From Pier or Kayak, Shell Mound Park Has Awesome Inshore Fishing

One has to really want to get to Shell Mound. And that’s a good thing. Located in Levy County, this natural area is part of the Lower Suwannee and Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuge and has served as a gem of a location for inshore fishing, birding, hunting and camping for many years. As its name suggests, the park—five acres in size and at an elevation of 28 feet—was created by the accumulation of centuries of discarded oyster, clams, and other marine shells.

Archeologists estimate that indigenous people populated this area as early as 2,500 BC, slowly bolstering the coastal landscape with an estimated 1.2 billion oyster shells. Their product became a handy refuge from hurricanes and a vibrant habitat for Florida’s first people to live, work, and play as well as an important ritual site. Today, trees protect the midden, providing shaded hiking trails, a modern campsite, and two primitive boat ramps (one paved), along with a fishing pier scheduled for repair from last year’s storms.

Surrounded by mudflats and salt marsh, the Shell Mound region is dotted with islands and is suitable only for canoes, kayaks, johnboats and airboats. Boating activity is dependent on the tides, especially during winter when tidal patterns shift and the big low tides dominate daylight hours. High daytime tides here usually fall during the full moon week and dark of the moon week.

Shell Mound is Epicenter for Black Drum

While it may seem like hostile country to some, the ancients knew and appreciated that this salt marsh country produces a host of shellfish and finfish including mullet, redfish, black drum, seatrout and more recently, snook. This region is also likely the epicenter for Florida’s population of black drum. In summer months, their tails, some as large as the bushy end of a broom, can be seen waggling here and there on each incoming tide. They are easily approached with a small boat and if offered half a blue crab, will scarf it down on most days. Pier-bound anglers can heave that same bait out 30 yards or more to deeper water, and wait for a bite. Upper-slot redfish have been known to grab those crab baits too. Hang on when they do!

Blue crabs are numerous during summer, providing free bait (or dinner) for those armed with a couple of crab lines, chicken necks and a 6-foot net for scooping crabs. One can leave a crab bait set out, while anchored and fishing. Most of these crab-eating black drum average about 30 pounds. While they aren’t really edible, these big drum give a decent fight and good practice for their cousin, the redfish. Another bonus: If you catch a mess of big blue crabs, save some for the kitchen.

Because of numerous islands, this is prime coastal habitat for inshore fishing from small craft even when the wind blows. Off the beaten path, it receives little fishing pressure. There are no additional boat ramps for a long ways in any direction. Lots of room for the fish with scant boat traffic and certainly no Jet Skis. There is very little floating grass, so topwater plugs are great for keeping hooks above those sharp oysters. These shellfish favor soft, muddy bottoms, so this is not the place to wade fish. If you have to go ashore from your boat, wear protective footwear like high-tops or rubber boots. This past March, two teenage girls were barefoot on paddle boards and were blown about 10 miles away from Cedar Key, finally landing on an oyster bar that dried up at low tide. It must have been a tough night out there with cut feet, sitting on a paddle board. Next day they were rescued by two fishing guides, both wearing rubber boots. The teenagers learned the hard way that this ain’t Disney World.

October for Reds, Trout

Pier anglers here use spin tackle that will cast a long ways to deeper water and October is a favorite month, especially for reds and trout. To the south towards Cedar Key on the far horizon is a maze of winding channels and islands with deep holes and lots of oyster reefs, which provide great fishing during winter. That is, if you can reach those hidden deep spots where redfish gather during low tide. A word of caution: I would not even run my johnboat in there without local knowledge in my boat and pointing the way. To the north, one can navigate a boat into the open Gulf and run miles towards the mouth of the Suwannee River where there are scenic islands and creeks and great fish habitat, including what they call Preacher’s Hole, a deep couple of acres surrounded by pine forest. Lack of rain in this region improves saltwater fishing, because extensive runoff from the Suwannee River can freshen the Gulf all the way to Cedar Key.

Prowling these murky waters each summer are bull sharks that can show up from nowhere, homing in on hooked fish like missiles. Case in point: A seasoned kayaker was paddling a mile off Shell Mound when his light craft was attacked by four bull sharks (it was in June, so it might have been mating season). He couldn’t see the length of the sharks, but said their heads were about 20 inches across. He held on for dear life and said it was like riding a bucking bronco. The sharks finally left and he paddled back to the ramp with water leaking in from tooth bites.

Camping at the Shell Mound Campground is certainly cheap by today’s standards, with $25 for electric and water, $20 for electric only, or $10 for a primitive campsite. RV’s are perhaps more practical here during summer. Bring gnat spray for the biting no-seeums; they show up every morning and evening and “they hungry!” The yellow flies are prevalent during the day, so the bugs are working in shifts. Repairs on the camp’s electric hookups began June 1. For updates on hurricane repairs, the campground can be reached at 352-221-4466.

Tired of fishing? There are several archaeological trails in the area, one of them going right through the horseshoe-shaped ridge made of oyster shells cooked and piled up so long ago. Be sure to wear clothing protective from the bugs, not shorts and flip-flops.

If You Go to Shell Mound

Though Shell Mound may be off the beaten path, it’s not too far from shopping options. Chiefland is 32 miles way with its big box stores and other amenities. A new tackle store named Cedar Key Bait and Tackle is located near the tiny community of Rosewood some 10.5 miles from Shell Mound on Hwy. 24 on the way into Cedar Key. They offer burgers and bait among other things, including coastal fishing tackle and several kinds of live bait, too. They can be reached at 352-316-3023.

Cedar Key, eight miles from Shell Mound, has several restaurants and fine Air B&Bs. Our favorite is the Island Hotel, built in 1860 or so, host to Federal officers when their fleet anchored in the harbor. The hotel has a high-ceiling dining room, waiting room, small bar, outdoor patio seating, and weekend live music. And a few bedrooms upstairs. For a more festive and outdoor atmosphere, look for the Low-key Hideaway and Tiki Bar in Cedar Key that offers strong beverages, meals and extensive multi-level seating facing the sunset. Fowler’s Bluff on the Suwannee River is 17 miles from Shell Mound and offers steaks and seafood on the water. The restaurant is called Treasure Camp, so-named because there have been numerous attempts to find Jean Lafitte’s buried pirate treasure on that very site. Kayakers from miles upriver often pull out here to rest and enjoy a hearty meal, after watching jumping sturgeon during the warm months.

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• This article was featured as a “Florida Gem” in the August-September issue of Florida Sportsman magazine. Click to subscribe.

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