Fishing in January — Sebastian, Florida

January fishing at Sebastian Inlet is a cold-water bite of black drum, sheepshead, pompano, whiting, flounder, bluefish and Spanish mackerel, with snook closed to harvest all month.

The Sebastian Inlet District weekly fishing report, posted on Mondays, covers every January since the index began in late December 2024, and one earlier January report states its own year. The January 1, 2024 report listed the whole cast: black drum, sheepshead, whiting, black margates, small bluefish, small Spanish mackerel, snook, redfish, spotted seatrout, pompano and flounder caught throughout the inlet, a mix the guide credited to cold water that had increased the bite of cool-water fish.

Later Januaries followed suit with a different leader each year. In 2025 the cold kept the action thin, with pompano and whiting the most reliable fish. In 2026 the month opened with flounder of 3 to 5 pounds and black drum on clams (January 5, 2026), turned to a Spanish mackerel bite at the north jetty (January 12, 2026), and closed with black drum of 24 to 28 inches and a pompano that measured 17 inches to the fork near the cleaning table (January 26, 2026).

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Sebastian Inlet water in January usually runs in the 60s, and the District's reports tie the best days to stretches above about 65 degrees.

The Sebastian Inlet District's reports give the numbers. Water stood at 65 to 69 degrees on January 1, 2024, too cold at 64 degrees on January 6, 2025, 62 degrees on January 13, 2025 and 61 to 62 degrees on January 21, 2025, a week the guide called a challenge for fishing. In 2026, the water read 65 to 67 degrees on January 5, 64 degrees after the cold front of mid January (January 20, 2026), and warmed from 62 to a decent 67 degrees by January 26.

The long-term average agrees. NOAA's Coastal Water Temperature Guide lists a January monthly average of 66.8 degrees at Trident Pier in Port Canaveral, the nearest listed station north of Sebastian, and 74.5 degrees at Lake Worth Pier to the south. Cold snaps matter at Sebastian Inlet: on January 13, 2025 the guide recalled 2010, when the water stayed in the 50s for an extended time and caused a bad snook kill.

On the Sebastian Inlet jetties in January, black drum and sheepshead hold on the rocks and pilings while bluefish and Spanish mackerel feed at the tips.

Black drum are the January headline at the north jetty. The January 1, 2024 report said most black drum seen were 20 to 28 inches, taken on clams and dead shrimp at the tip and beach side, and in 2026 the January 26 report again put most fish in the 24 to 28-inch range. Sheepshead work the pilings: in 2024 most were caught between the pilings on small sandfleas or cut shrimp.

Bluefish and Spanish mackerel take over the tips in some Januaries. The January 12, 2026 report said about the only action at the Sebastian Inlet north jetty for several days was the Spanish mackerel bite, with lots of fish on live pilchards, small white jigs, silver spoons and gotcha lures. A week later, before the cold front, the bluefish bite turned frantic, with anglers flinging blues over the rails everywhere. Flounder move inside after the season reopens in December; on January 5, 2026, the T-dock area buzz was about flounder between the cleaning station and the bridge.

Tides shape every one of these bites. The January 1, 2024 report found the incoming tides most productive because the water was cleaner, with the outgoing good until river runoff dirtied it. NOAA publishes tide predictions for station 8722004, Sebastian Inlet bridge.

The Sebastian Inlet beaches in January produce pompano and whiting on sandfleas and shrimp whenever the surf is clean.

Pompano lead the surf in January. On January 6, 2025, there was a decent pompano bite early in the morning at the Sebastian Inlet south jetty on fleas and shrimp, and on January 13, 2025 anglers were catching whiting and pompano on the beach just south of the jetty despite 62-degree water. On January 12, 2026, pompano were hitting at the northernmost parking lot area of Sebastian Inlet State Park, along with whiting and small black drum on shrimp and sandfleas, because the water was cleaner on that side.

Whiting fill in on most days. The 2024 report noted nice whiting of one to two pounds on the beach side of the north jetty on cut dead shrimp. The lagoon offers a quieter option: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Pelican Island National Wildlife Refuge permits fishing in the open water of the Indian River Lagoon north of Sebastian, listing redfish, snook, sea trout and flounder among its sportfish.

Two FWC dates frame January at Sebastian: spotted seatrout reopen on January 1, and snook stay closed through January 31.

Spotted seatrout reopen on January 1 in FWC's Indian River Lagoon region, after a November 1 through December 31 closure, with a 15 to 19-inch slot and two fish per person per day (FWC seatrout rules). The District marked the date in 2024, noting that the seatrout season had just opened on January 1, and on January 26, 2026 the guide described targeting spotted seatrout on live shrimp.

Snook remain closed in the Indian River Lagoon region from December 15 through January 31 (FWC snook rules). The January 5, 2026 report reminded Sebastian Inlet anglers that small snook caught on the inlet side could not be kept, since the season was closed until February 1.