By Amanda Moore, Loggerhead Marinelife Center, Contributing Writer
Just because summer is ending, it doesn’t mean your days by the ocean have to! Kick off fall by reeling in a good time at the Juno Beach Pier.
On September 1st, prepare your fishing pole and gear for snook season, which runs from September 1st through December 1st. You can now lure in these shiny snook with cut and live bait. Blue runners make for easy live bait, catch these small fish the same way you would catch jacks, using bait and lures. Spanish mackerels can be caught with lures and live bait such as sardines, mullet, and shrimp. Meanwhile, mangrove snappers prefer minnows, pilchards, or pinfish as bait. Croakers, whiting, and sand perch aren’t too picky about their food. They can all be caught with live or dead bait, including shrimp, crabs, cut squid, and cut fish.
As part of Loggerhead Marinelife Center’s Responsible Pier Initiative, the Juno Beach Pier practices sustainable fishing and recycling. The pier encourages anglers and spectators to dispose of used monofilament lines in the designated recycling containers and report any accidentally hooked sea turtles.
Loggerhead Marinelife Center offers private Fishing Lessons for adults and children (ages 8 and up). One-hour lessons are offered daily; scheduled based on availability. Cost: $25/angler (with own gear); $35/angler with rental gear. Bait not included. Email reservations@marinelife.org to register. The full-service Pier House features a snack bar as well as a variety of fishing tackle, including rental poles and bait.
Randy Yent, Pier Coordinator
Juno Beach Pier (561) 627-8280 x140
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