UTERJanuary
Sheepshead on the jetties and docks; winter red schools in the creeks
Fiddlers on the Mayport jetties and every dock for sheepshead; clear-water red schools in the creeks at low tide; trout deep in the river bends.
Daytona to Fernandina
The First Coast fishing
What's biting in The First Coast in October: pompano, king mackerel and Spanish mackerel at their peak, with whiting, bluefish and tarpon around too. Fish Scouter's season calendar follows 30 fish here month by month, from Daytona Beach to Fernandina Beach.
Fall peak: reds, trout and flounder everywhere; the Flounder Pounder
Spartina marsh, oyster-lined creeks and the Intracoastal from Ponce Inlet to the Georgia line, the St. Johns River and the Mayport jetties, St. Augustine and Matanzas inlets, and the beaches. More like Georgia's lowcountry than the rest of Florida.
Daytona BeachSt. AugustineJacksonvilleMayportFernandina Beach
Updated
Now · October
Fall peak: reds, trout and flounder everywhere; the Flounder Pounder
Reds and trout in every creek on the falling tide as the water cools; the flounder run through the inlets and creek mouths; kings return nearshore.
RedfishSpotted seatroutFlounderBlack drumKing mackerelSheepshead
This month here
From the season calendar, best firstPeakPeakPeakSpawningPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakPeakArrivingArrivingLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingLeavingAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAroundAround
Pompano
Peak fall run — fish moving south down the beach.
King mackerel
The last of them on the reefs before they head south.
Spanish mackerel
Fall run south.
Redfish
Spawning bulls at the jetties; slot fish in every creek on the falling tide.
Spotted seatrout
In every creek on the falling tide.
Flounder
Fall peak — the run through the inlets and creek mouths starts.
Gag grouper
Fall fish on the nearshore ledges.
Jack crevalle
Wahoo
Fall wahoo on the ledges.
Blackfin tuna
Little tunny (bonito)
Whiting
Bluefish
Tarpon
Leaving with the mullet — the first northeaster ends it.
Cobia
Leaving south.
Striped mullet
Blacktip shark
Bull shark
Atlantic sharpnose shark
Sheepshead
Mangrove snapper
Black drum
Weakfish (gray trout)
Red snapper
Vermilion snapper
Black sea bass
The water
The tide here
Semidiurnal, 4–6 ft
The biggest tides in Florida — five to six feet at the St. Johns and Nassau. The marsh floods and drains completely: fish the creek mouths on the fall, the flooded grass on the top, the jetties on the change.
Snook
Slot 28–32" · open Feb 1 – May 31 and Sep 1 – Dec 14
One per person with a snook permit. Northeast region rules — snook are rare this far north; the calendar here is reds, trout, flounder and sheepshead. Check MyFWC for the rule of the day.
Structure that matters
Channel edgePass / inletDock / pilingsBridgeGrass flatBeach / surfArtificial reefWreckOther
After a cold front
The coldest water on the east coast; fish hold in the deep creek bends, the river and the ICW channels, and the jetty rocks. Winter reds school in the clear low-water creeks — some of the best sight fishing in the state.
Month by month
What's happening, and what to throwFebruary
Sheepshead spawn on the jetties and reefs; drum on the bridges
The biggest sheepshead of the year on the jetty rocks and nearshore reefs; black drum on the river bridges with crab.
March
The kings start; trout and reds spread through the marsh
Last of the sheepshead; the spring kingfish run starts late month on the nearshore reefs; trout and reds move out onto the marsh edges.
April
The spring king run peaks; trout on the grass; reds in the creeks
Kings on the nearshore reefs and off the jetties; cobia on the buoys; trout on the flooded grass at high water; whiting in the surf.
May
Kings, cobia and tarpon off the jetties; reds and trout in the marsh
Big kings and cobia on the reefs and the Mayport jetties; the first tarpon at the river mouth; reds and trout on the creek mouths on the outgoing.
June
Tarpon at the jetties; reds in the flooded grass; flounder on the drops
The Mayport tarpon fishery — pogies at the jetties and along the beach. Reds up in the spartina on the top of the tide, flounder on the creek drops.
July
Summer: jetty tarpon and bull reds, marsh reds on the high water
Tarpon and bull reds at the jetties on live pogies; marsh reds in the grass on the flood; trout early on the ICW points.
August
Bull reds stack in the river; tarpon on the beach
Big bull reds in the St. Johns and off the jetties as the spawn approaches; tarpon on the beach bait pods; flounder on the drops.
September
Bull red spawn in the river mouth; the mullet run begins
The best bull redfish of the year at the Mayport jetties and the river mouth; mullet start down the beach with jacks and tarpon behind them.
October · now
Fall peak: reds, trout and flounder everywhere; the Flounder Pounder
Reds and trout in every creek on the falling tide as the water cools; the flounder run through the inlets and creek mouths; kings return nearshore.
November
Flounder run peaks; trout in the creeks; sheepshead return to the pilings
Flounder on the outgoing at the inlets and creek mouths; trout stacked in the deeper creek bends; sheepshead back on the docks and jetties.
December
Winter pattern: sheepshead, clear-water reds, deep trout
Jetties and docks for sheepshead; low-water creek reds on sunny days; trout in the deep river and ICW bends.
Fish guides for The First Coast
When, where and what to use, fish by fishBlack drumBlack sea bassBluefishCobiaFlounderGag grouperJack crevalleKing mackerelMahi-mahi (dolphin)Mangrove snapperPompanoRed snapperRedfishSheepsheadSnookSpanish mackerelSpotted seatroutStriped mulletTarponTripletailWahooWeakfish (gray trout)Whiting
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