UTERJanuary
Sheepshead and drum on the bridges; snook in the rivers; sailfish outside
Bridge and dock pilings for sheepshead, deep river bends for snook and reds, pompano in the surf on the calm days.
Boca Raton to Sebastian
The Treasure Coast fishing
What's biting in The Treasure Coast in October: tarpon, king mackerel and snook at their peak, with Spanish mackerel, whiting and sailfish around too. Fish Scouter's season calendar follows 35 fish here month by month, from Boca Raton to Sebastian.
Peak mullet run; reds and trout in the lagoon; flounder at the inlets
The inlets and the Intracoastal behind them, the southern Indian River Lagoon's grass flats and spoil islands, the St. Lucie and Loxahatchee rivers, the beaches, and a reef line that comes within a mile of the sand from Jupiter south.
Boca RatonJupiterStuartFort PierceVero BeachSebastian
Updated
Now · October
Peak mullet run; reds and trout in the lagoon; flounder at the inlets
Follow the mullet down the beach; reds and trout feed on the lagoon flats as the water cools; flounder stage on the inlet sand.
SnookRedfishTarponSpotted seatroutFlounderJack crevalleKing mackerel
This month here
From the season calendar, best firstPeakPeakPeakSpawningPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakArrivingArrivingArrivingLeavingAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAround
Tarpon
Peak mullet run — tarpon, snook and jacks on every beach and inlet. Follow the bait down the beach.
King mackerel
Snook
Mullet run peak: snook hanging below the bait, popping mullet off the bottom of the school.
Redfish
Spotted seatrout
Flounder
Jack crevalle
Ladyfish
Great barracuda
Striped mullet
Peak run — follow the nervous water down the beach; the bridges at night on the incoming.
Black grouper
Wahoo
Blackfin tuna
Bull shark
On the mullet run at the inlets.
Spanish mackerel
Whiting
Sailfish
Late-fall fish start sliding down the coast.
Goliath grouper
Dispersing.
Permit
Cobia
Sheepshead
Mangrove snapper
Black drum
Tripletail
Yellowtail snapper
Mutton snapper
Greater amberjack
Mahi-mahi (dolphin)
Swordfish
Little tunny (bonito)
Blacktip shark
Spinner shark
Lemon shark
The water
The tide here
Semidiurnal, 2–3.5 ft
Two tides a day through some of the hardest-running inlets in Florida — Jupiter, St. Lucie, Fort Pierce, Sebastian. The inlet tide is the clock for everything here.
Snook
Slot 28–32" · open Feb 1 – May 31 and Sep 1 – Dec 14
One per person with a snook permit. Southeast region rules; the Sebastian Inlet and Jupiter Inlet snook fisheries are famous for a reason. Check MyFWC for the rule of the day.
Structure that matters
Pass / inletChannel edgeBridgeDock / pilingsGrass flatBeach / surfArtificial reefWreckMangrove shoreline
After a cold front
Snook and reds pull into the rivers, the residential canals and the deep inlet holes; sheepshead and drum take over the bridges. The reef edge and the wrecks fish through winter.
Month by month
What's happening, and what to throwFebruary
Snook opens; pompano in the surf; kings and cobia nearshore
Snook harvest opens the 1st at the inlets and bridges; pompano run the beach; kings and cobia on the reef and wrecks.
March
The spring runs: pompano, Spanish, the first tarpon in the inlets
Spanish flood the inlets on the bait; pompano still on the beach; tarpon show at Jupiter and Sebastian on the night tides.
April
Snook and tarpon at the inlets; kings on the reef
Inlet snook on the outgoing, tarpon in the inlets and along the beach, kings on the reef edge. Trout on the lagoon flats at dawn.
May
Inlet snook peak before the closure; tarpon on the beaches
The big spring snook stack in the inlets — harvest closes the 31st. Tarpon along the beaches and in the inlets at dawn and dusk.
June
Beach snook at first light; snapper on the reef; lagoon trout early
Snook in the surf trough at dawn; snapper on the nearshore reef and the bridges; lagoon flats at first light only.
July
Summer: snook on the beach and inlets, snapper on structure
Dawn on the beach for snook, then the reef and bridges for snapper; the lagoon is a night fishery under the dock lights.
August
The mullet begin to gather; snook stack at the inlets
Snook on the inlet outgoing at night; the first mullet schools on the beach late in the month bring tarpon and jacks.
September
The mullet run — snook reopens, the beaches explode
Snook harvest reopens the 1st into the best beach fishing of the year: snook, tarpon, jacks and bluefish on the mullet along the surf and in the inlets.
October · now
Peak mullet run; reds and trout in the lagoon; flounder at the inlets
Follow the mullet down the beach; reds and trout feed on the lagoon flats as the water cools; flounder stage on the inlet sand.
November
Flounder run through the inlets; trout on the flats; pompano return
The Sebastian and Fort Pierce flounder run on the outgoing; trout thick on the lagoon grass; pompano back in the surf.
December
Snook closes mid-month; sheepshead, drum and pompano take over
Last snook harvest to the 14th; sheepshead and drum on the bridges, pompano on the beach, trout in the deeper lagoon holes.
Fish guides for The Treasure Coast
When, where and what to use, fish by fishBlack drumBlacktip sharkBluefishBull sharkCobiaFlounderGoliath grouperGreat barracudaGreater amberjackJack crevalleKing mackerelLemon sharkMahi-mahi (dolphin)Mangrove snapperMutton snapperPermitPompanoRedfishSailfishSheepsheadSnookSpanish mackerelSpinner sharkSpotted seatroutStriped mulletTarponTripletailWahooYellowtail snapper
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