I've only be fishing for about five months but I have a pretty good idea of how Walton Rd. works. Walton Rd. is on the West side of the Indian River Lagoon between Stuart (Jensen Beach) and Fort Pierce. The defined area is mine, technically Walton Rd is just the intersection of Walton Rd and S. Indian River Drive. There are 7 piers from Walton Scrub down the the last pier past the Walton Rd./ Indian River Dr. intersection (not counting the 4 fallen ones that just have pilings). The distance of the Walton fishing area is over 1 1/2miles. There are two piers North but they are almost a half mile north so it would be hard to include those.
Walton Road is heavily fished. Some people start at Walton Rd. and fish up to the 1st pier near Walton Scrub. I've heard fish stories of the big snook and trout at Walton. I've see a photo of a 6 lb. trout; talked to a guy who landed a big 15 lb snook. I've be told by a pro redfisherman that it was one of the best spots in the area to catch redfish. I have my own accounts, which you can read about here- of a 25+ lb snook and a 15+ jack- pulled from these waters. In my accounts I refer to these locations- these piers and weed-beds, and perhaps if this helps someone else- so be it.
Walton North: There is parking at Walton Scrub about 1 mile North from the Walton/Indian River intersection.
Directly East from Walton Scrub is a shallow weedy area then a sand bar (the 1st sandbar), then the edge of the 2nd weed bed.
If you go North there's a shallow flat, then the sand bar disappears for about 70 yards then forms again and goes up near the two piers which are 1/2 mile away. Just past Walton Scrub, there is parking on the right side on along Indian River Dr.- if you want get to the water here, the bank isn't as steep. It's possible to wade North and fish those two piers 1/2 mile away- I haven't done it-- yet! The shallow flat extends between the sandbars and out into the Lagoon proper.
If you go North from Walton Scrub out deep, it's shallower than the Walton Scrub area and although I've caught fish there, the slightly deeper Scrub area is better. The map below (not in correct proportion- click to enlarge) starts at Walton Scrub which is in the top left corner and is a parking area.
Walton Scrub
Walton Road Overview (click to enlarge)
If you look at the map, directly out from Walton Scrub is the 1st sandbar and 2nd weed-bed which runs into the Lagoon. If you go down 1 mile you'll see Walton Rd. from the bottom left intersecting with S. Indian River Dr. There's a steep bank, an incline from the water up to the road. In many places it's too steep to climb. There are some houses and you can't park in some spots. Be careful if you're climbing up or down- it's easy to fall and hurt yourself!!!
North Shallow: The shallow area from Walton Scrub is not that shallow unless it's low tide. At high tide it's 4-5 feet deep. It extends South to the 1st pier and it become very shallow and holds fewer fish. It extends North where it goes into the shallow flat and from there into the Lagoon proper. There are times when the fish are there, and surprisingly, not caught elsewhere. Usually there are small snook, Jack, flounder, sheepshead, small black drum, Jack, catfish and trout. If you fish with lures you can catch Jack, trout, snook, an occasional flounder, and sometimes ladyfish, when they move in there.
North (deep) in the Lagoon proper: On the other side of the sandbar at Walton Scrub is the main Lagoon. This deeper area is what I call the 2nd weedbed. It is sparsely weedy in the winter and more weedy in the summer- there are clumps of weeds and they hold fish. It's slightly deeper (1 foot) than the 1st weed bed. There are less weeds as you go South. There are 4 white posts (which I call "the cut") that mark the end of the 2nd weedbed. At the white posts it is deeper and they mark the division between the 2nd and 3rd weed-beds. Big fish cruise up and down this area and trout move in with the tide. There are few snook and redfish but they may be big- like the 25 pounder I caught- you never know. Schools of Jack go up and down the area and it's not unusual to catch Jack and trout here. There are also Ladyfish at times, but usually they aren't around.
Central Walton: I'm starting at the first pier and going South to the 6th pier, which is located just North on the Walton/Indian River intersection. Besides the piers, there's two open areas with mangroves which can be fished on high tide.
Central Shallow: The 1st, 2nd, 4th and 6th piers are good if there's enough water present. There are holes, muck, underwater objects and deep spots so watch your step. Some waders just cast along the shoreline and under piers for snook, sometimes redfish, Jack and an occasional trout. Small snook are usually around and they like to hang out around the piers and under them. On the other side of the first thee piers is a shallow flat. The 2nd sandbar is on other side of the 4th and 5th piers. You can fish on the Lagoon side of the piers (West of the sandbar) and the water is 4 feet deep on high tide and the fish move back and forth through that area. It's not as good as the piers and shallow weeds and structure but it can be good. It's a staging area before the fish can move shallow.
Central Deep: It gets shallower when you reach the sandbar or shallow flats, then it gradually gets deeper as you go out into the Lagoon itself. The third weedbed is the thickest and holds fish- it is located out from the first three piers. It's shallow for a long ways in front of the third pier and you can wade out over 100 yards at low tide. Sometimes the trout are there when you can't catch them anywhere else (this is true for other fish but mainly trout). I've caught and seen redfish caught, as well as trout, snook, Jack and ladyfish-- all from this area. After the third pier there is a sandbar that runs almost to the 6th pier (it stops before the fallen pier). Then there are some weeds but it's a mostly a shallow flat.
1st Pier (White posts) Click to enlarge-- photo taken from South part of 3rd weed bed. The first pier is deeper in the middle part, which is where it holds fish.
3rd pier (slightly longer) Click to enlarge -- photo taken north of it in the 3rd weed-bed. See the shorter 2nd pier on the right. The 2nd pier usually holds no fish. There needs to be at least 3 1/2 feet of water (near high tide) on the piers to hold fish.
South Walton: This area begins at the intersection of Walton Road/Indian River Dr. where there is a fallen pier (with just white pilings left) and a clump of tall pine trees on the shoreline. This stretches all the way down to the last pier and is mostly open water with a sandbar.
South Walton Shallow- If you get in at Walton Rd., you are there. Some good fish come in after the January cold and feed in the shallows, which are over 4 feet deep at high tide. You can walk along the sand bar and cast near the shoreline and work all the way to the last pier. On good days I've caught half a dozen snook and some slot sized ones too. I also caught an 8 lb Jack there earlier this year. The pier is one of the best and it's isolated - a regular fish magnet.
South Walton Deep: At the end of the white (fallen) pier pilings is a swallow flat. I've seen boats come and stop just to fish there. It's three feet deep at low tide so it's not too shallow, and gradually goes deeper. There are some weeds so I call it the 5th weed-bed. If you go South from there you're on the other side of the sandbar. There are thin weeds and it's featureless and gets deeper as you go South.
Conclusion: This is the basic Walton area just under 2 miles long. Just think- it's only a small stretch of shoreline between Fort Pierce and Jensen Beach. I'll know more about it as time goes by and will update this when I can.
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