for spawning season and we will see them getting more active in preparation for the big event. Snook season will be closed from June 1st - August 31st. Please do not target the species during this time; they will already be exhausted! Mangrove and Mutton Snapper are starting to appear and the summer months should bring us Margate, Lookdowns, Sandperch, Reds and Atlantic Spadefish as well. 

Beach Fishing With Paul Sperco Palm Beach/Martin County Area

As mentioned at the seminar Saturday, I urge everyone to read Ed Killer's article in the TCPalm publications, " When Sharks Die" which was in yesterday's newspaper and currently on line from the TC Palm website. The theme of the article is about three dead sharks that were found washed up on our area beaches in the space of two days last week. 

Shark fishing from the surf is a very popular sport but as most often happens, a very small percentage of anglers are jeopardizing this activity for the majority of fishermen who play by the rules and catch and release. These great fish must be released in a timely manner to insure they swim away healthy and strong. Every fish, from catfish to tiger sharks, occupy an important spot in the long list of species that swim along our shores. To kill a fish like a catfish, ladyfish, jack, or any of the other types that may not have a high food value to those of us that fish the beach or from a boat is a practice I have never been able to understand. They all are important to the food chain and eco system of our great fishery and in order to sustain the supplies for our future fishing generations they need to be released to swim away. Ed points out in his article that the tiger sharks that washed up on the beach are one of twenty species of shark that are illegal to harvest in our waters. I am of the opinion anyone that blatantly participates in this practice needs to be reported to FWC and held accountable for their actions. Do not let the one or two percent of our fishing participants ruin a great angling opportunity for the ninety eight percent of us that play by the rules. Take time to read Ed's article and call FWC if you observe someone breaking the rules: 888-404-3922

Scouting Around Sebastian Area

The bite from the jetties remains on the slow side but our more patient anglers are picking up some Snook during low light periods. We have a week left in the season so get out and try to land one in the slot before June 1st. Once spawning starts, it's best not to target them, it only exhausts the fish and you can't keep them anyway. We need those big breeders to go out and make more Snook. Grass beds on the flats are holding Speckled Trout and Mangrove Snapper have started to appear as well. Get out and wet a line!

Our photo today is features Johnny L. who is a new resident of Sebastian. Johnny moved up from Fort Lauderdale last week and wasted no time getting out and enjoying the great fishing. He and Dean fished the flats last weekend and had a great time on one of our spoil islands landing Snook, Redfish, Trout and Mangrove Snapper. Dean reported great fishing and loved the fact that he dodged 18" of snow while he was here! This beautiful Snook was lifted out of the net, photo quickly taken and immediately put back into the water. 

From The Crew @ Whites Tackle - Ft Pierce / Stuart

Inshore the trout and snook fishing on the flats has been good with live bait around first light and late in the afternoon. The snapper bite has been good around the bridges with white baits with a few 4lb to 5lb fish. The south jetty in Ft. Pierce has had a few snook and flounder around high tide live shrimp has produced the best. 

Boynton Inlet Bait Check Bait Check

#ThreadFin, #CigarMinnow, #Sardine, #Pilchard

Photo Courtesy Of Danny V. Sapp

From The Crew @ Whites Tackle - Ft Pierce / Stuart

                         

The weather looks like the wind is going to blow the next few days so get out while you can. Inshore the trout bite has been great with a few nice fish to the south with some nice snook around the mangrove shorelines live bait and top water around first light have produced the best! The bridges have had a few fish around with live bait and a few nice snapper to. The south jetty has had a few snook around at night with jigs and a few tarpon mixed in on the outgoing tide.

Beach Fishing With Paul Sperco Palm Beach/Martin County Area

Although weeds and dirty water are keeping the catch rate down in our area, conditions should improve as the week goes on. Longtime friend, Joe Coveney (and I mean longtime - like 60 years) joined me and my family at Dollmans Beachside yesterday, and we managed to catch whiting, croaker, and one nice pompano in between the weed patches. As usual, Fishbites and cut shrimp accounted for all of the bites in the first trough. The hours around high tide is the time to be there, and as we approached the high tide mark yesterday afternoon the action increased. This upcoming week you will be able to fish early in the morning and later in the afternoon as times of high tide will be early morning and late afternoon. Keep your baits close -10 to 15 yards from the surfs edge and the whiting and croaker bites will happen. If the weeds disperse, fish a live croaker from a sandspike and take advantage of the last week of snook season when you can keep a slot fish. If you want to throw some artificial baits like a Live Target soft swimbait or YoZuri crystal minnow, fish early and late afternoon also. I would like to thank the great bunch of folks who attended my seminar ons Saturday and hope everyone took some information home that will make your next trip to the beach a successful one. 

