Know the Tides


Fish an Incoming Tide


The incoming tide is a good time to fish for barracuda.  The level of the water will dictate where the better bite is going to be.  If it is close to high tide, you have a lot more options for the shallow water spots that barracuda can get into.  If you’re fishing just as the low tide is over and the water is coming back in, you’re going to have better success fishing some of the deeper water spots inshore.  Either way, the bite will be on with the moving water.


Fish an Outgoing Tide


The outgoing tide is a good time to fish for barracuda.  Fishing closer to the high tide will give you some unique opportunities that you won’t have during the low tide though.  If you want to fish shallower, there will be some good areas that hold a lot of fish in when the waters are high, but as the water recedes, a lot of these fish will move out with it.  Find a mouth near the creeks or inlets and you may find a barracuda ambushing some bait fish leaving these areas.  The deeper water spots will hold plenty of barracuda too, but the outgoing tide will position them differently than the incoming tide.  The passes and bridges are great inshore spots to fish for barracuda on an outgoing tide as the tide pulls bait through these areas.


Fish a High Tide


The high tide is great for anglers that want to catch barracuda in some of the better shallow water spots inshore.  Barracuda are predators and will go where they need to go to find a meal, so the high tide gives them lots more options.  Make sure you have some moving water and the bite will be better.  The fishing can be very good on an incoming tide or outgoing tide, so if you want to fish some of the better shallow water spots, get out there and fish both parts of the high tide and you’ll have more success.


Fish a Low Tide


The low tide helps you eliminate a lot of the shallow water spots when looking for barracuda.  Whether fishing the incoming or outgoing tide, when you have lower water, some spots just won’t be worth fishing.  Find some of the better spots with deeper water that fish may move into during a low tide and you can usually find some barracuda swimming around as they look at ambush their prey.  Passes and bridges are good places to fish during a low tide.