Snook Fishing with Live Pin Fish (The Complete Guide)
Snook fishing with live pin fish is a can't miss way to target feeding snook. Pinfish are arguably one of the snook's favorite foods and a properly presented pin fish will not be ignored by a hungry snook. As their name implies, their dorsal fins and anal fins are like needle sharp pins.
Snook do not mind the sharp fins of the pinfish and will devour them readily if you give them the right presentation.
I am a FISHING CHARTER CAPTAIN on the Treasure Coast of Florida. I have been fishing the grass flats and mangroves all over Florida for more than 40 years.
Pinfish are one of my favorite live baits to catch big snook, tarpon, redfish and speckled trout with.
In the article below, I will teach you everything that I know about catching pinfish and using them to catch lots of big snook.
Let's get started.
Watch the video below and learn more about snook fishing with live pinfish.
Snook fishing with live pin fish is a can't miss way to target feeding snook. Pinfish are arguably one of the snook's favorite foods and a properly presented pin fish will not be ignored by a hungry snook. As their name implies, their dorsal fins and anal fins are like needle sharp pins.
Snook do not mind the sharp fins of the pinfish and will devour them readily if you give them the right presentation.
I am a FISHING CHARTER CAPTAIN on the Treasure Coast of Florida. I have been fishing the grass flats and mangroves all over Florida for more than 40 years.
Pinfish are one of my favorite live baits to catch big snook, tarpon, redfish and speckled trout with.
In the article below, I will teach you everything that I know about catching pinfish and using them to catch lots of big snook.
Let's get started.
Watch the video below and learn more about snook fishing with live pinfish.
Snook Fishing with Live Pin Fish around Docks
Snook and docks go together like beer and chicken wings. In other words, make sure that you are fishing the dock pilings in your area if you want to catch some nice snook.
Dock pilings accumulate lots of marine organisms and plants on them as they age. Those older dock pilings will have sponges, marine plants, oysters, barnacles, and all sorts of other things growing on them. This in turn attracts shrimp, crabs and small fish that snook and other predators like to eat.
Not all docks are created equal. You might have to fish 30 or 40 docks to figure out which ones are holding fish. Once you find out where the feeding fish are you should stay for a while.
A mistake that I see fishermen make all of the time is fishing spots that look fishy but do not hold any fish. They will fish a dead zone that is practically devoid of life just because it looks like a good place. I don't fish a spot for more than 10 minutes before I move if there is no action.
Anyone who has fished for a while knows that most of the fish will be in one area. In my estimate, about 80 percent of all of the fish will congregate in one area.
This area might have food for them to eat; comfortable water temperatures; or just the right amount of current for them. Whatever is holding the fish there has attracted them to one particular area so you will want to focus your efforts where ever you find feeding fish.
Okay. So you have a baitwell full of live pinfish and you want to catch some snook. I will cover how to catch pinfish towards the end of this article.
I like to use a bobber of some sort when using live pinfish as bait for snook. The reason is because a pinfish will ALWAYS head straight for the bottom when you cast it out. This is not a problem if the bottom is just sand where you are fishing.
BUT if there is debris, grass, or anything that the pinfish can hide in, then it will foul up your presentation and usually wrap your fishing line around something.
I wrote another article all about how to catch a snook. It covers the subject in more depth. You can read that article by clicking right here.
Using a cork of some sort alleviates that problem. You just have to make sure that your leader is long enough to keep the pinfish within a foot or so of the bottom but not so long that the pinfish can reach the bottom.
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How do you rig a live pinfish?
There are a few ways that you can rig a pinfish.
- You can put the hook in its back right in front of its dorsal fin behind its head.
- You can put the hook through its nostrils.
- You can put the hook through its jaw and exit out of its nostrils.
- You can hook it behind the dorsal fin in its tail region.
All of these different techniques to rig a pinfish will work. Some are more effecient and effective than others. I only use one technique when fishing with live pinfish. I hook it in front of its dorsal fin just behind its head.
To me that is the best way to rig a pinfish. They will stay alive for a very long time and they won't cast off of your hook very easily either.
