Today's (July 20) forecast calls for partly cloudy skies with a chance of a thunderstorm at about 2 p.m., a high of 88 degrees, SSE winds of 16 mph, and one to two-foot seas. 

“Hey there, Sebastian Inlet fans and anglers! I hope you all enjoyed the great weekend. Good news, the fish are beginning to arrive and bite on both sides of the inlet! Baitfish are plentiful: greenies, mojarra, and schools of mullet in the late afternoons. The clear water got a bit dirty over the weekend, but was still cleaner than it has been. It should stay decent because this week should be nice, with SSE winds in the 5 to 10 mph range, and seas in the zero to two-foot range. Water temps are holding steady in the 81 to 84-degree range, which is good for this time of year. The downside is that most of the fish I saw/caught last week were on the incoming high tide phase, which is getting later and later as the week progresses. With that said, here are your "action" spots. 

North jetty: Over here, as I mentioned, most of the fish have been caught on the incoming tide. Many catch-and-release snook were caught on live shrimp, croakers, mojarra, and as always, the artificial shrimp jigs, but most snook have been caught using live shrimp. They DO get fussy once in a while and only want one bait in particular. That's what makes them such a challenge. I fished last Wednesday and hooked 10 and landed seven, with one monster weighing about 30 pounds. Most fish caught that day were bruisers in the 18 to 22-pound range, 38 to 40 inches, with a couple pushing the 22 to 30-pound range. Big girls, and they were pretty tough to land. Also, on the incoming tide over the weekend, I saw a few mangrove snappers caught on small shrimp and live and dead greenies around the rocks at the tip and in the pilings on the inlet side of the jetty. Also, around the tip, one of my friends was catching lookdowns on tiny shrimp and small greenies. Incoming tide. The outgoing tide the fishing was a bit slower, mostly due to the tanin-stained Intracoastal water shutting the bite down. Lot fresh water from all the rain runoff coming out of Sebastian River into the inlet. Snook and reds were caught on croakers and mojarra, and a few of the big jack crevalle that were chasing the schools of mullet.

On Friday and again on Sunday, I saw a few nice 16 to 18-inch Spanish mackerel caught on live greenies, incoming tide, beach side, on live greenies and spoons. Also, on that side of the jetty over the past week I have seen a few big barracuda looking for a quick snack. One of my friends was fishing for Spanish mackerel last Wednesday with a silver spoon and enticed a 47-inch ‘Cuda to hit it! That was fun to watch. Moving on, back around the bait shop area to the cleaning table, on the late afternoon tide, there have been schools mullet coming in and the monster jack crevalle have been busting them up! Freelined mullet and top water poppers and 5-6 inch swim baits were getting bit by them. Most of these fish were in the 15-25 pound range! Quite a good fight. For those fishing live shrimp, mojarra and greenies, there have been some decent mangrove snappers caught as well. There was a 12 to 14-inch range on them. Remember, they have to be a minimum of 10 inches overall to be harvested, with a daily bag limit of 5 per person, per day. 

South jetty: For those who are willing to walk the seven tenths of a mile from the south day use area to the jetty, one of my contacts who fishes there told me what is biting. Most of it is the regular species: black margate, small sheepshead, whiting, spot tail pins, and a few really nice mangrove snapper, all on cut dead shrimp, outgoing and incoming tide. Also caught on the outgoing tide at the jetty tip are the jack crevalle. Any kind of bait will work. On the incoming tide along the shoreline, boaters have been catching catch-and-release snook on any live bait, croakers being the best. 

T-dock area: The section of the dock that is open and the surrounding area has produced small sheepshead, mangrove snapper, lane snapper, and a few nice whiting, all on dead cut shrimp around the pilings and the rocks. Either tide has been good. There have been a few snook caught back here, but most of the action has been out front in the inlet. 

Surf area, both sides: Like last week, nobody is fishing these areas; on the north side, a huge sandbar and shallow water is preventing anyone from surf fishing properly; on the south side, there is no access due bridge construction eliminating quick access, and the anglers walking up the beach have been fishing the jetty, and not the surf. 

That's all for this week! It’s better than it has been, and should improve as the mangrove snapper and Spanish mackerel move in; those two species are our summertime go-to catches. I hope you all have a great week! Stay safe, and stay well!” — Snookman.