[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he inshore fishing should be red hot during the early morning hours from daylight to about 9 a.m., and from 6 p.m. until dark. The trout should be taking top water baits like a Zara Spook, Chug Bug or a MirrOdine when fishing at places like Bear Point, Herman’s Bay, Round Island or Queen’s Cove. After about 9 a.m. you will need to switch to a live bait like a pilchard or a pigfish, free line it with a 4/0 hook, or you could use a live shrimp fished under a popping cork with a #2 live bait hook. Soft plastics like a D.O.A. Shrimp or a Bait Buster are also good choices. Try using a light color, like a pearl or a chartreuse, for redfish. The best place to be is around the mangroves on the full tide. Fish all live baits the same way. But, for redfish you can try a piece of cut up ladyfish or crabs with a small split shot and a 2/0 hook.
Look for some good catch and release snook action in the Fort Pierce Inlet. Try drifting the inlet with a live bait fished on a 5/0 live bait hook and the right amount of lead to hit the bottom, depending on the tide. Best time for a hookup is one hour before and until one after the tide changes.
The snapper bite should also be good along the channel edges both to the north and south in the Intracoastal. Fish a live shrimp or a mojarra on a #2 live bait hook, a 20-pound fluorocarbon leader and about a half-ounce or one-ounce weight.
There should be some good tarpon action at first light and just before dark around the Fort Pierce Inlet and down around Big Mud Creek. A live mullet fished on a 5/0 or a 6/0 hook and a 40- to 80-pound fluorocarbon leader will do just fine.