Sebastian Inlet Report

                              
05-23-17 TUESDAY: SNOOK, BONITO, SNAPPER, TROUT AND JACKS 

We have southerly winds at 14 mph this morning, gusting to 17 and there is a moderate chop on the water. Winds are predicted to increase this afternoon bringing us a chance of showers and a slight chance of thunderstorms. NOAA is calling for small craft to exercise caution. Hazardous conditions for boating will continue through Thursday evening but should become favorable for the Memorial Day weekend. Always check the NOAA forecast prior to boating as conditions can change very quickly. 

Sarah Sams at the Sebastian Inlet Bait and Tackle Shop reported that there have been schools of small Bonito in the inlet. Tarpon are active as well. There are very strict regulations on Tarpon, please familiarize yourself with the FWC regulations which can be found on the top right corner of this page. A few Cubera Snapper have shown up and Snook have been more active. We should start seeing a lot more Snook activity as they prepare to spawn. You still have some time to land a slot fish before the season closes June 1st. Please abide by the FWC regulations of one per person per day, 28" - 32", please handle your catch and release fish carefully. Please place your C/R fish back into the water as quickly as possible.

Our angler of the day is Taiedo Smith of Ocala. Taiedo reported good conditions with low wind and clear skies. He landed this 29" slot Snook around 8:00 p.m. on Sunday evening using pilchards he caught in the inlet.

From The Crew @ Whites Tackle - Ft Pierce / Stuart

Inshore there has been a good snook bite around the bridges and ledges all throughout the Indian River Lagoon. 

                  

The snook bite in Stuart around the bridges and sea walls has been great as well. There have been a few redfish and trout along the mangroves of the flats as well as a snook or two mixed in. Try a gulp Jerkbait in the glow color for the redfish and a DOA Cal glow color for the trout. A few sheepshead are around structure in the river with the snapper starting to bite as well.

Sebastian Inlet Report

                                     


05-19-17 FRIDAY: SNOOK, JACKS, TROUT, SNAPPER AND LOOKDOWNS

Winds are blowing out of the East at 11 mph this morning, gusting to 14 and there is a moderate chop on the water. There are no NOAA advisories this morning but it looks like it's a little bumpy out there. Always check the NOAA forecast prior to boating. 
 The bite has been hit or miss from the north jetty. A few Mutton Snapper have been landed on live shrimp this week, a few Jacks and Lookdowns have been biting and the evening and early morning Snook bite has been fair. Conditions on the beach are pretty messy for surf fishing; there are a lot of weeds in the water. The Indian River grass beds are holding some Speckled Trout. 

Our photo today is from our archives and features Glenn Cook of Orlando with a real nice Trout he landed.

A Must See Thats Free

Scouting Around Palm Beach/Martin County Area

INSHORE

In the Jensen Beach area the pompano fishing is still excellent along the beaches.

The whiting and croaker bite is also good.

For all three species clams paired up with Fishbites is producing the best results.

Fishing for snook off the beaches has also remained good.

Using small whiting or croaker is an extremely effective bait, but with the wind forecast to be fairly strong out of the east, spoons or a plugs will be more effective for casting.

For bait, there has been a good amount of pilchards along the beaches to be had with a cast net and just off the beach there are threadfins and sardines. Best bet for catching those are sabiki rigs.

Though the fishing for snook is still good in the river, recent rains have pushed fish back down from the north and south forks.

Live pilchards and structure is the name of the game for catching snook in the river.

Keep those baits close to the seawalls and pilings though, as there are plenty of jack crevalle that will gobble them up if the stray too far out.

Snook season ends May 31.

