Amelia Island has some awesome inshore fishing available. This area has tons of backwater to fish with the rivers and creeks. The inlets offer some very good fishing also during the tidal changes. Some of the popular fish to catch inshore are redfish, sea trout, sheepshead, flounder and tarpon. However, there are so many more fish that you can catch here.
Fish the Inlets
St. Mary’s Inlet and the Nassau Inlet provide some of the best fishing you can find in this area. You get a chance to catch so many different species of fish in the inlets. Redfish, flounder, black drum, sea trout and sheepshead can be found here year round, however, the season will dictate how good the fishing is for the different species of fish.
There are other fish that will move into these inlets in larger numbers than you will find farther back in the backcountry waters. These may be the bull redfish when they move into the area as well as tarpon, king mackerel, whiting, bluefish and bigger black drum.
Fish the Bridges
This area doesn’t have a ton of bridges to fish, but the ones that are here can provide some outstanding fishing here. The George Crady Bridge is a pedestrian only bridge and it draws a lot of interest from shore anglers, but there is room to fish it from a boat too. Highway A1A is right next to the George Crady Bridge and so many species of fish move through this inlet during the tidal changes.
Fish the Backcountry Waters
The backcountry waters here provide some awesome shallow water fishing where you don’t have to worry about big waves or windy days ruining your fishing trip. The main species of fish that anglers target here are redfish, flounder, black drum, sea trout and sheepshead.
Popular Fish Caught Inshore
Below you can find some of the most popular fish that you can catch in the inshore waters of Amelia Island. There are also pictures and some fishing tips to help you catch more fish on your next visit here.
Black Drum
Black drum move into the inshore areas of Amelia Island in large numbers every spring. The river mouths and inlets usually provide good numbers of very large drum in the spring and then eventually, you can find good numbers of them back into the inshore waters throughout the area. The northeast part of Florida is known for having some of the biggest black drum in the state and the spring is usually when anglers catch the biggest fish. While early summer still provides some good fishing for them, the summer fishing usually slows down quite a bit, but then the fall fishing can be very good again.
Black Drum Fishing Tips
Spring and fall are popular times to target black drum because they head into the bays and inlets to spawn. They feed on the bottom and some of the best baits are clams and crabs.
Visit our Black Drum fishing page to learn more.
Flounder
Flounder are found inshore here year round. Whether you target them in the inlets, around the jetties, bridges or the backcountry waters, flounder are a pretty reliable fish to target in the waters around Amelia Island.
Flounder Fishing Tips
Flounder can be caught with artificial lures, however, for many anglers, live bait or natural baits are considered the norm when fishing for flounder. Flounder love hanging tight to the bottom, so pick out your favorite bottom rig and pair it with a bull minnow, finger mullet, pinfish or shrimp and you should catch some fish.
Visit our Flounder fishing page to learn more.
Jack Crevalle
Jack Crevalle are common in the inshore waters around Amelia Island. The warm weather months will push more fish into this area. They can be super exciting to catch when you find a school of them. Anglers target them with a variety of lures and baits, but topwater lures can be a lot of fun when they are feeding in the shallow inshore waters here.
Jack Crevalle Fishing Tips
Jack Crevalle are a very popular species for inshore anglers, although, they are commonly found offshore as well. These fish are extremely powerful and capable of making long runs, especially if you are using light tackle. Their average size ranges from 2 to 5 pounds, but in most areas fish up to 10 pounds are plentiful. Some people eat these fish, but most people would rate them as very poor-tasting.
Learn More About Jack Crevalle
Ladyfish are a popular fish to catch inshore here. Most anglers do not target them, but they can be a lot of fun to catch. They do work great as baits for many of the bigger fish in this area. Fish with the smaller ones alive and use the bigger ones to make cut bait. It is one of the better cut baits for many species of fish.
Ladyfish Fishing Tips
Ladyfish are cousins of the much larger tarpon. They have a long, slender body and are fairly small, averaging 2 to 3 pounds. They are fun to catch for young anglers, but for most adult anglers, ladyfish are used for bait. Ladyfish can easily be caught with a small hook, weight and live shrimp, small bait fish or cut bait.
Visit our Ladyfish fishing page to learn more.
Redfish
The Amelia Island area has some excellent fishing for redfish and you can catch them year round here. The backcountry waters provide so much opportunity for redfish anglers. Fish during the tidal changes and you’ll experience some very good fishing in the backcountry waters. The passes also provide very good fishing for redfish.
Redfish Fishing Tips
Anglers target redfish with a variety of artificial lures, live baits and natural baits. While you have so many options for targeting redfish, most anglers will keep it simple and use live shrimp, dead shrimp or lures that mimic a shrimp. You can target the smaller reds with medium heavy rods and reels, but if you are going after bigger redfish, you’re going to want to go with medium heavy to heavy action gear to help land some of these huge fish.
