Florida fishing reports
793 reports for Florida — what's biting, water temps, and where to focus.
Keys heat finally breaking as fall trips open up
Key West water is holding at 85°F, and ALL IN Key West says the summer heat is finally letting up as it returns to the water after taking September off for boat upgrades. The charter's latest post calls this a good time to book fall trips, but it doesn't name a species that's biting, so this week's read is about conditions rather than a confirmed bite. The Key West tide station reads 84.6°F, which agrees with the 85°F figure.
Mullet run is bringing oversize redfish to the beach in early October
Water at the Pensacola NOAA CO-OPS station (8729840) read 81.5°F in its latest observation, and Panama City (8729108) ran warmer at 82.6°F, so Panhandle water is still holding summer heat. The sharpest redfish signal this week comes from Coastal Angler Magazine, which logged a redfish caught at Vilano Beach, where a mullet run brought a bunch of oversize bulls to the beach. That report is from the Atlantic side rather than the Gulf, but the pattern it describes, redfish following mullet onto the sand, is the one to watch. Salt Strong (articles) adds that redfish hit a dark Black Ice soft plastic hard on inshore water.
Redfish respond to dark plugs as warm Gulf water holds the bite
NOAA CO-OPS station 8725520 reads 86.7°F and station 8727520 reads 83.7°F, so Gulf water is still holding summer heat. Redfish carry the most specific angler intel this week. Salt Strong's lure-color testing reports redfish "absolutely crush it" on Black Ice, a dark color its testers found beat the bright colors most anglers reach for first. A Coastal Angler Magazine post features a snook caught in Naples, and another shows a redfish caught at Vilano Beach. The three-degree gap between the two stations is a reminder that water temperature changes from one stretch of coastline to the next, so read the station closest to your water.
Redfish and snook stay active as warm Panhandle water holds
Water at the Pensacola tide station reads 82°F, with Panama City at 82.4°F and Apalachicola at 81.1°F, so all three Panhandle stations are still running warm. Coastal Angler Magazine recently posted reader catches of a 28-inch redfish from Pine Island Sound and a snook from Naples. Both are southwest Florida reports, so read them as evidence of how these two species are behaving this fall, not as Panhandle catches. Redfish and snook are the only species the intel names for this region, and both are reported Active. Tides are the most useful planning tool today: the next predicted low is at Pensacola at 7:06 PM ET, Panama City at 5:32 PM ET and Apalachicola at 7:50 PM ET.
Snook and tarpon chasing fall mullet schools around Stuart
Water at NOAA station 8722670 reads 85.6°F, and the fall mullet run is pulling fish inshore around Stuart. Snook Nook's October report says snook, tarpon, jacks and sharks are all feeding on the schools of bait, and the anglers staying productive were fishing early in the morning and in the evening. The full moon and higher king tides made the close of September harder, but the shop expects the bite to keep picking back up.
Panhandle water stays summer-warm as tides set the early October pace
The Pensacola station (NOAA CO-OPS station 8729840) read 82°F at 7:12 a.m. Eastern, with the water sitting near an 8:02 a.m. high. Coastal Angler Magazine posted a redfish from Pine Island Sound and a snook from Naples this week, both on the southwest coast and a long run from this shoreline. Most of the other posts in today's intel come from other coasts, so the tide is the most reliable tool for planning on Panhandle water, and today's tide gives a clear schedule to build around.
Snook and tarpon chasing the fall mullet run inshore
Water is reading 86°F at NOAA CO-OPS station 8722670, and Snook Nook (FL) reports that the fall mullet run has put snook, tarpon, jacks and sharks onto bait schools around Stuart over the past few weeks. Their October report says the full moon and higher king tides made the end of September harder, but anglers fishing early morning and evening stayed productive.
Snook and redfish active inshore around docks, bridges and flats
NOAA CO-OPS station 8726520 reads 83.8°F, and the inshore bite is active. CB's Saltwater Outfitters (Sarasota) reports snook, redfish, spotted seatrout and mangrove snapper all biting in Sarasota Bay, and Capt. Kelly Kurtz found snook and redfish on his recent trips out of Siesta Key. Capt. Rick Grassett's October forecast for the shop has snook moving off the passes and along the beach toward inside water, where they're staging around docks and bridges in the ICW and on shallow flats. He recommends live shrimp around docks and bridges, and he favors smaller lures and flies. A reader on Coastal Angler Magazine also logged a 28-inch redfish in Pine Island Sound. Tarpon are the exception. Grassett's September outlook had migratory fish thinning out of the coastal Gulf, and the October outlook doesn't name them.
Keys charter back on the water as the summer heat finally breaks
Water at NOAA's Key West station (8724580) read 82.9°F on the latest pull, still summer-warm for the Keys. ALL IN Key West says the weather is finally starting to break after a September break, and the captain is taking fall and winter bookings again, which is the clearest on-water signal in this week's intel. Their summer reports, from June and July, were the strongest bite reports in the intel, but they predate this week.
Warm Gulf water keeps Panhandle inshore fish in summer mode
Water is still summer-warm on the Panhandle. NOAA CO-OPS station 8729840 at Pensacola read 83.5°F in this morning's observation, with Panama City (8729108) at 83.8°F and Apalachicola (8728690) at 82.4°F. That heat is the first thing to plan around: it keeps inshore water in a summer pattern even though the calendar says October. The angler intel this week mostly comes from outside the Panhandle. Coastal Angler Magazine posts show redfish caught in Pine Island Sound and a snook caught in Naples, both on Florida's southwest coast. Treat them as a sign that warm-water inshore fish are still active across the state, not as a Panhandle bite report. Our readings, not the anecdotes, are what to trust for Pensacola and Panama City this week.
Fall transition window opens on Florida's freshwater flagships
Per Tactical Bassin's October topwater video, the fall bite is on and predators are chasing baitfish near the surface. That is a national read, not a Florida one, but it is the pattern to watch as the seasons turn here. Florida's freshwater fall shift typically runs later than in northern lakes, so expect the transition to build through October rather than arrive all at once.
Redfish and Snook Hold Steady as Gulf Coast Nears Fall Transition
Water temperatures along Florida's Gulf Coast are still holding in the low 80s as October opens. NOAA CO-OPS station 8725520 logged 82.6°F and station 8727520 read 83.3°F this evening, both typical for a slow transition out of summer heat. High tide at station 8727520 is due at 7:48 PM ET tonight, putting the evening push right around dusk. Reader catches logged with Coastal Angler Magazine this week show the inshore bite holding: a 28-inch redfish came out of Pine Island Sound and a snook was landed in Naples waters, solid signs that the shallow-water bite stays active as peak summer heat eases.