Once you have your pinfish rigged up under a bobber you will want to cast it under the dock or as close to the dock as humanly possible. The snook will most likely be under the dock or hugging the dock pilings.
A cast that is 3 feet away from the dock might be out of the strike zone of the snook. Get your bait as close as you can without letting it wrap you on the pilings.
PRO TIP: If the snook are spooky, then you can come in from up current and let the tide take your pinfish under the dock so you don't have to make a big splash when you can you bait.
Watch the video below and catch more snook.
Snook Fishing with Live Pin Fish along Sea Walls
Snook love to hang out around structures of some sort. Structures make great ambush points; they help keep the snook from fighting the current the whole time; and if it is a sea wall the snook will use it to block off an escape route for their prey items.
I love fishing for snook around sea walls because there is usually nothing for them to cut your line with after you hook them. Snook are great at wrapping your line around dock pilings, mangrove roots or whatever else is near them once they know that they are hooked.
Sea walls are often just vertical walls of bricks or cement which makes it a lot harder for the snook to cut you off. They still manage sometimes but not as often as they will around docks.
The best technique is to cast your live pinfish under a bobber up current and let the current bring you bait right down the sea wall that you are fishing. If there is a snook around, then you will most likely get a bite. They can't resist a pinfish in distress.
I wrote another article that covers the best baits and lures for snook fishing in great detail. You can go to that article by clicking here.
If the sea wall has just sand on the bottom without rocks or debris, then you can lose the bobber and just free line the pinfish to the sea wall. That is the most natural presentation and you will know if there is a snook at that sea wall real quick.
Snook Fishing with Live Pin Fish in Inlets
Inlets are another great place to find tons of snook. Snook will congregate from where ever they were to the inlets in the Summer months to spawn. You are not allowed to keep a snook in the Summer months because of this but they are fun to catch and release anyways.
The schools of snook will be hugging the bottom of the inlet. They will usually be near the rocks that line all of the inlets. This is especially true for rocks or walls that create an eddy in the current so they can conserve energy.
You will want to get that pinfish to the bottom so you will need enough of a sinker to fight the current and the depth of the inlet to get the proper placement of your bait. Usually around 3 ounces will do the trick but bring some smaller ones and some bigger ones just in case.
My favorite way to fish for snook with a live pinfish in an inlet is with a Jupiter Rig. A Jupiter Rig consists of a length of leader tied to a barrel swivel; a free sliding egg sinker; then another barrel swivel tied to your main line. Instead of describing this with text, just watch the video below to see what I am talking about.
Watch the video below to learn how to use the Jupiter Rig to catch snook in the inlets.
Inlets are another great place to find tons of snook. Snook will congregate from where ever they were to the inlets in the Summer months to spawn. You are not allowed to keep a snook in the Summer months because of this but they are fun to catch and release anyways.
The schools of snook will be hugging the bottom of the inlet. They will usually be near the rocks that line all of the inlets. This is especially true for rocks or walls that create an eddy in the current so they can conserve energy.
You will want to get that pinfish to the bottom so you will need enough of a sinker to fight the current and the depth of the inlet to get the proper placement of your bait. Usually around 3 ounces will do the trick but bring some smaller ones and some bigger ones just in case.
My favorite way to fish for snook with a live pinfish in an inlet is with a Jupiter Rig. A Jupiter Rig consists of a length of leader tied to a barrel swivel; a free sliding egg sinker; then another barrel swivel tied to your main line. Instead of describing this with text, just watch the video below to see what I am talking about.
Watch the video below to learn how to use the Jupiter Rig to catch snook in the inlets.
Snook Fishing with Live Pin Fish in the Mangroves
I fish the mangroves a lot. The reason is because the roots of the Red Mangrove Tree are a haven for all kinds of little fish, shrimp, crabs and other stuff that snook love to munch on.
The roots of the mangrove tree spread out all over the place in a jumble and look like insect legs. That is why the Indian name for the tree translates into "the walking tree".
During the lower parts of the tide the shrimp, fish and crabs are relatively safe from most predators. BUT when the tide starts to roll in so do the predators. The higher parts of the tide lets BIG snook, redfish, speckled trout, flounder and a myriad of other predators get at those prey items.
