Spanish mackerel schools color the fishfinder screen off Peck
Lake, south of St. Lucie Inlet.

Guide Matt Bagley cradles an inshore pompano.

Boats transit the locks on the South Fork of the St. Lucie; from
here you can cross Lake Okeechobee and reach the Gulf Coast.

Flats around Boy Scout Island produce the occasional inshore slam
of snook, seatrout and redfish.

When the pompano schools are in, it’s not unusual to catch fish
on consecutive casts.

Exposed limestone formations near the House of Refuge contrast
with the smooth sand beaches found to the north and south.

Many waterfront residents enjoy casting from their seawalls.

A pier below the new Roosevelt (U.S. 1) Bridge offers good shore
fishing.

Surf casters launch sand fleas past the breakers, hoping to score
on pompano.