Keys anglers find redfish and snook as summer heat eases

What's biting

What's next

Low tide arrives around 3:07 a.m. today with the next high near 9:58 a.m. (NOAA CO-OPS station 8724580), giving early risers a clean window to fish the bottom stages before sunrise and ride the incoming water into a mid-morning bite. The waning crescent moon this week means smaller tidal swings than around the full or new moon, so expect a steadier push rather than a dramatic one.

Saltwater Sportsman's coverage of the fall mullet run, which pushes down the Atlantic and Gulf coasts from September into November, lines up with this stretch of the calendar; as bait moves through the passes, inshore snook should key in harder on the moving schools. With ALL IN Key West already pivoting toward fall and winter charter bookings, this is a good window to plan an inshore trip around the early tide before the fall travel rush fills calendars.

Context

October in the Florida Keys sits at the hinge between summer and the traditional fall pattern: water temperatures in the mid-to-upper 80s are still squarely in summer territory, but the first cool fronts, as ALL IN Key West noted, typically mark the early edge of the season's shift toward the stronger winter bite the region is known for. Charter activity ramping back up after the slow late-summer stretch is typical for this point in the calendar, with fall patterns just beginning to take hold. This reads as a typical early-October transition week for the Keys rather than anything unusual.