In this week’s Northwest Florida Fishing Report, host Joe Baya covers the first noticeable signs of the fall transition, including cooling water, enormous concentrations of bait, big Spanish mackerel around Panama City and Choctawhatchee Bay, a strong surf redfish bite around Pensacola, and improving opportunities to sight fish redfish on the flats. This episode features Capt. Justin Leake with Panama City Inshore, Justin Reed with Justin Reed Fishing, and Capt. Blake Nelson with Last Cast Charters.
Joe also joins Alabama Saltwater Fishing Report host Butch Thierry for a special conversation with Craig Underwood from HydroGlow about choosing the right dock light. The discussion covers above-water versus underwater systems, light color, water depth and clarity, installation, maintenance, low-voltage wiring, and how waterfront owners can attract fish without creating an overly bright or intrusive dock.
Conditions Recap
The first signs of fall are beginning to show even though daytime temperatures remain hot. Capt. Justin Leake says Panama City water temperatures have fallen roughly two degrees, from around 88 to 89 degrees down to about 86. Longer nights and slightly cooler overnight temperatures are beginning to take the edge off the summer heat, and the fish are responding. Large concentrations of bait are now showing around the jetties, directly along the beaches, and in roughly 25 to 40 feet of water outside the second sandbar.
In the Pensacola surf, redfish have become one of the most consistent targets. Justin Reed is seeing fish at multiple distances from shore, including an unusually good number of slot-sized reds. Pompano are still around, but most are holding in deeper water beyond the sandbar. Reed’s recent morning trips have produced the best pompano window around 7:00 to 8:30 a.m., while redfish can begin feeding earlier. Blue crabs are also showing up along the beach and have become one of the most productive baits for the reds.
Choctawhatchee Bay is showing similar signs of change. Schools of greenies are moving from deeper open water into bayous, flats, bridge areas, and roll-downs where Spanish mackerel can target them more consistently. Capt. Blake Nelson says the Spanish bite has improved steadily over the last week, while the coming weeks should continue to improve redfish and general flats activity as September progresses toward October.
Panama City Fishing Report – Capt. Justin Leake With Panama City Inshore
Capt. Justin Leake with Panama City Inshore says the arrival of massive amounts of bait is putting the pieces in place for one of his favorite fishing periods of the year. Baitfish are packed against the beach and scattered through the bay, and Justin expects that food supply to drive everything from Spanish mackerel and redfish to reef fish and nearshore pelagics.
One of his favorite current targets is the large “ax handle” Spanish mackerel that have survived the summer and grown into the five- to eight-pound class. Unlike the smaller fall Spanish that commonly feed around open-water bait schools, these bigger fish often take up residence along grass flats. Justin concentrates on roughly four to eight feet of water where grass meets sand, particularly around points, troughs, roll-downs, and other contours within a few miles of a pass.
Live chumming is the key presentation. Justin prefers pelagic baitfish such as pilchards, pogies, cigar minnows, Spanish sardines, or similar baits that can be cast-netted in quantity. He positions the boat where there is enough current to quickly carry chum away from the boat, then gives the area time to develop. It can take 10 to 15 minutes before the first Spanish begin popping chum on the surface, but once they start feeding, he knows the bite can turn on quickly.
For the bigger Spanish, Justin avoids wire whenever possible because he has found that the larger fish can be extremely reluctant to bite it. His preferred setup is approximately three feet of 40-pound fluorocarbon leader tied to braid. He expects to lose some hooks, but says quickly reeling when the fish eats can help slide the hook into the corner of the mouth before the leader contacts the teeth. His preferred braid-to-fluorocarbon connection is an Albright knot, which he ties with 21 wraps because it is strong, compact, and much faster for him to tie on the water than an FG knot.
Redfish are another option, although Justin is currently treating them as an opportunistic target rather than spending the hottest part of the day sight fishing shallow flats. Schools of large reds are occasionally crashing the same open-bay bait concentrations that hold smaller Spanish. He keeps a rod rigged with a larger jig head and swimbait that the Spanish are less likely to attack, allowing anglers to quickly cast to a school of bull reds when one appears.
On the reefs, Justin says red snapper and amberjack give anglers strong September options in state waters. Keeper-sized amberjack have become much more common on shallower wrecks than they were years ago. His preferred amberjack presentation uses a very lively bait, a long leader, and a large wreck. He routinely fishes around 20 feet of 40-pound fluorocarbon, sometimes moving to 50-pound leader when conditions allow, and wants the bait actively swimming rather than hanging beside the weight.
