Snook season has arrived on the Nature Coast, yall! I have quite a few clients on my hands that are just as ready as I am to hook into one of these beautiful game fish! When targeting snook, I find myself heading out to the mangrove islands, actively looking for moving current around a point but explicitly looking for a deep hole up against those islands. Those deep holes tend to hold the type of quality snook I'm in search of for my clients.
D.O.A Jerk Bait with a split tail in Nite Glow with a *major key* minimum of 40lb fluorocarbon leader line - I do not recommend going any lighter than this whatsoever. When it comes to leader line, less is not more, and a good rule of thumb in this instance is about 3 feet. Remember that the longer your leader is, the more difficult it will be to throw, so cut what you feel most comfortable with but don't cut yourself short.
Topwater lures are another excellent way to target snook - early morning or late evening is the ticket here. I have a list a mile long of all the different varieties of topwater lures that I use, but I'll save that list for a rainy day blog post this season to go more in-depth about those lures. Any style or brand you choose, I think you'll do just fine with as long as you're fishing those top waters at the right time - early morning or evening.