West Palm Beach fishing is some of the best in the state. The offshore, pelagic fishery is amazing. Snook and tarpon inshore. Peacock bass in freshwater. No matter what you want to chase, West Palm probably has it in some capacity.
Offshore
One of the reasons the offshore game is so good in West Palm and Pompano Beach is that the Gulf Stream runs very close to the beach. So close that you can actually fish for pelagics off kayaks. You can be in several hundred feet of water and only a couple of miles off the beach!
We were fishing with Reel Floridian Charters out of Pompano Beach on a half day trip. While the day may have been short, the action was not.
The plan was to troll ballyhoos until we hooked up to a school of dolphin that we could throw flies on.
We hooked up to a solid dolphin almost straightaway that was underneath a bird. Unfortunately he didn’t have any friends with him. It wasn’t until we came across a floating pallet that was loaded down with fish.
Pandemonium broke loose as flies were being thrown all over the boat, dolphin hook ups, jump offs, gaffs being flung all over the place. It was a success.
We headed back to the dock with enough fish for everyone to take home. If you want to learn more about dolphin fishing, check out this other blog that I wrote.
Inshore
Once we all returned to our Airbnb, we had to develop plans for the rest of the night. We were staying in walking distance from the water, so of course we landed on fishing.
We looked at numerous dock lights all over the county, but there was only one that we were able to pull fish off of.
While this wasn’t the biggest snook in the world, he proved to be a challenge to land. The fish wrapped himself around pilings and anchor lines requiring me to use great finesse and care to get him off all this structure in very tight quarters.
From lights to the beaches, spillways and residential canals, there are abundant opportunities for inshore fishing in West Palm.
Freshwater
From Vero to Homestead and even across the state in Naples, you can find peacock bass. With that said, before we headed back home, we had to hit some peacock bass on fly. It was extremely hot, we were exhausted and ready to be home; we even fished through a rainstorm and got it done.
West Palm Beach Fishing: Choose your Own Adventure
From sailfish, dolphin and wahoo offshore to snook, tarpon and jacks inshore as well as peacock bass and clownknifes in freshwater, West Palm Beach fishing is amazing. If you haven’t had the opportunity to experience it, you need to get down there and get after it.
Until next time, tight lines.
