We have finally come into some nice weather for fishing and things are starting to take off. The cold front that just passed through brought the water temperature down a couple of degrees and brought out the foul weather gear and hats. A crisp NE wind should keep things heated up on the water for the next week.
Offshore look for Sailfish to move in to feed on the bait that is hanging around the reef. I have found fish in depths ranging from 30 feet to 200 feet. I have not been much past the 200 foot depth since fish were hitting in closer. Plain ballyhoo trolled on the outriggers picked up a few as did a blue and white Islander/Bally combination on the flat lines. With the nice steady breeze and the abundance of bait using a kite is about the best way to target Sailfish, Tuna, Kingfish and Dolphin. I have had Speedos, nice small Bluerunners and small bar Jacks in the chum slick and took the oopportunity to load up the baitwell while bottom fishing. Thread herring can be found on the inshore buoys and pilings and are the best sailfish baits. Some Dolphin are around and I found some fish working along a small weedline that was drifting around in the 180 foot depth. Nothing big and nothing to count on in the future. Blackfin Tunas are around and most of the fish are large. They will hit the trolled Ballyhoo and Threadfin on a kite but live chumming with Pilchards is the best way to target Blackfin. There is bait in good supply but it is pretty shallow and hard to reach if the tide is low.
On the reef the bottom fishing has been very good. Grouper are settling in to the shallower outside edge of the reef and will eat anything you get in front of them. Dead Squid, Thread Herring, ballyhoo and chunks of Bonito don’t last long on the bottom. Mutton Snapper like a nice strip of Bonito on a 10-12 foot 30 pound fluorocarbon leader and the Yellowtail bit continues to be strong. Keep the chum flowing and move around a little until you find where they are biting consistently.
Gulfside the fishing is starting to take off. There are some big schools of Mackerel out there and a quick stop while you are running to your spot can lead to some fun surface action. Tossing small flashy spoons or surface poppers will invite some awesome strikes form schools mixed with Cero, Spanish, Kings and Bonito. Wrecks and rockpiles are shaping up for a good bite of Cobia, Kingfish, Mackerel, Grouper, Mangrove Snapper, Mutton Snapper and Yellowtail.
We are winding down to the start of the closed season for Grouper on the Atlantic side so take advantage of the remainder of the year. Gulfside Grouper is closed in February and March and there is some more pending reg changes that could possibly hit us early next year on Snapper and deep