Along the beaches in Jupiter the pompano are still biting as well as some Spanish mackerel, small blue runners and snook.

Both the Loxahatchee River and the Intracoastal have been extremely slow.

In the Boynton Beach area, the inshore fishing has been slow as well.

There have been some large barracuda and tarpon cruising along the sandbar at the Boynton Beach Inlet.

Fishing for snook and croaker has been OK at the inlet and at night, between 11 p.m. and 4 a.m. the permit action has been good using half crabs or whole squid.

Jack Crevalle fishing at the Lantana Bridge is still good using live mullet.

 

LAKE OKEECHOBEE

For bass, live shiners still get the nod over artificial baits.

If using artificial, however, swim jigs are best for calm water and spinnerbaits are the way to go when it gets a rougher.

With the lake level being so low the key either way is to get to the grass.

The bluegill bite has been good along the North shore with crickets and worms working well.

courtesy of Palm Beach Post

Beach Fishing With Paul Sperco Palm Beach/Martin County Area

The Pompano bite slowed down over this weekend but the whiting and croaker fishing is picking up steam. There were a few Pompano caught at Middle Cove Beach on Saturday morning but that action was non-existent today, Sunday. My wife Deb and I decided to try to put together a Hutchinson Island Mother's Day Fish Fry and that certainly worked out. We put together a nice catch of whiting and croaker at Dollman's Beachside access using Fishbites and cut shrimp.This type of fishing is for all family members and can really make your day at the beach a lot of fun. The key to getting in on this great action is targeting your fishing around the hours of high tide and pitching your bait - not casting it. These fish were 5 to 10 yards from the edge of the beach and stayed right in the that first trough for the two hours we were there. Expect this fun fishing to continue when we head into the summer as these two species should be readily available. A light 7-foot spinning rod with 10 to 12 pound test is all you will need and these larger whiting and croaker will bend your rod and make a nice showing. A simple Hi-Lo bottom rig with a number 1 circle hook or a small J hook like a 3407 DT Mustad, number 4 are the sizes that work the best. Limit your catch to what you can use and for those of you that like to eat fish, these fish are excellent table fare. 

I will be discussing techniques, tactics, tackle, and places to fish for a variety of species, including the whiting and croaker, at my seminar next Saturday May 20th at Bass Pro Shops at 2:30. 

Battling The Floridian Giant Trevally!!! (Jack Crevalle from Pier)

Sebastian Inlet Report

                                


05-16-17 TUESDAY: THE BITE REMAINS SLOW 

It's another beautiful day at Sebastian Inlet. Winds are blowing out of the Northeast at 5 mph, gusting to 9 and there is a moderate chop on the water. Winds and waves will start to build tonight and conditions will become a little rougher. 

The bite from the jetties has been slow. Patient anglers are landing Snook in lower light periods. We should start seeing some Mangrove Snapper begin to show up soon. This time of year when the water is clear and conditions are calm is when we start seeing them. Inshore the species stays relatively small, few surpass 1 lb. but offshore on the reefs they can get large, the Florida record is 17 lbs. Most anglers use small shrimp, cut bait, minnows, surface plugs or popping flies. They are a lot of fun to catch. Once they are hooked, they put up an impressive fight for such a little fish! The bag limit is five per person per day and they must be at least 10" in length. There are different regulations for different species of Snapper, look at the FWC regulations at the top right corner of this page for more information.

Our angler of the day is Ryan Wood. Ryan landed this beautiful Snook from his kayak over the weekend using a topwater plug. Ryan was fishing the flats south of the inlet where he caught and released this gorgeous fish. For those of you who would like to see a video of this catch, log onto YouTube go to Ryan Wood Snook Redemption. 

From Todd /Trey/ Paul and Ryan @ Juno Bait -Juno Beach

                                                    

INSHORE:  Snook reports are getting better by the day.  The snook are moving towards the inlets (Or already in the inlets in some cases), and they are hungry.  Flairhawks, swimbaits, and swimming plugs are a good way to go for the snook right now.  Look for outgoing tide to be the best, especially around bridges with some deeper water and good current.  Other inshore action is a bit spotty.  Some jacks cruising the ICW, a few resident tarpon up the Loxahatchee River, and sheepshead around the bridges kind of round out the rest of the inshore action.  

