Jason’s Guide To The Jacksonville Outdoors (Fishing Edition)

March 27, 2023

Jason’s Guide To The Jacksonville Outdoors (Fishing Edition)

Welcome to spring friends! We hope everyone is enjoying the warmer weather and longer days.

We are so excited to be announcing the launch of our new blog series, “Jason’s Guide To The Jacksonville Outdoors” from our very own outdoors enthusiast Jason Farmer. He’ll be sharing his favorite spots for beach hikes, kayaking in the marshes, surf fishing, paddle boarding, outdoor exploring and more.

This month, he is sharing with us his favorite fishing spots!

There are three types of water here in JAX and the surrounding area. Salt water, Fresh water, and brackish water (Brackish being a mix of the two). JAX Beach is obviously salt water and Julington Creek is brackish leaning towards fresh.

Julington Creek (Best For Bass Fishing This Time Of Year)

Julington Creek (Black Creek more so) is where I do some of my bass fishing. It’s semi brackish and is influenced by the tide as well. Fisherman looking for famous Florida bass should focus on throwing soft plastics into the lily pads and get ready for a fight when they bite! I suggest using heavy line (40lb+ braid), a heavy power rod, and a flipping jig weighted at about 1/2oz.

Catfish, mudfin, and sunfish of all kinds are also prevalent in Julington Creek and the surrounding areas. “Specks” or black crappie are a big game fish here too. Smaller tackle and sometimes live bait (like red worms) and a bobber really do the trick for these little guys. Want to have a fish fry? Target those suckers and have a blast all day long. Bring beer!

Jax Beach (Best For Surf Fishing)

For salt water, fisherman need to know when the tides are going to be, what time of year it is (species specific in salt water), and what kind of bait that species is biting. If you’re headed out for a great day in the sun and to just want to wet a line and see what comes up, shrimp is your best bet. Beginners should by a “TWO-HOOK BOTTOM FISHING RIG” at their local walmart or bait shop that allows them to attach a 3+oz. weight to the end and two hooks 6-24 inches apart (one on top of the other).

I grew up going to a pier to fish with my grandpa, Jax Beach just reopened the pier and is now allowing fishing (charges around $5 I think) This is a great spot for people wanting to do some fishing while on vacation.