St. Marks-Need Advice

[Quality Time]

I usually fish the Keaton Beach area, but since the tournament is this weekend, I thought about trying St. Marks. Never fished there before, and was wondering if any of you would give some advice on where to go and what to look out for. Any help is greatly appreciated.

[silverking]

Rocks, rocks and more rocks, from west of Stony Bayou all the way to the Econfina. Get a good chart and putt around at idle until you learn when and where to go. And even then, some of those rocks get up and move around in the middle of the night.

[Harmsway]

Don't be too scared, just stay away from, or go slow through, the Rock Garden. Yeah, a chart to show you where the major rocks east of the channel are would be good.

West of the channel in 3 feet or more is fairly clear. Watch out for spoil piles on each side of the channel out by the birdrack (some call it the tripod, but it has four legs). You can feel pretty good running east of channel at WOT after you pass the bird rack (stay south of the spoil pile for half-mile or so); move in toward shore from there.

You can feel good about finding no rocks out along the St. Marks Wildlife Refuge markers (a line of small white buoys running E-W about 2 mile offshore.

Give us a report.

[leesburgga]

I assume you have already made it to St. Marks and back, but if not or for other first timers in the area -- excellent advice from harmsway on the spoils on each side of the birdrack. both are larger than they appear...when you think you are past them, go a little further...there is a good rock pile (oyster bar) about a third of the way from the mouth to the bird rack on the west side of the channel...it will be well above water at low tide...during high tide, well, you know...