A Guide to Fishing for Snook at Night
If you like fishing, chances are that you might have gone fishing for snook. But have you ever tried fishing for snook at night? If not, you should give it a try. Below are some tips for night snook fishing.
When you’re fishing at night, you should still follow the principles for other kinds of night fishing. You should fish somewhere that there is light, since it stimulates plankton growth. This attracts baitfish and small critters, drawing snook to the area.
These areas can’t be accessed during the day because of human activity such as swimming and boating. But when it’s night time, you’ll have no trouble finding them. It’s a good idea to ask locals where you can catch snook. In Florida, however, two good places are go are Port Richey and Cape Canaveral.
These are easy to find set out nearby the water in order to draw snook in. But any kind of light is going to attract snook and critters.
Another option that you can go to is bridges. There is a lot of action under the towering bridges if the bridge has light that’s striking it. If you’re new to fishing, a dock is very convenient, but bridges are also a good choice. Even though a lot of people think that this is wrong, but people have had a lot of success with fishing close to the populated cities since the fish are attracted by the lights.
Every experienced angler will say that patience is necessary. When you’re snook night fishing this is also true. A common mistake that people make is really quickly moving into the light, making noise so that the fish are scared away. Boat motors are going to scare the fish away, since snook are spooked easily.
You should be quiet. This way you’re going to be able to hear the noises that snook are making when they’re feeding. This generally will take place near the beam of a dock light but sometimes it happens outside of it, too, so kepe an eye out. After you’ve figured out where you want to fish, a jerkbait made of soft plastic is a good choice. Your lure should be Texas rigged so it’s not caught in pilings and ropes, and then cast it. Allow the lure to settle before you make any twitches.
There are some anglers who don’t like using lures that have more than one hook since it could get stuck. However, there are sometimes when you should use hard plastic jerkbait for luring your snook. You can cast past the light and keep in mind that you should reel your bait in slowly and steadily.
Underwater lights for fishing can be a big help. However, you still will need some quality tackle. Whether you’re fishing during the night or day, saltwater spinning or light baitcasting setups are good to use. For the majority of the time 30 pound braid will be enough along with a 20-60 pound fluorocarbon leader, based on the clarity of the water and the snook size you want to catch.
Whether you are fishing near structures, inshore or covers, snook usually is caught using pitching lures or baits. Remember they’re sensitive to tidal movements and they’ll be facing the current. If you’re able to see the snook under lights but they’re not coming to you even though you’re throwing a lot of bait, wait until the tide turns.
Having a light is good to start, but you’re also going to need some good lures for drawing their attention. Some people have had success with using top water plug and shrimp as bait. But there are a lot of good options. Things like pilchards, live sardines, shrimp and other types of critters are good choices. It’s best to use live bait that is found where you’re fishing, since snook will be looking for it.
If live bait is not something you want to use, a white or chartreuse paddle tail that has a jighead’s also something that you can use. The options you have will depend on your gear type and you also should bring something that can be used all night if you’re serious about fishing.
A snook is going to going to take a lot of different types of baits and lures, but the behavior is sometimes hard to predictable. They also can be stubborn. Even in well-lit areas the method you’re using today might not be something that will work another day, so patience is important.
If you want to catch snook 10 pounds or heavier, it’s a good idea to go fishing during spring or early summer evenings, since that is when they are going to be spawning. Look for some deep holes and use either live pinfish or plastic bucktail or tail jig. It’s also possible to use a needlefish or troll in the passes.
If the place that you’re fishing is a river mouth or a flat, you should begin during the falling tide’s last hour and continue for an hour or so until the tide’s rising. You’re able to use life shrimp during this time but gizzard shads are a lot better to choose. Even though they’re effective they’ll perish fast and when they are being transported you have to make sure they’re in aerated water. Freshwater shiners are also a good choice and you can find them in the majority of tackle and bait shops. But these also don’t survive a long time so be careful.
If you have never gone fishing for snook at night, you’re missing on a lot of fun so give it a try. You might have to take some time to get used to it because it’s a new environment. However, give it a couple of tries and you’re going to realize it’s a lot of fun and that you’re enjoying it as much as day fishing.
I have a lot of experience in the fishing industry, especially in Southwest Florida. To find out more about me, you can go to my website, or give me a call at 239-280-6246. I want to make your Florida fishing experience the best it can be, so don’t hesitate to call today!