Amelia Island Fishing Spots

The pier is located at the north end of Amelia Island inside of Fort Clinch State Park. There is a daily admission fee to enter the park, or you can buy a yearly pass which covers all Florida state parks. Current pricing is available from the ranger station at the entrance to the park, which is located on Atlantic Avenue a few blocks from the beach. 2005 prices were $5 per car (up to 8 people, daily) or $80 for a yearly park pass.

The pier is 2400 feet long (plus or minus a few feet, concrete to concrete, measured with a GPS receiver) and runs parallel to the south jetty. It's a concrete pier, open year round for fishing. (satellite image)

The pier is sometimes busy on the weekends, but usually during the week it's pretty empty. The park gates are locked at sundown, so if you plan on fishing at night make sure you get a pass and the gate code so you can get back out when you're done.

We do a lot of fishing at the Fort Clinch pier. Expect to catch anything here from pin fish to tarpon. We've caught reds, trout, blues, flounder, sheepshead, whiting, sharks, rays, and assorted small fish here. We've hooked a few tarpon but never landed one. Summer months are best for flounder, and the fall is best for reds and trout. Fish for flounder with mud minnows around the pier pilings and rocks. Sheepshead are caught here around the pilings at low tide using fiddler crabs for bait. Reds and trout will hit various baits, but live or cut mullet are prerferred. Shrimp is a good bait for whiting.