A well placed pinfish will catch you some really nice snook and redfish around the mangroves. By now you know my drill for fishing with live pinfish.
If there is nothing but sand by the mangrove roots, then you can free line your pinfish.
If there is debris on the bottom, then you will want to go with the bobber technique.
The problem with fishing the mangrove roots is the uncanny ability for a snook to wrap your line around the oyster encrusted roots of the tree. This will end up with you having a broken line and a broken heart as your monster snook swims off casually because it got away.
PRO TIP: Tighten up your drag and beef up your line for fishing around any structure for snook. You have to be able to keep them out of the roots to have a prayer of landing them.
I wrote another article all about choosing the right tackle for snook fishing around structure. You can read it by clicking here.
A great way to fish the mangroves is to find a place with bait and current where the snook will be cruising the line of mangrove trees. For a patient fisherman you can wait to sight fish the snook as they prowl the mangrove roots at high tide.
Keep your pinfish in the bait bucket hooked and ready to cast 5 or 6 feet in front of the snook. This is one of my favorite ways to catch snook. You can ignore the little ones and focus on the big, fat fatties when you are sight fising for them.
Watch the video below for some live bait snook catching action.
Snook Fishing with Live Pin Fish on the Grass Flats
Snook like to stalk the grass flats to eat all kinds of creatures (especially pinfish). The best place to find the snook out on the grass flats is the sandy potholes that occur in every grass flat that I have ever seen.
Those sandy potholes are great ambush points for predators. They will hide in the grass next to the potholes and wait for the tide to bring them some lunch. They will almost always be facing into the current so your live bait presentation should be coming to the pothole from up current.
This is the domain of the pinfish. It will be literally dying to get into the grass and hide. You will have to use a bobber to properly fish the grass flats for snook or whatever else you want to catch. This is a great way to catch your personal best specked trout too. The big ones like big pin fish.
I wrote another article all about the best live baits for snook fishing. You can read it by clicking here.
I usually just drift the grass flats. I have found that to be the best way to figure out where all of the fish are. I fish the grass flats one of two ways. I am either in my kayak or in my 14 foot jon boat.
The kayak makes it hard to see the sandy potholes so you just have to hope that your bait flows over a pothole. The jon boat or whatever boat that you have will make it easy to see the potholes to fish. Either way try and focus your efforts on those sandy potholes.
Snook Fishing with Live Pin Fish in Tidal Creeks
Tidal creeks are a great place to catch snook, tarpon, flounder, redfish and spotted sea trout. Those are my favorite five fish to catch inshore and many fishermen would agree with that list.
The tidal creek creatures live and breathe with the flow of the tides. The incoming tides bring with them lots of oxygen, baitfish and shrimp. This in turn brings in lots of predators that want to eat those baitfish and shrimp.
There are lots of arguments among fishermen about what the best tides for catching snook are. Some like the incoming; some like the outgoing; some like the higher tides; some like the lower tides; All that I want is a moving tide.
Snook like a moving tide. They are lazy predators like most predators. Have you ever seen a nature show on lions? Those things will sleep for 20 hours a day. They try to use as little energy as possible until they need it to catch some food. Snook are the same way.
They like to stage up in the tidal creeks in a spot where the shrimp and fish will come right past them with the tides. This might be a contour of the mangroves or a bend in the creek. It might be a drop off that is a foot deeper than the rest of the bottom.
The bottom line is that it is your job to find those ambush points so that you can ambush some big snook. I like to fish the mouths of the tidal creeks. This incoming and outgoing tides will bring the snook right past me at some point.
You will want to fish the shorelines with your live pinfish under a bobber. Most of the snook will be hugging the shorelines as they travel in and out of the tidal creeks.
Tidal creeks are a great place to catch snook, tarpon, flounder, redfish and spotted sea trout. Those are my favorite five fish to catch inshore and many fishermen would agree with that list.
The tidal creek creatures live and breathe with the flow of the tides. The incoming tides bring with them lots of oxygen, baitfish and shrimp. This in turn brings in lots of predators that want to eat those baitfish and shrimp.
There are lots of arguments among fishermen about what the best tides for catching snook are. Some like the incoming; some like the outgoing; some like the higher tides; some like the lower tides; All that I want is a moving tide.
