By Capt. David Lifka
mail@floridanewsline.com
If you fish, and have lived here for more than a few years, then you are probably getting excited. If you are new to our area and fish, or a recent transplant who wants to start fishing, then it’s time for you too to get excited. March has arrived, and it is officially spring for our part of the state. That means if you fish, or you are looking to get started, now is the best time of year.
Just like birds, many fish have begun their migrations northward to our area waters. Other species of fish are waking up from their winter dormant retreats of deeper, warmer water and are hungry and ready to spawn.
You don’t have to look far to get started fishing this time of year. The Mayport Jetties, the surf, the St. Johns River, the Intracoastal Waterway, and area creeks and streams are all coming alive as water spring progresses and water temperatures rise.
For freshwater, bass, bream, and catfish will be your main catches. For saltwater, drum, whiting, sheepshead, pompano, and bluefish are likely to make the early springtime scene. For our brackish area of the St. Johns River you can expect almost any species of freshwater fish along with a handful of saltwater species.
Freshwater fishing is a great way to get started, especially for kids. Equipment can be simple and inexpensive. Live worms, bread, or even hot dogs can be used for bait. No boat is needed, as any shore or bank to a nearby creek or pond will provide all the access needed. Same accesses would apply to the bass fisherman, with a plastic worm on a Carolina rig, or even better, a live shiner on a float.
If you’re ready to give saltwater fishing a try, then the beach is the perfect place to begin. Again, no boat is needed, and costs are minimal. An average size rod with a fish finder rig and dead shrimp for bait is all that is required. Springtime fishing in the surf is probably the best and easiest time of year for whiting and blues, with other species following close behind.
Boat owners are fortunate to have the ability to target varieties of species throughout the year. But still, the month of March and springtime also offer boaters fishing opportunities that don’t necessarily exist the rest year. Just off the beach, boaters can expect a Spanish mackerel run that will provide the best Spanish mackerel fishing for the year. Inshore starting at the jetties, sheepshead, black drum, and reds will be available with more black drum in the Intracoastal Waterway and throughout the lower St. Johns River.
Fishing Report: Largemouth bass are your top contenders on the freshwater scene. Fishing the surf is almost a sure thing for nice catches of whiting, blues, and pompano. Local bait shops should have all the information needed to get you started and even where to go.
Whether you catch one, none, or some, the family time spent fishing will last a lifetime.
