Panama City Beach Fishing Report for August 2024
Welcome back to another fishing report from Intercoastal Safaris for August 2024 in Panama City Beach, FL. There have been some changes to the open seasons for a few of Panama City Beach’s target species. The big news this month is that Red Snapper season is over. Amberjack is now right around the corner starting September 1st and running through the end of October. However, there is still a lot of action to be taken advantage of in the Panama City Beach area.
Inshore
Redfish has been the name of the game in the Panama City Beach area. To produce the best results, live shrimp from local tackle shops on a leader under a popping cork just over the grass flats. For keeper redfish, the key is fishing structure around high tide. The jetty in St. Andrews Bay has produced larger fish as of recent. Again, live shrimp works well but also, cast netting some finger mullet and using those in place of the shrimp have been rather productive. Early and late high tides have shown the most success. If you find the trout, they will hit these baits as well. Be sure to book an inshore charter guide to get out on the Panama City Beach waterways.
Nearshore and Offshore
As mentioned in the introduction, Red Snapper season is over, and Amberjack is closed for the area until September. However, triggerfish is now open and there have been plenty of Mingo (vermillion), and black snapper have been plentiful. Hit your local bait shop for frozen cigar minnows, Bonita, and squid. An even better idea is to use a sabiki and catch your own bait just off the beach over structure. Cut them in to chunks and drop them down on two hook drop rigs, you will more than likely have a fish on before hitting the bottom. If you find yourself fishing on credit, raise your bait in the water column where the bigger fish are typically hunting. Please note, more success has been found in deeper water due to the recent rise in water temperatures during the late summer months. Chumming the water column is also a great tactic for getting black snapper hungry and ready to bite. Fun fact, while Red Snapper remains super popular to catch, many people prefer the taste of Black and Mingo snapper over the Red Snapper.
Beaches and Piers
On the Panama City Beach pier, king as well as Spanish mackerel were more prevalent earlier this summer but due to record breaking temperature they seem to have mover further out. Surprisingly, this month has shown a larger number of cobia caught than one would typically expect. This has mostly been on live baits free lined on the farthest sections of the piers. Unfortunately, not many have been big enough to keep but there have been a few keepers mixed in. Sharks have been consistent for surf fisherman all along the gulf coast. Best results are still happening with pompano rigs with fish bites, sand fleas, or small pieces of shrimp. Main catches have been whiting and redfish, but there are still some pompano in the area. We have seen some jack caravel landed closer to shore as well. As the spinoff from Hurricane Debby diminishes the grass moves out of the Panama City Beach area, surf fishing should greatly improve in the coming weeks.
