Fall mullet run fires up snook and tarpon bite
The fall mullet run is the story on the Atlantic side this week. Per Snook Nook (FL), the October report out of Stuart says the annual run has brought snook, tarpon, jacks and sharks feeding on schools of bait, and that the best action has come to anglers fishing early in the morning and in the evenings. The full moon and higher king tides made the end of the previous month tougher, but Snook Nook expects fishing to keep picking back up. Coastal Angler Magazine's October Martin County inshore and nearshore column points the same way, with a 31-inch snook caught on a live finger mullet by an early riser. Saltwater Sportsman notes the mullet migration typically runs from September well into November along the Atlantic Coast, so the bait is still moving. Water is warm for mid-October. CO-OPS station 8722670 reads 86°F and station 8720218 reads 79.2°F, a spread worth noting if you fish across a few miles of coast. Buoy 41009 shows wind around 6 m/s and buoy 41008 around 8 m/s, so expect a light to moderate breeze offshore. Snook is Hot, tied to the bait and the early and late windows. Tarpon is Active, feeding on the same mullet schools. Redfish is not covered in this week's intel and stays off the board.
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What's biting
What's next
With a New Moon today, tidal ranges settle after the king tides that made the end of September difficult, which should help anglers read moving water more cleanly. Station 8722670 shows its next low at 19:17 UTC, about 3:17 PM Eastern, and station 8720218 shows its next low at 19:41 UTC, about 3:41 PM Eastern. Falling water toward those lows pulls bait out of the creeks and inlets, so the hours leading into them are worth planning around if you fish midday. The dark moon also tends to push feeding toward dawn and dusk, which lines up with what Snook Nook says has been working.
If the mullet keep stacking up, expect the beaches and inlet mouths to hold more predators over the next few days, with snook and tarpon trailing the bait pods. Focus on the first and last light, work live or imitation mullet near structure and edges where schools get pinned, and keep an eye on birds for surface activity. Wind near buoy 41008 is a bit stronger than at 41009, so check the forecast before running the beach in a small boat.
Snook Nook also lists a December 12 customer appreciation tent sale in Stuart if you are restocking tackle before winter.
Context
Mid-October is squarely inside the fall mullet window on Florida's Atlantic Coast, and this season is on schedule. Snook Nook's September report said trends had run a bit later this year after a cooler winter, with larger mullet inshore and a few pods moving down the beaches before the finger mullet showed up. By October the run has clearly arrived. Typically this is when snook, tarpon and other predators fatten up ahead of cooler water, and the bite often stays strong through November as long as bait remains available. Water temperatures in the 79 to 86°F range, as the stations are reading now, are still warm enough to keep these fish active and feeding, and the first real cool fronts usually mark the point where the pattern starts to shift. Check state regulations before harvesting any species, since seasons and limits change.
Synthesized from real-time NOAA buoy data, USGS stream gauges, and current reports across regional fishing blogs, captain updates, and angler forums. Check local regulations before keeping fish. Never trust a single source for a trip decision.
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