Shark Fishing Is Exciting and Fun in 10,000 Islands

Everyone, it seems, is talking about sharks, but few are rigging for them. Let's change that.

September 26, 2025 By Lou Volpe

Lou Volpe is Florida Sportsman’s 10,000 Islands Field Editor

Sharks are apex predators and keystone species that play critical roles in maintaining the health of our oceans and thus should be treated with respect. However there’s a public image problem. A few species have reputations as potential man-eaters—and in Florida a great many are derided by anglers as fish-eaters, plucking snook, snapper and other potential catches off our lines.

What is often overlooked—besides the value sharks provide to the environment—are the incredible angling opportunities sharks provide to the sportfishing community.

The 10,000 Islands region of Florida, at the footsteps of Everglades National Park and Florida Bay, is a major nursery and breeding grounds for numerous species of sharks. Our fertile waters offer an abundance of biodiversity that provides the perfect environment for many species of sharks that claim this region as home.

In my humble opinion, the catch-and-release opportunities with a feisty shark are as exciting as any tarpon, sailfish, or amberjack. Sharks are aggressive feeders and will strike a wide array of natural and artificial baits. Sharks are powerful swimmers that will challenge anglers of every skill level, especially on light tackle. In our region we have a healthy population of several species, such as lemons, bonnetheads, sharpnose, nurse, blacktips, bulls and the ever impressive spinner sharks.

Where to start? Sharks in general aren’t as site-specific as many of our local gamefish. Sharks can be found in a wide variety of locations. For anglers who enjoy sight casting or perusing the flats and backcountry, it is not uncommon to see sharks tracking bait and tailing the flats. In this scenario having a pitch bait or lure ready is the best approach. Once you have identified the shark, you will have to position yourself in a way that you can present your bait as natural as possible in a manner that intersects the fish’s path. Even in these shallow water conditions you can expect a battle and to have your angling skills challenged.

If the extreme backcountry is not your forte, I suggest staging your boat adjacent to the outer islands near one of the many creeks, rivers or passes. These are locations where there is steady moving water and generally a continual flushing of bait. Sharks are opportunistic feeders and will strike a live bait as readily as a natural dead bait. To increase your odds for a hookup, I suggest having some form of mixed combination of live bait and natural dead bait such as live mullet, pinfish or herring, along with cut mullet or ladyfish. Specifically for sharks I also like to introduce chum. The type of chum you choose can vary, and whether you decide to use the conventional frozen block chum or simply deploy a steady stream of cut chunks of bait, the true purpose of chumming is to introduce scent and to stimulate a feeding response that will elicit the attention of sharks. And rest assured, they will find you!

As mentioned, this is a region where juvenile sharks predominate. But even a juvenile bull or lemon, at 50 or 60 pounds, is a tremendous fighter. Blacktips of any size are incredible battlers, frequently jumping and making long, unpredictable runs. For tackle, I suggest using at least a 15- to 30-pound class outfit. If fishing primarily in shallow inshore and nearshore waters, I prefer a spinning outfit loaded with 30-pound braided line. I add a top shot or what I refer to as an extended leader of approximately 10 feet of 50-pound fluorocarbon. I attach the top shot to a short 12-inch piece of single strand wire leader which I fasten to a 6/0 circle style hook via a haywire twist. The benefit of adding the top shot or extended leader of fluorocarbon is to provide a little added stretch during the battle and additionally to provide an effective means to handle the shark via the leader. The top shot allows you to safely handle the fish for a release or to take a memorable photograph. When targeting sharks, I strongly recommend using a circle style hook, having a pair of gloves, and always having a good quality dehooking device.

Going after large bull sharks or hammerheads out on the Gulf? You’ll need exponentially heavier gear—but the assembly is basically the same. Everything’s just scaled up.

In the end, sharks will be sharks. Their presence may present something of a nuisance to fishermen going after permit on the wrecks, snook along rivermouth flats or snapper offshore.

Why not recalibrate your expectations and start treating sharks like sportfish? I am here to tell you, if you have not tried it lately you are missing out on an exciting adventure.