Snook like a moving tide. They are lazy predators like most predators. Have you ever seen a nature show on lions? Those things will sleep for 20 hours a day. They try to use as little energy as possible until they need it to catch some food. Snook are the same way.
They like to stage up in the tidal creeks in a spot where the shrimp and fish will come right past them with the tides. This might be a contour of the mangroves or a bend in the creek. It might be a drop off that is a foot deeper than the rest of the bottom.
The bottom line is that it is your job to find those ambush points so that you can ambush some big snook. I like to fish the mouths of the tidal creeks. This incoming and outgoing tides will bring the snook right past me at some point.
You will want to fish the shorelines with your live pinfish under a bobber. Most of the snook will be hugging the shorelines as they travel in and out of the tidal creeks.
How do you catch a pinfish to use for snook bait?
There are basically 3 ways to catch a pinfish:
The easiest way for me is to use a cast net. This is very effective for shallow water pinfish. If the water is deeper than 4 feet most of them will usually scurry away before the net traps them.
A pinfish trap is set out in a place where there are lots of pinfish. They swim into the trap for the bait that you place within it and can't figure out how to get out. This is great if you have the time and inclination to build and set the traps.
Lastly, you can catch them with a small gold hook, a tiny lure or a tiny hook with a tiny piece of bait. These are the methods that I use when I am targeting pinfish in water depths greater than 4 feet.
Go to the bait shop and get some of those tiny gold hooks for catching greenies and other small white baits. You will want to tie a few of them on a dropper loop. Watch the video below to see how easy that is to do.
Once you have your pinfish rig set up then you can take a teeny tiny piece of shrimp for each hook and cast it out with a 1/2 ounce weight on the bottom. Just cast it out and reel it back in slowly to catch your pinfish. They will hook themselves.
They will hit sabiki rigs too. Ask your local bait shop guy for some of those rigs if you don't want to tie your own rigs.
PRO TIP: A tiny piece of scented soft plastic like a Berkeley Gulp Shrimp is a great substitute for real shrimp. The fake shrimp stays on the hook better too.
Here is the video for tying a dropper loop knot to keep the hooks away from your main line.
There are basically 3 ways to catch a pinfish:
- You can use a cast net.
- You can use a pinfish trap.
- You can catch them with a hook.
The easiest way for me is to use a cast net. This is very effective for shallow water pinfish. If the water is deeper than 4 feet most of them will usually scurry away before the net traps them.
A pinfish trap is set out in a place where there are lots of pinfish. They swim into the trap for the bait that you place within it and can't figure out how to get out. This is great if you have the time and inclination to build and set the traps.
Lastly, you can catch them with a small gold hook, a tiny lure or a tiny hook with a tiny piece of bait. These are the methods that I use when I am targeting pinfish in water depths greater than 4 feet.
Go to the bait shop and get some of those tiny gold hooks for catching greenies and other small white baits. You will want to tie a few of them on a dropper loop. Watch the video below to see how easy that is to do.
Once you have your pinfish rig set up then you can take a teeny tiny piece of shrimp for each hook and cast it out with a 1/2 ounce weight on the bottom. Just cast it out and reel it back in slowly to catch your pinfish. They will hook themselves.
They will hit sabiki rigs too. Ask your local bait shop guy for some of those rigs if you don't want to tie your own rigs.
PRO TIP: A tiny piece of scented soft plastic like a Berkeley Gulp Shrimp is a great substitute for real shrimp. The fake shrimp stays on the hook better too.
Here is the video for tying a dropper loop knot to keep the hooks away from your main line.
Conclusion:
Pinfish are one of the best baits for catching snook. Snook just love them. In recent years, the grass flats all over Florida have been disappearing for a variety of reasons. This have made it a lot harder to find decent amounts of pinfish. I personally have been fishing with them less and less because there are so few around.
Pinfish are one of my favorites for catching snook, tarpon, redfish and BIG speckled trout. If you can find some or find a bait shop that will sell you some, then you are good to go.
I hope that this article about snook fishing with live pin fish helps you catch a ton more snook or at the very least have more fun trying.
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