Snook fishing in Charlotte Harbor

In Charlotte Harbor, snook peak April–November and are around year-round, spawning in May–August, according to Fish Scouter's month-by-month season calendar. April: Big spring fish on the beaches and in the passes.

1. JanuaryAroundUp the Peace, Myakka and Caloosahatchee and in the canals; the sun-facing shorelines warm first after a front.
2. FebruaryAroundSheepshead spawn; the flats reload on warm afternoons. Big sheepshead on the pass jetties and reefs. Sight-fish reds on the sunny afternoon flats as the water climbs.
3. MarchArrivingOut to the mangrove points as the water warms.
4. AprilPeakBig spring fish on the beaches and in the passes.
5. MaySpawningSpawning aggregations in the passes — Boca Grande, Captiva, Redfish, Blind Pass — and along the beaches. Check MyFWC for the closed season.
6. JuneSpawningBeach snook in the surf trough at dawn.
7. JulySpawningStill spawning in the passes.
8. AugustSpawningThe hottest water — structure and current. Bridges, docks and mangrove tunnels on the strongest tide; reds start forming schools on the flats; tripletail on the trap floats.
9. SeptemberPeakBack inside on the mullet.
10. OctoberPeakFall feed on the mangroves — check MyFWC for the season.
11. NovemberPeakHeading for the creeks and rivers.
12. DecemberAroundFirst fronts: fish the creeks, rivers and the afternoon shorelines. After each front, the creeks and rivers; between fronts, the flats on the afternoon incoming. Sheepshead on the docks and reefs.

Boca Grande Pass and the mangrove sounds behind it — Charlotte Harbor, Pine Island Sound, Matlacha, the Caloosahatchee, Estero Bay — miles of mangrove shoreline, oyster bars, sand holes in the grass, and long barrier-island beaches from Gasparilla to Sanibel.

Fish Scouter charts 601 mangrove shoreline, 137 dock / pilings, 30 beach / surf, 17 pass / inlet, 3 bridge spots in the Charlotte Harbor & the Islands map area — the kinds snook hold on.

• Pilchards (whitebait)Free-lined or under a cork, hooked through the nose on a #1 to 2/0 circle hook. The one bait that catches everything inshore.
• PinfishHooked through the back ahead of the dorsal on a 2/0 to 4/0 circle hook; the small ones free-lined, the big ones on a fish-finder rig.
• Finger mulletLip-hooked on a 2/0 to 4/0 circle hook and free-lined, or on a fish-finder rig in the surf. Cut mullet on the bottom for redfish and drum.
• Live shrimpUnder a popping cork or free-lined, hooked under the horn on a #1 to 2/0 circle hook; on a jig head for the bottom. The universal inshore bait.
• CroakersHooked through the back on a 2/0 to 3/0 circle hook, free-lined or on a Carolina rig — big trout and redfish can't leave them alone.

• Leader30–50 lb fluorocarbon
• Hook1/0–5/0
• Jig head1/4–1/2 oz
• Braid15–30 lb

Feeds in 68–90°F water, best at 74–86°F.

All about snook · Charlotte Harbor & the Islands, the whole year