Justin also recommends starting above the fish instead of dropping directly into the wreck. If amberjack are marking halfway down in the water column, he begins the bait substantially higher and lets the fish rise to it. That gives the angler additional room to fight the fish before it can reach structure. His typical setup uses 50-pound braid and approximately 15 pounds of measured drag, which he says is already enough pressure to make holding the rod difficult for many anglers.
Nearshore pelagic fishing is the part of the fall transition Justin looks forward to most. He focuses on approximately 30 to 80 feet of water, sometimes only a few hundred yards to a few miles from the beach, looking for bait, birds, favorable water, and visible activity. Joe and Justin also discuss using Hilton’s Realtime Navigator and chlorophyll information to help identify productive water. Justin stresses that truly blue water is not required. Clear green water loaded with bait can hold sailfish, blackfin tuna, dolphin, kings, and other pelagics, while brown bay water is generally less attractive for the more offshore-oriented species.
On slick, calm days, Justin fishes fresh live baits on approximately 15 feet of 40-pound fluorocarbon with a short eight- to 10-inch section of approximately 40- to 44-pound wire near the hook. He works around the outside edges of bait concentrations and keeps spinning rods ready to pitch at visible sailfish. When stronger fall winds arrive, he uses the same productive-water approach but shifts to drifting parallel with the beach, using kite baits and flat lines to cover a much wider swath of water.
Pensacola Surf Fishing Report – Justin Reed With Justin Reed Fishing
Justin Reed with Justin Reed Fishing reports that redfish have fired up along the Pensacola beaches. Rather than finding them in one narrow zone, he is seeing reds inside the bar, around the bar, beyond it, and cruising different sections of the surf. The biggest surprise has been the number of slot-sized fish mixed in with the larger bulls, giving anglers a better opportunity to take home a quality eating-size redfish.
Reed is targeting reds with a single-drop rig and generally increases his tackle compared with a pompano setup. He uses around 30-pound fluorocarbon and a sturdier hook, while continuing to favor circle hooks whenever the rod is sitting in a sand spike. For pompano, he particularly likes Owner Mutu Light circle hooks because of their sharpness and consistent corner-of-the-mouth hook placement.
Sinker choice depends on current. Reed has recently been able to fish simple pyramid weights because the current has been relatively light. When more holding power is required, a Sputnik sinker is the better option. He notes that Sputniks can also help a circle hook set because the weight remains planted as the fish moves away, although he still views sinker style largely as a matter of conditions and personal preference.
His drag is deliberately loose while the rod is in the sand spike. Reed’s rule of thumb is that if he can pull on the line hard enough to lift the rod out of the spike without the drag slipping, the drag is too tight. Once a fish is hooked and he has the rod in hand, he tightens the drag slightly and adjusts based on the size of the fish. With no reef or heavy structure in the surf, he would rather let a redfish run than risk breaking it off with excessive pressure.
Blue crab is one of the best baits available right now. Crabs are showing up along the beach, and Reed recommends catching them with a dip net or sand flea rake when possible, then cutting them into halves or quarters for redfish. Sand fleas can catch both redfish and pompano, while chunks of ladyfish or other cut bait can help filter out smaller species. Reed believes the sudden abundance of blue crabs may be one reason the redfish bite has become so strong.
Pompano remain primarily in deeper water beyond the sandbar. Reed estimates that roughly 90% of his recent pompano have come from outside the bar, particularly in darker blue water. He uses standard pompano rigs or single-drop rigs with sand fleas, shrimp, and synthetic baits, while keeping the heavier redfish presentation separate.
One of Reed’s strongest recommendations this week is to scout before committing to a beach. Midday sunlight makes it much easier to read water color, locate deeper holes, find troughs, and identify darker water beyond the bar. When he scouts with a rod, he often gives a promising spot only a few minutes before moving again. Anglers visiting Northwest Florida should not repeatedly return to the same beach access after an unproductive trip simply because it is convenient. The fish may be concentrated only a short drive away.
Choosing The Right Dock Light – Craig Underwood With HydroGlow
Joe and Alabama Saltwater Fishing Report host Butch Thierry talk with Craig Underwood from HydroGlow about the variables that determine which type of fishing light works best on a dock. Craig says there is no universal choice between above-water and underwater lights because dock construction, water depth, tide range, flooding, and water clarity all change the best setup.
Floating docks are often a good match for an above-water light because the light rises and falls with the water, maintaining a consistent distance from the surface. HydroGlow recommends positioning its DockMaster Above Water Dock Light roughly 12 to 18 inches above the water. Fixed docks in deeper water are often better candidates for an underwater system because water levels can rise enough to submerge a light that was intended to stay dry.