SURF/PIER:  Pompano action slowed this week, but a few are still being caught.  Early morning bite has been best for the pomps.  Don't be afraid to put the baits out in the dark right now...the pomps will feed at night on the full moon. Snook action continues to improve at the Juno Beach Pier and Jupiter Inlet.  Dead sardines have been the bait of choice at the pier, while a smaller live silver mullet has been a good choice at Jupiter Inlet.  Scattered schools of big jacks are cruising the beach right now, as are some tarpon for those looking for something bigger to catch.  Scattered schools of spanish mackerel in and out at the pier.  

Scouting Around Palm Beach/Martin County Area

INSHORE:

 Along the beaches in Jensen Beach the croaker, whiting and snook bite has been excellent.

Fishbites has been a can’t miss bait for catching both whiting and croaker.

Though good table fare in their own right, a small whiting or croaker also makes very good snook bait.

Hooked behind the dorsal fin and using a 50-pound leader with 8.0 circle hook is an excellent set up for catching snook off the beach.

Several permit in the 20-pound range have also recently been caught off the beach in the area.

In the St. Lucie River one day was pronounced “Jack Attack Tuesday” by one local after the number of jack crevalle being caught.

Hitting just about anything and outcompeting snook, fish in the 15-pound plus range have been cruising the docks and seawalls creating ridiculous fun for anglers looking for a fight.

The snook bite is still excellent, but with the jack crevalle hitting hard it’s not as easy to get one on the line.

Threadfins and sardines are working well for snook.

In Jupiter, pompano fishing isn’t quite as amazing as it has been the last few weeks, but it’s still decent.

Anglers using Fishbites combined with clams are getting good results with the best action being found from Jupiter Island to Hobe Sound.

In the Boynton Beach area, there has been a pretty good concentration of tarpon, some in 120-pound range, hanging around the sandbar off the Boynton Inlet all the way down to the public beach.

Also around the inlet has been a good number of snook.

Anglers fishing off the Lantana Bridge say the jack crevalle bite has been excellent. Fishing with cut sardines, fish over 20 pounds are being caught.

Beach Fishing With Paul Sperco Palm Beach/Martin County Area

Pompano, whiting, croaker, bluefish, blue runners, and snook have all made an appearance the last couple of days along our beaches - and things look great for this action to continue. The southeast winds that hampered the ability to fish the surf in the early part of the week have backed off and current conditions are very fishable. I took a ride to Hobe Sound yesterday morning and took advantage of the early morning Pompano bite that began on Wednesday. I managed to put four nice pompano in the cooler before things shut down around 9:00 am. The bluefish are still biting at Bridge Road beach in Hobe Sound, so that action went on all day for the folks using cut mullet. Talking to a couple of fisherman that were on the Tiger Shores and Santa Lucea beaches, it seems the pompano did the same thing at those spots and shut down at around 10:00 am. The best fishing of the week was the whiting, croaker ,bluefish, blue runner, and snook bite that is occurring at a number of spots on Hutchinson Island. This activity is centered around the high tide mark (one hour before to two hours after) and are found tight to the beach in the first trough. I was on Tiger Shores yesterday afternoon fishing for pompano with the long rods and watched the fishermen targeting the whiting and croaker fill their coolers from 3 - 5 pm. Chuck Frith from Jensen Beach fished with me and caught a nice share of whiting, croaker, bluefish, and blue runners on almost every cast. 

The bait of choice was cut shrimp and Fishbites. Another angler just north of us was enjoying the same action and caught and released a 22-inch snook on a piece of shrimp. I spoke with an angler who fished at Santa Lucea yesterday afternoon and the report there was excellent also. The springtime surf bite is on - so get out and bend a rod as soon as you have the opportunity. As the snook numbers increase along the beach, I would rig an extra rod and swim a live croaker along the edge. If there is a snook in the area, it will find that live croaker. 

