When the sun drops on the St. Johns River, the fishing turns on. Night fishing near Orlando means cool air, lit up water, and a cooler you can actually fill. When the freshwater shrimp are running, you dip net those too. At Switchgrass Outfitters, we rig the boat with pole lights and put you right on the after dark bite.
Want to book a night? Call (321) 900-2494 or reach out to our team and we will find you a date.
What can you catch night fishing near Orlando?
Catfish are the bread and butter after dark, along with panfish and other biters that move up to feed under the lights. The reds and greens off the pole lights look wild on the black water, and the fish do not seem to mind them one bit.
The bonus is the freshwater shrimp. When they are running, we dip net them right alongside the fishing, and they cook up as good as anything you will pull out of this river. A night fishing and shrimping trip runs about four hours, which is plenty of time to work a few spots and see what the night gives you.
You keep what you catch, within Florida limits, so bring a cooler if you want to take dinner home. Catfish fry up beautifully, and the shrimp are the kind of treat people drive a long way for. Check current state rules for any license you might need to keep fish, and we will point you in the right direction before you head out.
When is the St. Johns freshwater shrimp run?
The run comes and goes with water temperature and rain, generally in the cooler months, and it fires hardest on the darker nights of the month when there is little moon. Old timers have chased it on this river for generations.
I will be straight with you, because the timing shifts every year. Some weeks the shrimp are thick and some weeks they are not, so call before you book and I will tell you honestly whether they are moving. When they are, you scoop them by the bucket under the lights, and a shrimp boil after the trip is hard to beat. Shrimp timing varies, so please confirm the run with us when you call.
Even when the shrimp are not moving, the catfish do not care about the moon and bite under the lights all season long. So a slow shrimp night is still a good fishing night, which is why we run these trips year round instead of only during the run.
Why fish at night from an airboat?
Two reasons: the heat is gone and the fish are hungry. A summer afternoon on the St. Johns can cook you, but by night the air is cool, the water comes alive under the lights, and the bite picks up.
It also makes a great family night. Kids who would fry in the midday sun do just fine after dark, and there is something about a lit up boat on black water that hooks them for life. We launch from Christmas, Florida, about 30 minutes east of Orlando, and a trip is $1000 for about four hours on the water. Prefer to hunt your fish? A bow fishing trip puts a bow in your hands instead of a rod.
The whole trip is private, just your group, so nobody rushes you off your spot. We can sit on a productive light as long as the fish keep coming, or move and cover water if they go quiet. That flexibility is the difference between a guided night and fishing off a public bank hoping for the best.
Bring a cooler and let's fill it. Call (321) 900-2494 or book your night trip to get on the water after dark.
