Inshore Fishing

Spring

Action: Snook, redfish, sea trout, and mangrove snapper thrive in the passes, bays, and mangroves. Tarpon begin arriving late spring.

Slow: Early March cold fronts may slow the bite.

Tips: Live pilchards and shrimp for snook and reds, soft plastics for trout, and cut bait for snapper.

Action: Snook spawn near passes, tarpon feed along beaches and bridges, mangrove snapper bite well. Seatrout available in deeper grass flats.

Slow: Midday heat may push fish into deeper water or shade.

Tips: Early morning or night fishing for snook, live crabs for tarpon, small pilchards for snapper.

Action: Redfish school on flats, snook feed heavily before winter, and seatrout return to shallower areas. Mangrove snapper remain steady.

Slow: Tarpon taper off late fall.

Tips: Topwater plugs for redfish, live shrimp for trout, and pilchards for snook.

Action: Sheepshead peak around docks and bridges, trout school in deeper holes, and redfish feed on sunny flats during warm spells.

Slow: Snook become sluggish during prolonged cold snaps.

Tips: Fiddler crabs for sheepshead, soft plastics for trout, and cut shrimp for redfish.