White Waters Paradise Bait & Tackle

White Waters Paradise Bait and Tackle sits at 74580 Overseas Highway on Lower Matecumbe Key, mile marker 74.5, opening at 7 every morning, seven days a week, and closing at 5:30. Live shrimp and crabs are in the tanks with frozen bait alongside, plus hooks, line, lures, rods and the accessories that go with them.

Lobstering is part of the pitch here rather than an afterthought. The shop gears people up for lobster season as readily as for a day of fishing, which in this stretch of the Keys is exactly what a lot of visitors come down for. There is outdoor apparel and a wall of gifts too, for the part of the trip that does not happen on the water.

The shop shares its address with Lobster Walk, a seafood market and restaurant, so bait on the way out and dinner on the way back is a walk across the lot rather than another stop on the highway. Call (305) 342-9113.