But, you can save a little money and have fun trying to cast net your own!
As a shrimp lover and avid angler, I’m always on the hunt for the best local spots to catch delicious wild shrimp. Freshly caught shrimp taste amazing when cooked up at home. Their sweet, briny flavor puts grocery store shrimp to shame.
Over the years I’ve discovered some prime shrimping locations within driving distance where I can drop a net or pot and reliably haul in a good haul. If you want to skip the fish counter and catch your own shrimp, these are my picks for the top 10 places to catch shrimp near me.
1. Mosquito Lagoon – Florida
Located on central Florida’s Atlantic coast, Mosquito Lagoon is part of the Indian River Lagoon system. It’s a prime estuary environment that holds loads of shrimp. I use a cast net along the lagoon’s mangroves and grass flats. The shrimp here get pretty good size, and there are also tasty crabs to catch.
2. Aransas Bay – Texas
The Texas Gulf Coast is shrimp central when it comes to Southern shrimping. Aransas Bay near Rockport has consistently produced for me on kayak shrimping trips. I drop pots baited with fish scraps in seagrass areas and dock lights at night. Aransas Bay brown shrimp are amazing for shrimp tacos.
3. Winyah Bay – South Carolina
South Carolina’s coastline harbors some terrific shrimp grounds. I’ve had action-packed afternoons shrimping the flats near Georgetown in Winyah Bay. There are white shrimp and brown shrimp here, and they get huge in late summer. A small cast net is all you need to haul them in.
4. Biloxi Marsh – Louisiana
No list of shrimp hotspots is complete without the Biloxi Marsh in Louisiana This vast expanse of marsh west of New Orleans holds huge populations of white shrimp, I use a 6-foot cast net along the marsh edges to load up in late summer, Shrimp gumbo is on the menu that night!
5. Charleston Harbor – South Carolina
In South Carolina’s famous Charleston Harbor, there are plenty of shrimp to be caught right near the city. I’ve caught shrimp all along the harbor, but Shem Creek is especially productive The shrimp here taste great after a quick boil.
6. Steinhatchee River – Florida
In Florida’s Big Bend region, Steinhatchee River is a prime estuary for both shrimp and fish. I catch shrimp there drifting in my kayak or wading the flats. There are grass shrimp, brown shrimp and pink shrimp in the river depending on the season.
7. Biscayne Bay – Florida
Not far from Miami, Biscayne Bay offers excellent shrimping amid an urban backdrop. From the seawall or my kayak, I catch white shrimp and brown shrimp around dock lights, grass flats and channel edges. The shrimp here make amazing ceviche.
8. Charleston Flats – South Carolina
For tasty Carolina shrimp, I head just offshore to the Charleston Flats. These fertile nearshore waters harbor populations of brown shrimp, pink shrimp and white shrimp. I catch them from my boat using a cast net. The shrimp here are smaller but have great flavor.
9. Port Aransas – Texas
In South Texas, Port Aransas is a mecca for shrimp lovers. I catch shrimp right in the Port Aransas Ship Channel using a bait shrimp trap. There are also plenty of shrimp in the nearby grass flats. Texans know how to cook up these shrimp in amazing dishes.
10. Tampa Bay – Florida
Florida’s Gulf Coast offers some of the best shrimping in the country. In Tampa Bay, I drop shrimp pots along channel edges to catch pink shrimp, brown shrimp, and white shrimp depending on the season. These tasty shrimp make killer shrimp tacos and shrimp scampi.
Wherever you live along the Southern U.S. coast, there’s likely some good shrimping to be had nearby. Grab a cast net, bait pot, or kayak and get out there chasing shrimp this season. Catching and cooking your own local shrimp is one of life’s greatest pleasures for an angler and seafood lover like me.
Find And Cast Net Your Own Shrimp [VIDEO]
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Matt Lanier, another Fishing Coach, told me he had never thrown a cast net before while we were fishing.
I thought I’d teach him and you all a lesson since we were on top of a TON of shrimp.
Finding The Fish Help
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These regional plans will tell you exactly what kinds of places to visit in less than 10 minutes. All you have to do is click the video to begin, and you’ll know what to do on your next trip.
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You can use the Insider Community platform to find out what’s biting near you and to meet other members who fish in the same area. You can also keep track of your catches with it, so you can use past trips to help you guess what you’ll catch next.