From The Crew @ Whites Tackle - Ft Pierce / Stuart

The Inshore bite was good in Vero with many over slot Snook cruising the flats. These fish will eat an artificial lure but the best bet is live pilchards. The west side of the river south of midway has been productive lately as well, Snook from 27″-36″ have been common with a few Gator Trout in the mix. Topwater in the morning will get the bite then switching to a Shad tail or Shrimp lure as things heat up. There has been some Tarpon on the beach and in the crossroads in Stuart, live Pilchards and Mullet will work but patience is key.

From Todd /Trey/ Paul and Ryan @ Juno Bait -Juno Beach

INSHORE:  Snook fishing continues to improve as the fish start to move towards the inlets.  The bridges at night are best, and flair hawk jigs and big swimsuits are the way to go.  The outgoing tides have been best, but certain areas are also producing well on incoming tide.  The snook are also showing up in Jupiter Inlet in fair numbers already.  The mangrove snapper are starting to bite a little bit inshore.  The key to the mangrove snapper is finding areas that have small live pilchards around.  Find the pilchards and the snapper can't be too far behind.  The small resident tarpon have been very active up the Loxahatchee River lately, especially early in the morning.  

SURF/PIER:  Pompano fishing continues to stay pretty good, especially north of Jupiter Inlet.  Sandfleas, clams, and fishbites are the bait of choice for the pompano.  Early morning and late afternoon will be the best time to try and track down a few pompano.  Snook fishing at the Juno Beach Pier has been very good as of late.  Dead crushed sardines fished on the bottom has been the ticket for the most snook bites.  Live shrimp has also proved effective when the dead sardines aren't getting the bites.  Some big schools of jack coming through, as well as some tarpon at the pier.  Spanish mackerel schools have also been in and out at the pier.  Overall the fishing has been pretty productive.  

From The Crew @ Whites Tackle - Ft Pierce / Stuart

The inshore fishing south of the power plant has been great with many Redfish, Snook, Trout and triple tail being caught. The pilchards have been thick up by Herman’s bay and they have been the bait of choice. There have been big schools of Mullet north of Queens cove with big schools of Jacks coming through providing a fun fight. There have also been some Tarpon on the 10 cent bridge the past few nights, Pilchards on the top will do the trick.                

Sebastian Inlet Report

                                  

05-05-17 FRIDAY: TGIF!

This morning winds are blowing out of the South at 14 mph, gusting to 19 and there is a moderate chop on the water. NOAA has a small craft advisory for winds through tomorrow afternoon; we could see gale force winds offshore tonight. By Sunday, conditions are predicted to settle down and our boaters may have a chance to get out and do some fishing. Always check the NOAA forecast prior to boating. 

Our first photo features Noureddine Marouani with a 30" slot Snook he landed. He arrived around 6:00 a.m. and at 7:00 a nice school of Snook started feeding on large schools of mullet. He was fishing the incoming tide and using mojarra for bait and he said there were big, dark spots of bait all over the inlet. He also landed and released two undersized Snook that morning. 
   We received an update from Shaun Vasey of Palm Bay. Shaun reported that even though the bite has been a little slower than usual for this time of year, Snook are hitting in the early morning hours. The 31" slot Snook in photo two was landed on a swim bait from the ocean side of the north jetty the other day. Shaun was able to get out again this morning and landed a perfect 32" Snook, this one was landed on a bucktail. Shaun reports that the Snook have been hungry before the storms hit. 

Scouting Around Jupiter Jetty

                                         
There has been some "BIG" pods of mullet around Jupiter Inlet this last week, and where's there's bait there are the bait followers 

           

From The Crew @ Whites Tackle - Ft Pierce / Stuart

Inshore the snook fishing has been good  around the islands and dock lights with live bait at night. The trout fishing has been good with a few nice fish around midway road to the south with top water and soft baits.  

Beach Fishing With Paul Sperco Palm Beach/Martin County Area

The east winds are subsiding and conditions look fishable for the remainder of the week along our local beaches. There should be some pompano swimming the second trough, but don't waste too much time if you are looking to catch a few in the upcoming days. Their northern migration is on and most likely by mid-month this fishery will become very spotty. The good news is those of us who enjoy catching snook in the first trough should see them in greater numbers every day, as they will be searching out the abundance of small whiting and croaker that populate the shoreline at this time of year. Live-lining a small croaker on a 3/0 circle hook will provide some great strikes. For those of you that like to catch your snook on artificials, a Yo Zuri crystal minnow or the new Live Target soft swim bait will be deadly early in the morning and late in the afternoon. Make your casts in a north/south direction as the snook will be tight to the shoreline in the first trough. Whiting, croaker, jacks, ladyfish, and blue runners will be available all day by fishing Fishbites, cut shrimp, and clam strips on a bottom rig. 

