Fishing Report August 27, 2025

Time to call in sick from work, snook season opens Sept. 1

With September 1 less than a week away, Anna Maria Island anglers are chomping at the bit to get out on the water for a very special occasion. 

That’s right September 1, is opening day for snook season in Manatee County. 

And being that opening day falls on a Monday, I’m sure most of you snook addicts out there have already put your request in at work for the day off, but if you haven’t, there’s still the option of calling in sick. 

Just don’t show up on Tuesday with a sunburn or the boss will know something’s up. 

I imagine many of you have been pre-fishing to find your favorite snook spots that are holding keeper-size fish. 

It’s like being a shepherd, tending their flock except for you plan on doing more than harvesting the wool. 

Snook fishing in Manatee County is taken very seriously among the locals, and they are quite protective of it, so make sure you’re not hoarding in on while they’re trying to get a bite. 

To catch a keeper snook not only gives the angler some bragging rights but also entails a snook dinner that evening. Whether baked, grilled, blackened or fried, snook rate among the best of the backcountry species when it comes to table fare, although the true allure of snook is the chase. 

Snook can be a finicky fish at times, especially the big ones and as we see more and more pressure on the water fewer numbers of these large slot-size fish are available to be targeted. A combination of fishing pressure, loss of habitat and the pesky dolphins has definitely made catching a keeper snook a challenge worthy of even the saltiest of anglers. 

This being said, many anglers have chosen to practice catch-and-release when snook fishing whether the season is open or not, which can help tremendously for ensuring future stocks of the popular game fish. 

Snook inhabit of variety of areas throughout their lives, which requires the angler to pay attention to the surroundings as it is imperative in finding success. 

Many snook like to inhabit mangrove shorelines where grass flats and good tidal flow exists, although depending on the time of year, snook can be found in many other areas, including along the beaches, in canals, under docks and bridges, in the passes, and even out on the artificial reefs. 

With such a variety of locations, you may think they’re easy to find, but that’s not always the case. So doing your homework and having a true understanding of these fish and their habits is your best interest. 

And once you find them, you have to get them to bite which isn’t easy at times. 

A good start is to target them during swift moving tides as this seems to be to trigger them to feed. 

After this comes the choice of bait. 

Some anglers catch them on live bait, some catch them on artificials and some just get them by mistake which has been known to occur from time to time. Snook are opportunistic feeders, which can lead to a slip up here and there, but most of the time they’re quite canny when reading the menu. 

On the flats, live shiners pinfish or shrimp are a good choice. In the passes or around piers, bridges and jetties, snook are known to take larger baits, like ladyfish, mullet, and even lizard fish. 

The same applies when using artificials. Soft plastics on a jihead, plugs or top-water plugs are important assets in the tackle box while in the shallows. If you’re fishing bridges and jetties large, lipped plugs like the Rapala CD-18 will get the job done. 

And some folks utilize the combination of both live bait and artificial using a “troll-rite” jig head with the addition of a jumbo-size shrimp. This technique is deadly when fishing around the local piers. But no matter what method is chosen, it is still up to the snook to take the bait, so be prepared and well-armed with a variety of offerings. 

Finally, I guess we should go over the rules. Snook season is open Sept. 1 and ends Dec. 1 it then reopens in the spring on March 1 and closes May 1. Snook must be a minimum of 28 inches with the maximum size of 33 inches in total length. The bag limit is one per person per day.

  On my Just Reel charters, mangrove snapper are the most reliable catch although spotted seatrout are not far behind. 

For the snapper, live shiners on a weighted snapper hook, are quickly being devoured mid water column over wrecks, reefs and rock bottoms. 

In many instances, the snapper can be seen frolicking in the chum before they are fed a bait with a hook in it. 

Limits are attainable on most outings. 

As for the spotted sea trout, deep grass flats are holding plenty of trout, although some trial and error is required as some schools inhabiting the flats contain smaller examples measuring 12-14 inches while other flats are holding fish 16-18 inches. In both scenarios, there are quite a few mackerel and ladyfish mixed in which adds variety to the bite. 

Small blacktip and sandbar sharks are also present leading to drag-screaming battles before abruptly cutting through the leader. 

Finally, snook fishing around mangrove shorelines and in the passes is resulting in quality catches.