Learn more about where to fish the North of Tampa Bay Coastal area of Florida.
Dunedin, FL
Dunedin is a coastal city located just north of Clearwater, Florida. It is known for its beautiful beaches, parks, downtown area and more. It is home to Honeymoon Island State Park and Caladesi Island State Park. These parks are very popular for their white sand beaches, beautiful waters, good fishing and more. The inshore waters are very popular among boaters and fishing charters in this area. Anglers have lots of options with some shallow water, some deeper water and a lot of in between. Fish bridges, islands, mangroves, passes and more in the Dunedin area.
Palm Harbor, FL
Palm Harbor is a quiet coastal town that is known for its golf, parks, beautiful waters, nice restaurants and small town charm. People can access Honeymoon Island State Park from the Dunedin Causeway. The inshore waters in this area are popular for boating and fishing. Anglers fish islands, bays, passes, the Dunedin causeway and more.
Tarpon Springs, FL
Tarpon Springs is a popular city for this part of Florida. Many people know of this area for the Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks, the Anclote Key State Park and it is also the shortest distance to the famous fishing grounds called the Middle Grounds. It is still about a 75 mile boat ride, so it isn’t close, but it’s closer than the other areas people launch from on the Gulf Coast. Inshore, anglers have a lot of protected water to fish so you should be able to find a place to fish even on windy days.
New Port Richey / Port Richey, FL
New Port Richey and Port Richey combine for around 20,000 total people. If you’re looking from south to north, this town is where the barrier islands stop, so you don’t have the protected inshore waters that you do just south of here in Dunedin, Florida. There are some bays, backcountry waters and canals to fish for the inshore crowd, however, this is where you start to see the large stretch of shallower water flats that will extend all the way north through the towns that are listed below.
Hudson, FL
Hudson is a bigger community for the North of Tampa Bay Coastal area. The population is around 13,000 people with many waterfront homes on the many canals in this area. Boating and fishing are very popular out of Hudson, Florida, however, there is a lot of shallow water in this area. There is a very large stretch of flats water then it slowly drops off into a little deeper water. To find water that is consistently 10 feet deep, you have to head out several miles.
Aripeka, FL
Aripeka is a small, unincorporated coastal community. There isn’t much here, but there is a fish camp store with a boat ramp. Anglers like to bring their kayaks and small boats to fish this area. You will find a lot of shallow water in this area.
Hernando Beach, FL
Hernando Beach is a smaller, coastal community that is known for its backcountry waters and very large flats area. People use the canals to access the Gulf of Mexico’s waters to boat, snorkel and fish. Many people pull their boats out onto the flats to swim, snorkel and just hang out. The fishing can be very good in the Hernando Beach area as well. Anglers fish inshore and offshore for a variety of saltwater species.
Weeki Wachee / Bayport / Pine Island
These are 3 smaller communities that have a few parks to give people access to the Gulf Waters. The inshore waters are people fishing with smaller boats and kayaks. There are some ramps available for larger boats too, so you can launch out of this area to start your fishing adventure, however, the shallow water extends into this area as well. The Weeki Wachee Springs State Park is a popular park for families to spend a half day or more.