This is a transitional month into the early summer species and techniques. I will be doing a Early Summer Surf Fishing seminar on May 20th at 2:30 pm at Bass Pro Shops in Port St Lucie. I will be discussing, species, baits, techniques, tackle, locations, and even a few recipes to use on some of these tasty fish that will be available. The admission is free and the location will be in front of the aquarium.

Sebastian Inlet Report

                                      
05-02-17 TUESDAY: FISHING IS A LITTLE SLOW 

Winds have calmed down and are blowing out of the South at 3 mph, gusting to 8 and there is a light chop on the water. Winds will shift to the Northeast this afternoon bringing a chance of showers and scattered thunderstorms. There are no NOAA advisories this morning. Always check the NOAA forecast prior to boating as conditions can change quickly. 

The bite has been on the slow side. Not a lot activity from either jetty but the Indian River is holding some real nice Trout, Snook, Reds and Jacks. Today would be a good day to get out and try a little surf fishing. Get out and enjoy the beautiful weather!

Our photo today features Lamont Willis with a beautiful Sheepshead he landed off the north catwalk. 

How To with Big Dave's land based lessons. How to get tight!

                                   

Cubera snapper; what I've learned so far.

The cubera snapper is a fish surrounded by mystique. It is best known as an offshore reef fish capable of reaching monstrous size, over 100 plus lbs in some instances. Inshore, however, the fish are quite rare, often appearing solely as a by catch while snook fishing near inlets. These fish spawn offshore from July to September at night under a full moon, which is when offshore anglers target large fish with baits like live lobster, yellowtail snapper, grunts or blue runners. After the spawn, the fish disperse to parts somewhat unknown. The juvenile fish somehow find they're way to estuaries and brackish water creeks and river mouth's.
I still have a great deal to learn about the precise age and growth of these fish but I've observed a few things about their feeding habits. It would seem that the young fish are almost exclusively predators. Though occasionally they can be caught on shrimp it's most often anglers using small pinfish, mojara or mullet that run into the odd cubera. This rule generally applies to fish under about 10 lbs. Bigger fish definitely show a shift in diet. Those 15-20 lb fish seem to prefer larger mullet to roughly 8 inches, live grunts or, my favorite, fresh cut ladyfish.
In terms of precisely where to target cubera snapper, I've found that they can pop up anywhere at times though they do show a preference for deeper inlets and larger bridges with good depth and strong tides. A lack of heavy urban development and solution definitely helps. Also, I've noticed that any inlet that has a river or river's near by seems to produce more fish. I believe this is because the river is where the fish start their lives. Having a deep water inlet nearby is like having a conveyor belt carrying food to the young fish. It's in areas like these that numbers of cubera snapper sometimes take up residence. This offers patient and observant anglers a great opportunity to make these powerful fish more than just an incidental catch.
I'll get into how I like to target these amazing fish in a future post, until then, tight lines!

