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St. Augustine Fishing Report: Hot Topwater Bites & Feisty Reds on the Flats
Published 8 months ago
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Artificial Lure here bringing you today’s St. Augustine fishing report for Sunday, August 31, 2025.
Sun cracked the horizon at 6:55 this morning and anglers are looking at a sunset around 8:01 tonight, giving us just over 13 hours of daylight. Tides are moderate today with an early high tide at 5:34 am, a midday low at 11:49, and another high rolling in at 6:20 pm according to tides4fishing.com. Water temperature’s holding steady in the upper 70s, prime for active fish around the city dock and the inlets.
Weather’s classic late summer coastal: you’ll feel a muggy morning with a temp starting at 79°F and climbing toward 89 by late afternoon. Light winds around 11 mph keep things fresh but can make for some solid chop at the inlets. Humidity’s high—nearly 86 percent—so bring plenty of water and sun protection. Thin cloud cover means moderate shade through late afternoon, and if you’re out at dawn, expect quieter water and better topwater bites.
Now, fish activity! Redfish are pushing hard into the creeks and flats right now, especially around the St. Augustine City Dock and south to Matanzas River. The outgoing tide this morning sparked solid red drum catches on both live shrimp and finger mullet, but folks throwing paddle-tail artificials in new penny and root-beer colors are getting just as many hookups.
Trout are moving up on the grass edges as the sun heats and the tide falls. Topwater action is peaking from sunrise to 9 a.m.—Zara Spooks in bone or chrome, and Skitterwalks with a splash of chartreuse, were hot sellers at the tackle shop this week. Those using silver and gold bladed spinnerbaits, as recommended on BBC Boards, found them deadly on both reds and flounder near shell bars and dropoffs yesterday.
Sheepshead are still picking the pilings at the Bridge of Lions, with fiddler crabs being the top bait, and black drum are lurking deeper water off Vilano Pier—fresh blue crab or live shrimp works best. Anglers working the beaches just south of Anastasia saw pompano come in on sandfleas during higher tide runs, with a few keeper whiting mixed in.
Reports from local charters this weekend: average boat pulled five to eight slot reds, a few flounder, and a handful of specks. Biggest red weighed just over 7 pounds in the flats, caught on a live mullet freelined near the oyster bars. Kayak anglers working Salt Run and the back creeks hooked into a steady stream of specks and found flounder on white gulp swimming mullet.
Best baits this week: live shrimp or finger mullet for reds and trout, small blue crab for drum, fresh sandfleas for pompano. Hot lures include root-beer paddle tails, silver/gold spinnerbaits, and topwaters in bone or chrome (especially with that light morning chop).
Couple hot spots to try today:
- St. Augustine City Dock for dawn trout and reds—work the outgoing tide edges with topwaters, then switch to plastics as the morning rolls on.
- The flats off Salt Run—low to mid tide brings reds right up to the grass edges chasing bait.
- Matanzas River bridge pilings for sheepshead, especially starting an hour before low tide.
Fish are moving and biting through most of the morning and again on the incoming tide after 5 p.m., so plan to fish around those prime tide swings. Soft plastics and gold spinnerbaits are your ticket for more hookups through midday, and nothing beats live mullet drifted on a Carolina rig if you’re after a bull red.
Thanks for tuning in and remember to subscribe for more local reports and hot tackle tips. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease dot ai.
Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
This episode includes AI-generated content.
Sun cracked the horizon at 6:55 this morning and anglers are looking at a sunset around 8:01 tonight, giving us just over 13 hours of daylight. Tides are moderate today with an early high tide at 5:34 am, a midday low at 11:49, and another high rolling in at 6:20 pm according to tides4fishing.com. Water temperature’s holding steady in the upper 70s, prime for active fish around the city dock and the inlets.
Weather’s classic late summer coastal: you’ll feel a muggy morning with a temp starting at 79°F and climbing toward 89 by late afternoon. Light winds around 11 mph keep things fresh but can make for some solid chop at the inlets. Humidity’s high—nearly 86 percent—so bring plenty of water and sun protection. Thin cloud cover means moderate shade through late afternoon, and if you’re out at dawn, expect quieter water and better topwater bites.
Now, fish activity! Redfish are pushing hard into the creeks and flats right now, especially around the St. Augustine City Dock and south to Matanzas River. The outgoing tide this morning sparked solid red drum catches on both live shrimp and finger mullet, but folks throwing paddle-tail artificials in new penny and root-beer colors are getting just as many hookups.
Trout are moving up on the grass edges as the sun heats and the tide falls. Topwater action is peaking from sunrise to 9 a.m.—Zara Spooks in bone or chrome, and Skitterwalks with a splash of chartreuse, were hot sellers at the tackle shop this week. Those using silver and gold bladed spinnerbaits, as recommended on BBC Boards, found them deadly on both reds and flounder near shell bars and dropoffs yesterday.
Sheepshead are still picking the pilings at the Bridge of Lions, with fiddler crabs being the top bait, and black drum are lurking deeper water off Vilano Pier—fresh blue crab or live shrimp works best. Anglers working the beaches just south of Anastasia saw pompano come in on sandfleas during higher tide runs, with a few keeper whiting mixed in.
Reports from local charters this weekend: average boat pulled five to eight slot reds, a few flounder, and a handful of specks. Biggest red weighed just over 7 pounds in the flats, caught on a live mullet freelined near the oyster bars. Kayak anglers working Salt Run and the back creeks hooked into a steady stream of specks and found flounder on white gulp swimming mullet.
Best baits this week: live shrimp or finger mullet for reds and trout, small blue crab for drum, fresh sandfleas for pompano. Hot lures include root-beer paddle tails, silver/gold spinnerbaits, and topwaters in bone or chrome (especially with that light morning chop).
Couple hot spots to try today:
- St. Augustine City Dock for dawn trout and reds—work the outgoing tide edges with topwaters, then switch to plastics as the morning rolls on.
- The flats off Salt Run—low to mid tide brings reds right up to the grass edges chasing bait.
- Matanzas River bridge pilings for sheepshead, especially starting an hour before low tide.
Fish are moving and biting through most of the morning and again on the incoming tide after 5 p.m., so plan to fish around those prime tide swings. Soft plastics and gold spinnerbaits are your ticket for more hookups through midday, and nothing beats live mullet drifted on a Carolina rig if you’re after a bull red.
Thanks for tuning in and remember to subscribe for more local reports and hot tackle tips. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease dot ai.
Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
This episode includes AI-generated content.