Visit our Redfish fishing page to learn more.
Saltwater Catfish
You will find plenty of catfish in the inshore areas and along the surf. They can be annoying if you don’t want to catch them or exciting to provide some action while other fish aren’t biting. There are 2 types of saltwater catfish that you may catch in the area.
Hardhead Catfish
Gafftopsail Catfish
Catfish Fishing Tips
Catching catfish is easy in saltwater. Once you find them, they will easily bite many different types of cut baits. Just get your bait on the bottom, wait for the bite and then set the hook.
Sea Trout
Sea trout are found in the area waters year round and they bite well through the winter too. This fish is fairly easy to catch and they can be found throughout the backcountry waters. Shallow grass flats or deeper water near the shallow grass flats are great spots to fish for them. You can also find trout in the inlets and around the bridges too. There is plenty of awesome inshore water here to fish for sea trout.
Sea Trout Fishing Tips
Sea trout give anglers lots of options because they can be very aggressive. At times, you can do just as well or even better with artificial lures. For the live bait anglers, you have a variety of live and natural baits that you can use to catch sea trout. Anglers can also get away with using lighter tackle as well since most of the better spots tend to be around shallow water grass flats.
Visit our Sea Trout fishing page to learn more.
Sharks
There are plenty of sharks in this area, especially during the summer with the warmer water temperatures. Anglers will catch sharks on the beaches and farther inshore too, but if you are coming here to target sharks, the better fishing will be nearshore and offshore out around the reefs and wrecks.
Learn More About Sharks on our Shark Fishing page.
Sheepshead
The sheepshead fishing is very good in this area. The inlets provide excellent fishing opportunities for sheepshead and you can catch them year round here. The jetties tend to consistently hold sheepshead in the inlet. You can also find plenty of sheepshead inshore around docks, pilings and bridges. The fishing is very good for sheepshead during the winter months.
Sheepshead Fishing Tips
Sheepshead are one of the tougher saltwater fish to catch on artificial lures. It can be done, but using live or natural baits can out fish lures by 10 to 1 or more at times. It is easy to understand why most anglers just go with live bait and they don’t even mess with lures when fishing for sheepshead. Shrimp and fiddler crabs are the most popular baits, but don’t rule out a variety of cut baits, oysters and sand fleas. Sheepshead are known for stealing your bait and they also are a tough fish, so make sure you have a strong enough hook and a solid medium-heavy to heavy action fishing rod or you will lose a lot of fish.
Visit our Sheepshead fishing page to learn more.
Mangrove Snapper
Mangrove Snapper are a popular to fish to target in the inshore waters around Amelia Island.
Mangrove Snapper Fishing Tips
Mangrove Snapper are one of the most popular snapper to catch because large populations of juvenile fish can be caught inshore where most anglers fish. Offshore, you will find bigger mangrove snapper over the reefs and wrecks. Some of the best baits to use for mangrove snappers are live and dead shrimp, mud minnows, small pinfish, small finger mullet and small crabs.
Snook
Snook can be caught here in the inshore waters around Amelia Island, but they are here in very limited numbers compared to the southern part of Florida. However, if you’re looking to target snook, the summer months are the best time to find better numbers of them. There is some awesome inshore water here to fish for snook, so if you can find them, the fishing can be exciting.
Snook Fishing Tips
Most anglers prefer to use lures for snook, but live baits such as jumbo shrimp and pilchards are some of the best baits to use. At times, snook can be super tough to catch on lures, but a lively shrimp or pilchard will usually still get plenty of bites even when they are picky. If you fish for bass in freshwater, the type of tackle will be similar to largemouth bass fishing except you may have to upsize the rod, reel and line a bit.
Visit our Snook fishing page to learn more.
Tarpon
Tarpon migrate into this area when water temperatures warm up. The summer months are excellent months to fish for tarpon around Amelia Island. The fall mullet run is another really good time to fish for tarpon here as big tarpon follow the thousands of mullet down the Florida coastline. The inlets, bridges and backcountry waters are all good areas to search for tarpon.
Tarpon Fishing Tips
While many anglers may run into smaller tarpon and catch them without much effort, to consistently target bigger tarpon, you need to make sure you have the right tackle & equipment so things go your way. Tarpon will eat a variety of baits, so you have a lot of options when it comes to live & cut baits or artificial lures. The time of year is very important as well since tarpon will migrate a long way up and down both the Gulf & Atlantic Coasts each year.
Visit our Tarpon fishing page to learn more.