For a general Gulf Coast guideline, Craig says shallow docks in less than roughly six to eight feet of water often make more sense with above-water lighting. In deeper water, an underwater Sea Floor Dock Light can provide effective fish-attracting light without creating as much brightness around the dock itself.
Color is another major consideration. Craig says blue underwater light can penetrate saltwater well and attract fish from farther away, while green tends to do a better job of holding bait and fish in a concentrated area once they arrive. Butch’s experience in the tannic water of a Mobile Bay tributary has been different: in his side-by-side testing, white underwater light attracted substantially more bait and predators than green. The takeaway is that water clarity and color matter, and the best light in clear Panama City water may not be the best light in stained or tannic water.
Above the water, Craig generally prefers green or white rather than blue for fishing. Directional mounting is also important because it keeps the light aimed toward the water instead of shining into neighboring homes or into the eyes of boaters approaching the dock. HydroGlow also offers amber lighting that Craig says operates at turtle-safe frequencies for waterfront properties where sea turtle lighting restrictions are a concern.
Electrical safety is one of the most important differences Craig emphasizes. HydroGlow converts shore power to low-voltage DC before the wiring reaches the dock-light system. The company’s underwater lights operate at 48 volts DC, the DockMaster lights at 24 volts DC, and some products at 12 volts. The systems also use sealed connectors intended for wet marine environments rather than relying on standard house-style wiring connections around saltwater.
Underwater lights still require maintenance. Craig recommends pulling them two or three times a year to clean growth from the housing. He also advises against using a heavy cinder block to sink the light. HydroGlow’s submersible lights require only a few pounds of weight, and the company commonly supplies a three-pound diving weight. On docks where anglers, trolling motors, or outboards may encounter the power cable, running the cable through PVC can provide additional protection while still allowing the light to be lifted for cleaning.
Choctawhatchee Bay Fishing Report – Capt. Blake Nelson With Last Cast Charters
Capt. Blake Nelson with Last Cast Charters says the big Spanish mackerel have finally begun showing more consistently in Choctawhatchee Bay. Greenies have been present in deeper open water for weeks, but they are now pushing onto flats and into bayous where Spanish and bluefish can pin them down and feed more predictably.
Blake explains that learning to identify bait from a distance can save a lot of wasted cast-net throws. Pogies tend to show harder flashes, swirls, and flicks. Greenies often look like small raindrops hitting the surface and can produce a sudden, hard burst when the school is spooked. Anchovies can look similar at first, but Blake watches for their small side-to-side porpoising motion near the surface.
Once he has live greenies, Blake looks for Spanish around bridge pylons and the bay’s roll-downs. The Mid-Bay Bridge area has been producing, along with the flats near Bluewater Bay and other stretches where four-foot flats break into eight feet and eventually 12 to 15 feet. A simple Spanish mackerel Christmas tree rig can locate fish while trolling, but live chumming and fly-lining greenies has been the more targeted approach. Blake does not wait long for a spot to produce. If he is chumming or trolling and nothing happens within roughly five minutes, he keeps moving.
Sight fishing redfish is another opportunity as the season begins changing. Blake says a fish that is already swimming hard away from the boat is often close to a lost cause, although placing a lure directly on the fish’s nose can occasionally trigger an instinctive reaction strike. When that happens, he sets the hook immediately because a spooked red can inhale and spit the bait almost instantly.
A better strategy is often to stop and let the fish settle. Blake has repeatedly watched redfish calm down only a few minutes after being disturbed. If a productive flat holds multiple fish, he would rather Power-Pole down and wait five to 10 minutes than chase the school. Fish often return to the same potholes, sand patches, and feeding areas once the boat becomes quiet.
Presentation has mattered as well. On a recent sight-fishing trip, Blake found that keeping a soft plastic moving slowly was more effective than stopping it and trying to make the fish inspect the bait on the bottom. He had experimented with Pro-Cure, but felt the more important factor that day was motion and getting the presentation in front of a fish that had not already been spooked. Joe had a similar experience on a recent South Florida trip, where Berkley Gulp drew more confident bites than Berkley PowerBait when he could make a clean presentation through the grass.
For charter trips where consistent action matters more than technical sight fishing, Blake is dividing time between fly-lining greenies for Spanish around the roll-downs and fishing the flats with live greenies on knocker rigs for trout and other inshore species. Wind direction often determines the order. He can start on the protected side for Spanish, then move to a wind-blown bank or flat as conditions change.
