Apalachicola River Information

APALACHICOLA RIVER (Jackson, Gadsden, Calhoun, Gulf, Liberty, and Franklin counties): The Apalachicola River runs from Lake Seminole, on the Florida-Georgia border at Chattahoochee, 106 miles south through the Panhandle to the Gulf of Mexico, at the town of Apalachicola. In terms of volume of water discharged, it is Florida's largest river. While there are many areas of good fishing along the Apalachicola River, the best areas are the upper river, which is influenced by discharge from Lake Seminole, and the lower river, which is influenced by Apalachicola Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. Bag and size limits follow those for Northwest Florida, which include a 12-inch minimum size limit for largemouth bass (bag limit of five) and an 18-inch minimum size limit for striped bass (bag limit of three).

Visit the Florida Wildlife Commission for current Hunting and fishing regulations.

The lower Apalachicola River consists of the main river channel and the tributaries which form the delta: the St. Marks River, Little St. Marks River, and East River. Shoreline access is available only from the public docks on the waterfront in Apalachicola and at the City Dock (Ten-foot Hole) under the Hwy. 98 Bridge. Public boating access include the City Dock, Gardner Landing on East River, Cash Creek off of Hwy. 65, and Magnolia Bluff on the east end of the Hwy 98 Bridge in East Point. Private launching facilities can be found at several marinas in Apalachicola, in East Point, and Howard's Creek off the Brother's River, and on Searcy Creek (Intercostal Waterway) in White City. FWC and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service annually stock striped bass and sunshine bass in the lower river. Click HERE for an aerial photo of the lower Apalchicola River.
Aerial photos provided by TERRASERVER USA

The upper Apalachicola River has good shore access from Jim Woodruff Dam to Race Shoal (0.9 miles) on the east bank, and from the dam to Hwy. 90 (0.6 miles) on the west bank. Access above Hwy 90 is on Corps of Engineers (COE) property and includes a fishing catwalk adjacent to the powerhouse at the dam. Boat landings are also located at Chattahoochee, Sneads, Aspalaga (Navigation Mile 98.9), and Ocheesee (NM93.9). Click Here for an aerial photo of the Upper Apalachicola River.

Striped bass and sunshine bass fishing in the lower Apalachicola River and the Intercostal Waterway may be slower this fall than last year because of the low discharge from Lake Seminole during the spring. However, water release following tropical storms during August and September may be enough to replenish stocks. In addition, 100,000 phase II (8 to 12-inch fish) striped bass from the 2002 year class and 52,000 from the 2003 year class were released into the river downstream of Jim Woodruff Dam. The two-year-old fish should provide some good action, and all should be larger than the 18-inch minimum size limit. Few of the one-year-old fish will be of harvestable size before December or January. Approximately 5,000 of the striped bass released in the Apalachicola River were marked with anchor tags attached to the fish’s belly. Please clip the tag and return it to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service or FWC.

Larger fish that have been inactive during the summer months in cooler water refuges will begin foraging throughout the lower river as water temperatures decline in late October and early November. Best bets will be bottom fishing with shrimp, live or fresh, near the mouths of the Apalachicola, St. Marks, Little St. Marks, and East rivers, and along the Gulf County Canal and Inter coastal Waterway near Port St. Joe and White City. Larger striped bass may be more readily caught with buck tail jigs or crank baits near bridge pilings and along deep channels and drop-offs.

For best results, fish the outgoing tides at the river mouths or the slack tides near bridge pilings. The bag limit for stripers, hybrids, and white bass is 20 fish per day, aggregate, but only three may be striped bass and must be a minimum of 18 inches total length.

In the spring (February, March and April) and the Fall (September, October and November) is normally a best time for good largemouth bass fishing in the lower river. Dipping live shrimp along the steeper, grass-lined banks of the St. Marks and East rivers and the smaller sloughs, such as Montgomery Slough and Saltwater Creek, is one of the more popular methods. Howerver, all year long Plastic worms, top water baits and Spinner baits fished along the banks and weed lines of the larger channels and in Lake Wimico are also very productive.

CATFISH? We got'em!!!!
The largest of our catfish are the blue catfish and flathead catfish, which are found primarily in north Florida rivers. The state records for these fish are 61.5 and 48.4 pounds, respectively. Then there is the ubiquitous channel catfish, the same species raised throughout the south in aquaculture farms for grocery stores, and its close cousin the white catfish. Closely related to these other catfish are the bullheads,or (Flatheads) which still have the typical catfish whiskers (barbels) but have a rounded tail, rather than a forked tail. Brown and yellow bullheads are the most common in Florida. One more note, channel or white catfish, or bullheads, are a great starting point for kids, since simple equipment fished from the shore or a pier can provide consistent action.

Species: Channel catfish, flathead catfish.
When: Big channels late May and early June. Year-round for small catfish, but spring, summer, and fall months are best. Flatheads beginning April. Good fishing spring through late fall months mostly at night.
Where: River from Jim Woodruff Dam south to north of Apalachicola. Old creek beds in Lake Seminole backwaters. Mouths of tributaries. Ocheesee Landing is a hot spot.

For more information contact Riverview Bait & Tackle (850-663-2462) in Chattahoochee, Bay City Marina (850-653-9294) or Scipio Creek Marina (850-653-8030) in Apalachicola, and Fisherman’s Choice (850-670-8808) in Eastpoint.