Strong Evening Tide Boosts Late Fishing in Stuart Sunday

The St. Lucie Inlet will drain hard Sunday afternoon before surging back with one of the stronger evening tides of the spring season, NOAA tidal data shows — a pattern that savvy Stuart anglers know to work in their favor.

Sunday's tide schedule at Stuart runs as follows:

TODAY: Low tide arrives early at 4:04 a.m. at minus 0.1 feet, a gentle overnight drain. The morning high peaks at 10 a.m. at 2.9 feet — solid for navigating the inlet and pushing baitfish onto the flats. The afternoon low hits hard at 4:07 p.m. at minus 0.6 feet, one of the lowest readings of the week, exposing oyster bars and tightening current through the cuts. Plan accordingly if you're running a shallow-draft vessel in the Indian River Lagoon's southern reaches near Sewall's Point.

TONIGHT: The evening high builds to 3.5 feet at 10:43 p.m. — the day's biggest water movement and a notable push for this time of year. That rising tide through the late evening hours will concentrate snook and tarpon along lighted dock edges and the inlet jetties as bait stacks up against the current.

FOR BOATERS AND ANGLERS: The best fishing window Sunday shapes up in two phases — the incoming morning tide through mid-morning, and again after the 4:07 p.m. low as the flood begins rebuilding toward that strong 3.5-foot evening peak. The deep afternoon low means a hard outgoing current through St. Lucie Inlet from roughly one to five p.m.; use caution crossing the bar during that window, especially in vessels with drafts over three feet.

ALERTS: No active NWS watches, warnings or advisories are in effect for Martin County as of this report. Conditions can change — check NOAA's official forecast before departing the dock.

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