Overlook Park, Longboat Key Fishing

Overlook Park, Longboat Key is a small park on New Pass that the town describes as a wonderful place to fish, picnic and watch the boats, and it doubles as the gateway to the bay shoreline of Quick Point Nature Preserve.

• Pass fishing for snook, sheepshead, snapper and jacks beside the New Pass bridge
• Seagrass beds along Quick Point for trout and redfish
• Spanish mackerel and ladyfish on the spring and fall runs
• Open 5 a.m. to 11 p.m., with the gate locked at night

The park is at 101 Gulf of Mexico Drive, at the south end of Longboat Key just north of the New Pass bridge, across the pass from City Island.

• The land belongs to the Florida Department of Transportation and is maintained by the Town of Longboat Key
• Park in the lot inside the park, which also serves Quick Point Nature Preserve; the town lists no parking fee, but check posted signs
• The gate is locked at 11 p.m., and no parking is allowed between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m.
• A wooden walkway under the New Pass bridge leads from the park into Quick Point on the bay side
• The walk from the car to the water is short

New Pass mixes clean Gulf water with Sarasota Bay, so the fish change with the season.

• Spring (Mar-May): Spanish mackerel and ladyfish chase bait through the pass, snook move onto the pass shorelines, and trout feed on the Quick Point grass flats
• Summer (Jun-Aug): snook, mangrove snapper and jacks along the pass, with redfish around the mangroves on the higher tides
• Fall (Sep-Nov): the second mackerel run, redfish and trout on the flats, and pompano along sandy edges of the pass
• Winter (Dec-Feb): sheepshead and black drum around the bridge pilings and hard bottom, and trout on the deeper grass edges on cold days

Medium spinning tackle with 15 to 20 lb braid handles almost everything here.

• Pass: a 1/2 to 1 oz jig with a shrimp tail, or a live shrimp on a knocker rig, bounced along the bottom on the moving tide
• Snook and redfish: live pilchards or shrimp on a 2/0 circle hook with 30 lb fluorocarbon, worked along the shoreline edges in low light
• Sheepshead and black drum: fiddler crabs or shrimp on a short leader and a strong 1/0 hook near hard structure
• Mackerel and ladyfish: small silver spoons or jigs, with a short bite leader for mackerel
• Trout on the Quick Point flats: a popping cork over live shrimp, or a soft plastic on a light jig head

NOAA's Longboat Key prediction station, less than a mile away, shows two highs and two lows of uneven size on most days, usually about a foot apart and up to two feet on the biggest tides, but even that small range pushes a lot of water through New Pass.

• Moving water is everything in the pass; the slack between tides is the slowest time
• The incoming tide brings cleaner Gulf water and usually the best clarity
• The outgoing tide drains bait off the grass flats and draws snook and trout to the edges
• Strong south or west winds chop up the pass; the bay shoreline at Quick Point is more sheltered
• Low tides leave the flats very shallow, so fish the deeper edges then

New Pass is a boat channel with a strong current, so treat this as shoreline fishing with care.

• Never swim or wade out into the pass; the current is strong and boats run close to shore
• Stay off the bridge roadway and obey any signs posted around the bridge
• Stingrays rest on sandy bottoms, so shuffle your feet if you step into the shallows
• Summer afternoon storms bring lightning; leave at the first thunder
• No restrooms or drinking water are listed, so bring water and sun protection
• The town lists no accessible features; the route into Quick Point is a wooden walkway

This is a simple park, so come prepared.

• Parking inside the park, shared with visitors to Quick Point Nature Preserve
• Space to picnic; the town describes the park as a place to fish and picnic
• No restrooms, bait, tackle, food or drinking water are listed, so bring everything you need
• No lighting is listed for evening fishing
• The park gate is locked at 11 p.m., so plan to be packed up and out before then
• Pets are not allowed, apart from service animals

• Fish the last hours of the outgoing tide along the pass edge, when bait washes out of the bay
• Walk under the bridge into Quick Point and cast a popping cork over the grass along its bay shoreline for trout
• Leave the preserve's inner lagoons alone; the town's rules protect the animals living in them
• In winter, drop fiddler crabs close to the bridge pilings for sheepshead; bring them with you, since the town's rules protect the crabs and other animals in its parks
• Keep a small spoon rigged in spring and fall for mackerel busting bait in the pass
• Leave the dog at home: pets are not allowed in Overlook Park or Quick Point

Overlook Park is maintained by the Town of Longboat Key, whose park rules state that they do not prohibit fishing or cast nets thrown from the shore of town parks into the waters of the bay, pass or Gulf.

• Overlook Park and Quick Point Nature Preserve are closed from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m., with no parking in those hours
• No pets except service animals, no alcohol, no overnight camping, and no fires except in cooking grills
• The same rules protect plants and animals within town parks, so take nothing from the preserve's lagoons
• A Florida saltwater fishing license is required unless you are exempt
• Snook have their own seasons and rules; check FWC before keeping one
• Check current FWC rules for size, bag and season limits before keeping anything