August is a great month to fish Sebastian to Melbourne barring any hurricanes. If we do get a hurricane, the days before can be off the charts. Bait pods will line the beaches and the mullet run should start late in the month if it is early. The bait will bring tarpon, jacks, sharks, kingfish, cobia and a number of other species up in the surf all along the space coast beaches and should fire up the trout, reds and snook inshore and in the creeks. I have even been able to catch sailfish and dolphin a few hundred yards from shore!
The grass is coming back pretty good on the flats from Sebastian through Melbourne and they should have quite a bit of mullet and other baits schooled up. Early morning topwater should provide you plenty of action, I prefer the Rapala X-Rap Pop or Skitterwalk fished slowly around the bait pods and along the mangrove shorelines that the mullet are running along. As the sun comes up, I like to fish the potholes for big trout with the Mirrolure Lil Jon or a DOA shrimp. Anglers that are willing to either leave the boat at home or get out of the boat and wade will have a lot of success.
The Sebastian River, Turkey Creek, Crane Creek and the Eau Gallie River by Ballard Park will provide plenty of action and can be excellent if the bait gets thick. Fish live finger mullet or your favorite topwater lure for a lot of action around the docks and oyster bars or along the mangrove shorelines.
The big reds and snook will be eating well in Sebastian Inlet during the day and night. Best baits are live pinfish, pigfish mullet and croakers rigged on a 50lb leader and a VMC circle hook on a knocker rig.
Anglers can drift the inlet as well as anchor up on the tip of the north and south jetty’s during the outgoing tide. Anglers from the jetty can get in on the action day or night. Live bait is the preference during the day but at night Rapala XRap 14 Hogy jigging eels or bucktail jigs will work well.
As the weather stays extremely hot through August, inshore fishermen should get out on the water early in the morning or late in the evening for more success. The bite will pick up in the evenings as the sun sets but you will have a much shorter window than in the morning.