On Friday, I went fishing with my friend Don. The plan was for me to pick up bait and ice, and then meet him at the dock by 6:30 am. However, upon arriving at The Fishing Center, I realized I had left my wallet at home. After making a quick trip back home to retrieve it, I found myself a few minutes behind schedule when I finally reached the dock.

Don, much like me, dislikes being late, so he had already arrived at the dock. Luckily, he saved our place in line to get our boat. By around 6:50 am, we had the boat loaded and were ready to head out.

Our first stop after leaving the inlet was Fort Pierce Inlet Buoy 2. I piloted the boat while Don dropped the sabiki rig in hopes of catching some bait for the live well. Although the sonar didn’t show much activity, it didn’t take long for Don to pull up a line full of threadfins.

Another member of the boat club had also arrived at the buoy around the same time, and on his second drop, he lost his rig to a toothy critter. Fortunately, we had better luck and managed to make about five successful drops before our rig was taken. At that point, I told Don we had enough bait and we set off to our first fishing spot.

Around 8:00 am, we arrived at our first spot, which was in relatively shallow water, about 50-60 feet deep. Although we were in shallow waters, this reef had proven to be productive for snapper in the past, so I thought it would be wise to give it a shot before venturing deeper. I began jigging with a 60g Nomad Gypsea jig in Fusilier color, while Don opted for bottom fishing with shrimp. Additionally, we set a threadfin on a freeline to see what we could attract.

Don got things started with a small mutton snapper! Between 8:15 am and around 9:15 am, Don’s bites were slow but consistent. While I had several bites, it wasn’t until 9:15 am that I finally landed my first fish, a short mutton snapper. A short while later, I hooked into something decent. After a brief struggle, the fish suddenly stopped fighting, and upon reeling it in, I realized why, it was just a partial bonita. Nonetheless, it had put up a good fight while it lasted.

During my next drop, I lost my jig to a strong bite. Seeing that the action had picked up, I swiftly switched to a squidtrex. However, I lost that jig on the first drop as well, prompting me to switch to a hook and sinker setup, as they are cheaper than the jigs. Around 10:00 am, I suggested to Don that we move to deeper waters in pursuit of larger snapper and possibly a grouper or two.

We made our way to waters ranging from 70 to 80 feet deep. Here, we drifted for a while. The bites were slow but steady. Just as I was contemplating a change in drift, we would land a fish, causing me to reconsider and continue drifting. Eventually, we started the drift over again, and it turned out to be as productive as the first round. We managed to catch a few keeper yellowtail snapper and several undersized red grouper. Despite finding a “grouper nursery,” we were disappointed not to encounter any legal-sized red grouper.

While scanning the area, I noticed the Reef Bandit, a head boat out of Fort Pierce, in the distance. They had been having success recently, prompting me to briefly consider heading over to their location. Ultimately, I decided to stick with our existing marks before considering throwing in the towel.

As we headed to our next spot, we noticed a depth change from 80 feet to 75 feet on the sonar. The screen was lit-up with activity, sparking our hope this might be a promising location. Regrettably, the wind had subsided, and the current was nearly nonexistent, making it challenging to position ourselves directly over the spot we had identified.

We continued to drift over this area for the next few hours before it was time to head back. During this time, we caught numerous short red groupers, a 14-inch grey triggerfish, a few 10-11-inch lane snappers, a 14-inch lane snapper, two remoras, and several short black sea bass. We also had a few encounters with unknown species that managed to break us off. At one point, Don had something on the line, only for it to be seized by a larger creature which promptly made off for the depths. While I strongly suspect it was a goliath grouper, we’ll never know for certain as the hook came loose after a short run.

Around 2:00 pm, we decided to start heading back. With one shrimp and two threadfins left, we made a pit stop at the inlet on our way. Given the incoming tide, we drifted the bait along the north rocks toward the sand beach before concluding our day. Unfortunately, we didn’t experience any action at the inlet.

By the time we returned to the docks at approximately 3:30 pm, I realized how late it had gotten. I had hoped to be home before Tania’s arrival, but our fish-cleaning and car-loading activities prolonged the process, pushing it to nearly 4:00 pm. This outing turned out to be one of the longest days I’ve spent on the water in quite a while. Despite not landing a monster catch, I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Don. Our day was filled with exploration, new experiences, and engaging conversations.

Tania and I send our prayers to all those who embarked on fishing trips this weekend, wishing them safe and prosperous journeys. For those setting out this week, may your lines stay tight and your experiences be memorable!

The Treasure Coast Chapter of Salt Strong now holds monthly meetings in Fort Pierce on the 4th Thursday of each month. These meetings are exclusive to inside members, who receive various perks, including 20% off tackle and access to Smart Fishing spots, and insider information on local trends. Monthly tournaments and guest speakers are also set to feature. To become an inside member, click the link below to receive a FREE pack of slam shady or a 10-Day Test-Drive of The Smart Fishing Spots App and The Salt Strong Insider Club, and they ship you $35 worth of FREE Lures, an “Inshore Fishing Manifesto” Book (Physical copy) & Decals – Yours to Keep Even If You Cancel!