May is the final month of snook season, and it’s the best opportunity for anglers to catch keeper snook as they school up near the inlet for the summer months. These snook can be caught pitching baitfish at the rock-piles at the inlet, or docks and sandy shorelines close to the inlet,
The live greenie baitfish can be caught casting sabiki rigs at the Sandpile, Bullshark Barge, and Gilbert’s Shoal. Pilchard baitfish can be found early morning near the causeways, or edges of the channels near Sandsprit Park and Sailfish Flats. At first light, look for “raindrops” on the surface and drift in super-stealth with your cast net ready.
Some tarpon are showing up early morning at the Crossroads and Inlet. May is a good time to look for juvenile tarpon (10-50 pounds) in the St. Lucie River near the Roosevelt Bridge and North Fork. We use spin rods rated for 8-15 pound test line with DOA TerrorEyz. For baitfish, we use live 5-8 inch mullet and pilchards.
As the sea conditions continue to get calmer, there’s some great oppurtunites for anglers with smaller center consols and bay boats. Some of these would be fishing the Loran Tower Ledge for snapper, amberjack, kingfish, and occasional dolphin. Chumming at the Peck’s Lake Reef can produce yellowtail and other snapper. There’s many wrecks within 5 miles of the inlet that can be worth trying for cobia, permit, mutton snapper, and more. The spring cobia bite is still happening at these wrecks as well so be on the lookout for the big rays cruising down the coast with cobia.
The waters back in the St. Lucie North & South Forks is looking clean with very little rainfall. There’s lots of small menhaden and some finger mullet hiding along the mangroves. Casting DOA CAL jigs and Giles Jigs can catch snook, trout, and redfish along the mangrove, docks, and oyster beds.