Shired Island Park Fishing

Shired Island Park is the kind of spot you have to want to reach: nine miles of lonely road, then a creek mouth, a strip of beach and endless oyster bars and marsh in the Lower Suwannee country.

• Seawall and short deck fishing at the mouth of Shired Creek
• Wading the shell and oyster bars for redfish and trout
• A county boat ramp with a staging dock
• Camping stopped after Hurricane Idalia; day visitors park and walk in

Shired Island is south of the junction of County Roads 351 and 357 in Dixie County, between Horseshoe Beach and Suwannee, beside the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge.

• Getting there: the park is about nine miles south of the junction of CR 351 and CR 357; follow the signs
• Since 2024 the county has blocked vehicles from the beach; park in the designated area and walk
• The boat ramp has a staging dock and gravel trailer parking
• Fees: the FWC ramp inventory lists none
• Surfaces are sand, shell and a concrete seawall

Oyster bars, creek channels and grass make this a strong inshore spot.

• Spring (Mar-May): redfish and spotted seatrout moving onto the bars, sheepshead finishing their spawn, the first Spanish mackerel offshore of the creek
• Summer (Jun-Aug): trout at dawn, redfish on the high tides, mangrove snapper and ladyfish in the creek
• Fall (Sep-Nov): the peak for schooling redfish and trout, flounder leaving the creeks
• Winter (Dec-Feb): sheepshead and black drum on the oyster bars and in the creek mouth

A light spinning rod with 10-15 lb braid and a 20 lb leader, plus a heavier rod for bottom baits.

• Live shrimp under a popping cork along the creek edges for trout
• Cut mullet or blue crab on a fish-finder rig in the creek mouth for redfish and black drum
• Fiddler crabs or shrimp on a short leader beside the oyster bars for sheepshead
• Gold spoons and weedless jerkbaits for redfish on the flooded bars
• Soft-plastic paddle-tails bounced along the channel for flounder
• Bring all your bait; none is sold nearby

Big Bend tides here have a good range, two uneven highs and lows on most days with roughly 2.5 to 4.5 feet from low to high (NOAA's Suwannee and Horseshoe Point stations), and the bars and flats go dry at low water.

• The first half of the falling tide pulls bait out of Shired Creek past the seawall
• The rising tide floods the oyster bars and brings redfish up to feed
• At dead low, fish the deepest part of the creek mouth
• North winds in winter make very low tides; south winds push water in
• Heavy rain freshens the creeks for days and moves fish toward the Gulf

This is a remote spot with limited services.

• Oyster bars cut; wear wading boots and watch your footing
• Shuffle your feet for stingrays when wading
• Do not get cut off on a bar by the rising tide
• No shade; summer heat and afternoon lightning are serious
• No-see-ums and mosquitoes are fierce at dawn and dusk
• Access is on foot from the parking; the seawall is the easiest place for someone who cannot wade

Facilities were basic before the storms and are reduced now.

• A public boat ramp with a staging dock and trailer parking, listed as open by the FWC
• A composting toilet (wheelchair accessible) and lighting at the ramp, per the FWC ramp inventory
• Camping stopped after Hurricane Idalia under the county's 2024 emergency rules; check whether the campground has reopened
• No stores, bait or tackle nearby; Horseshoe Beach and Cross City are the nearest supplies

• Plan the trip around a rising tide in the morning, so you are fishing when the bars flood
• Fill the cooler and the fuel tank in Cross City before the long drive in
• The seawall at the creek mouth is the best spot for anyone who does not want to wade
• Airboats use the area; expect some noise and keep lines clear of the ramp
• Pack serious bug spray; the marsh breeds no-see-ums
• Check Dixie County news before a trip; park rules changed after the storms

Shired Island Park is a Dixie County park beside the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge; posted county rules apply.

• The county stopped camping and barred vehicles from the beach in 2024; follow the posted signs
• A Florida saltwater fishing license is required unless you are exempt.
• Follow refuge rules if you fish or paddle into the Lower Suwannee NWR
• Shore-based shark fishing needs the free FWC shore-based shark fishing permit
• Check current FWC rules for size, bag and season limits before keeping anything.