From Capt. Charlie @ Fishing Center - Ft Pierce

Finally, the windy months of March and April are almost behind us and we can look forward to the great fishing weather that May has to offer us on the Treasure Coast.  Other than the usual windy days, it has been a pretty mild winter and spring has arrived. Look for warmer temperatures and little less blustery days. As the water temperatures climb, the fishing will steadily improve on the river.   The water is already in the mid 70’s and that means the fish will be hungry.  It will provide fantastic mornings for top water and lazy afternoons to drift the flats.   May is one of my favorite months on the water!
  Redfish will be our main target throughout the month of May.  The past several years have bought us schools of slot sized redfish along the Indian River.   Most of the fish we have caught have been in the 18 to 30 inch range. The mangroves have produced lots of redfish action again this year.  They have been sunning on the flats and May gets their blood pumping and turns on the feeding.  I always have three lures ready during May…DOA shrimp, CAL jerk baits and top water lures.  Gold spoons and the DOA 2 ¾” shrimp will also be great additions to the arsenal when fishing for redfish.  As the fish school up, look for them around the edges of the flats.   Most of the river here on the Treasure Coast has been holding redfish and you should be able to find some on your favorite flats.   I tend to enjoy the east side of the river, but we have found many on the west side as well.
  Snook fishing in the early mornings will bring some rod bending action as they head up on the flats for an early morning or late evening meal.  Top water lures (like the new DOA PT-7), Baitbusters and DOA shrimp are all great lures to tempt a snook into biting.   We have been broken off numerous times by big snook under the mangroves.  Docks will also hold snook lurking around for an easy meal. Live shrimp is hard to beat around the docks.  In the inlet areas, try around the seawalls and bridges with live bait, Terror Eyz, feather jigs or deep diving plugs.  I love early morning for great snook fishing opportunities!  Snook season will close May 31^st.                       
          
Trout will continue to feed on top water at first light and live shrimp on popping corks during the day.   As the sun rises, they will head off the shallows to deeper water in the two to four foot range.  We have had some nice gator trout of late and should see some still big trout throughout the month of May.  I have had great success with CAL jerk baits and Deadly Combos this year in place of live shrimp.  If you are using live baits, try big shrimp or pilchards on the flats.  Both sides of the river have been productive in early mornings.  Winter fishing for trout has been good this year and spring should continue to give you some great action.

Bridges will hold the usual sheepshead catch, while snapper will be moving into the river along with flounder.   Jacks and ladyfish will be patrolling the areas and creating havoc all over the river.   Beaches will produce whiting with still a few catches of Spanish mackerel and bluefish along with the usual whiting.  Tarpon will begin their trek into the river and you can start looking for them in the St Lucie River, Big and Little Mud areas and the channels of the river.   May is a great month to fish the Treasure Coast….plan on a trip out on the river soon!

Sebastian Inlet Report

                                                
05-01-17 MONDAY: BLUES, WHITING, JACKS, SNOOK, REDS AND SNAPPER 

Winds are blowing out of the East-Southeast at 19 mph, gusting to 23 and there is a moderate chop on the water. NOAA is calling for small craft to exercise caution through this evening. We have a chance of showers this afternoon. 

We had a wild, windy weekend and today we have more of the same. Fishing has been hit or miss for those windproof, patient anglers. Tommy Turowski at the Sebastian Inlet Bait and Tackle Shop reported a slower bite over the weekend. A few Mangrove Snapper have started to show up. Jacks, Reds and Snook and Trout are hitting in the river and a few Pompano, Whiting and Blues are being landed in the surf.

Beach Fishing With Paul Sperco Palm Beach/Martin County Area

Today was a perfect example of how we have a great range of species available to catch along our local beaches. Our area of the Treasure Coast has a long list of beach accesses with free parking and beautifully maintained areas available for everyone to enjoy. Middle Cove was the spot that I returned to today and the catch list included pompano, whiting, croaker, blue runners, bonefish and a 20-pound permit!! You would be hard pressed to find another area of the state that has such a variety of species to catch in three hours of fishing. The beauty of surf fishing is that everyone can do it. A bag of Fishbites, a couple of rods and some tackle, a beach umbrella, a cooler, and you are in business. The pompano, whiting, and croaker all favored the clam strips today and the bonefish and big permit both hit on the Fishbites. The permit provided a 20-minute battle on a Penn Spinfisher 7500 longcast reel and a 12-foot Penn Prevail rod. I want to thank my friend Ron Robinson from Stuart, who assisted me in landing this fish. Ron is an excellent fisherman in his own right, and he actually went into the surf and grabbed the big permit by the tail and pulled it up onto the beach. You can fight a bigger fish like this on light tackle in the surf (the line test was only 15 pounds) because there aren't any obstructions for the fish to get caught up on. The fact that small hooks can catch big fish was proved today, as the permit hit a pompano rig with a number 1 circle hook. I have always said that Fishbites can catch anything - and today that statement proved more than accurate. The late spring surf fishing continues to roll along for those wanting to bend a rod and have some fun so good luck this weekend and catch em up.