Updated: Thursday, August 13, 2026 · Next update: Thursday, August 20, 2026
This Jacksonville fishing report covers mid-August, when Northeast Florida settles deep into its late-summer pattern. The St. Johns runs warm and stained, the beaches hold bait, and the nearshore reefs are the most consistent option on calm mornings. King mackerel are the lead species, working bait pods from the beach to the ledges. The condition to plan around is the new moon at the end of the week: jetty tides run hard, which suits the snapper crowd and shapes any trip on the river.
What’s Hitting
King mackerel are the best bet in mid-August, working the bait pods from the beach out to the nearshore ledges in 40 to 70 feet, with Spanish mackerel mixed in on the same reefs. Mangrove snapper stack on the St. Johns jetty rocks and the bridge structure and feed best on the strong night tides.
Redfish pull out of the shallow marsh in the heat and sit at the creek mouths and dock lines at dawn. Tarpon stay around the river mouth and the beaches for anglers willing to put in the hours, and flounder show on the jetty rocks and around the Mayport rips. In the surf, whiting and pompano work the troughs at first light.
Where to Find Them
The north and south jetties at Mayport are the center of gravity for snapper, flounder and the occasional big red. The rocks break the current and create pockets where bait gets trapped, which is why everything stacks there on a hard tide.
Off the Intracoastal, the creek mouths at Clapboard, Sisters and the Nassau Sound drains hold redfish on the falling tide as draining water pulls bait off the marsh. Nearshore, target the Casa Blanca and nine-mile reefs for kings and Spanish. Beach anglers should look for whiting and pompano in the troughs at first light.
Tides & Conditions
Expect water from 84 to 87 degrees inshore and in the low 80s nearshore. The new moon brings a big exchange and hard current at the jetties, and the last two hours of the outgoing are the productive window. Plan offshore runs for the morning, when seas run 1 to 3 feet on a light southwest wind, and get back in before the afternoon storms build. The river is stained above Dames Point and cleaner below, so favor the lower river.
Tackle & Tactics
- Kings: slow-troll live pogies on stinger rigs with light wire; a 20-pound class outfit is plenty.
- Jetty snapper: a live shrimp or a cut pogie on 20-pound fluorocarbon with just enough weight to hold bottom.
- Redfish: a quarter-ounce jighead with a paddle tail, or a live mud minnow on a popping cork, covers the creek mouths.
- Flounder: a live finger mullet fished slowly along the rocks.
Local Intel This Week
Sisters Creek Park is the primary ramp for jetty and river-mouth access, and it fills early on weekends, so launch before first light. Mayport and Huguenot Memorial Park give beach and jetty access from shore. Concentrate on the jetty rocks and the creek mouths rather than the open river.
Redfish, flounder and snapper all carry restrictions that change seasonally. Check current FWC and federal regulations and seasons before keeping fish.
This Week’s Tip
At the jetties, the last two hours of the outgoing beat everything else. Bait flushes out of the river and the fish sit in the rock pockets waiting on it. Fish the down-current side of a rock point and let your bait tumble past it rather than casting into the middle of the flow.
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