Chris Hunter at Worldwide Sportsman reports that Snapper Creek (C2), Tamiami Canal (C4), and Snake Creek Canal (C9) are fishing great right now for peacock and largemouth bass. Also, tons of snook and tarpon are stacked near the dam locks due to the recent heavy rains.
Jacks, snook, snapper, and tarpon are available in Biscayne Bay. The same species can be caught fishing the jetties, particularly at night on an outgoing tide. A Jerry Rig with a live mullet or pilchard is the bait of choice.
Offshore, kingfish are starting to move around along with dolphin. There are some tuna in the gulfstream as well. Anglers deep jigging the reefs are catching snapper and grouper.
Check back every Wednesday for a new report and make sure to listen to Chris Hunter on the Florida Sportsman radio show on 1080 AM Saturday mornings at 7.-Tee Clarkson
South Florida Fishing Report 9/10
Recent weather patterns have made it difficult to get out on the water of late, but the fish are still around and ready to cooperate.
Chris Hunter at Worldwide Sportsman says fishing for dolphin and kingfish was excellent prior to the rain and wind and should continue to be so once things calm down.
Tarpon are loaded in the cuts and on the beaches. In Biscayne Bay, snook, tarpon, jacks, and snapper are the species of choice right now.
The canals continue to fish well for peacock bass, with Tamiami and South New River also providing some excellent action for tarpon and snook.
Check back every Wednesday for a new report and make sure to listen to Chris Hunter on the Florida Sportsman radio show on 1080 AM Saturday mornings at 7.-Tee Clarkson
South Florida Fishing Report 09/03/2008
Oh the wind and the rain. While the end of last week provided some decent permit fishing on strong tides along with some action for tarpon at night around the bridges, the weekend was a blow out. Unfortunately approaching storms Hannah and Ike will likely put an end to most fishing through the end of this week and the beginning of next.
Check back every Wednesday for a new report. –Tee Clarkson
South Florida Fishing Report 08/27/2008
David at The Fly Shop of Miami reports that the waters around Flamingo have cleared up since all the rain and that fishing for redfish, snook, and small tarpon is quite good. The peacock bass are also getting back on track in the canals with the lowering and clearing water.
Fishing in Biscayne Bay has been hit or miss for bonefish. If you can find one you are likely to find a bunch as the fish are schooled up. Tarpon fishing from the bridges at night has also been good of late.
Chris Hunter at Worldwide Sportsman in Miami says anglers on the beaches have been catching pompano and snook with the greatest concentrations of snook around the jetties. Mutton snapper are hanging around the jetties as well.
Offshore anglers are catching a variety of fish including kingfish, sailfish, dolphin and swordfish at night. A monster swordfish was caught this week weighing in at 1000 lbs!
Check back every Wednesday for a new report and make sure to listen to Chris Hunter on the Florida Sportsman radio show on 1080 AM Saturday mornings at 7.
South Florida Fishing Report 08/20/2008
Tropical storm Fay has made this week pretty much a wash as far as fishing is concerned. David at Biscayne Bay Fly Shop says anglers will just have to wait and see what happens once the storm has moved out. Things should clear up pretty quickly, although flats near the canals will likely be the worst, having the most run-off.
The peacock bass fishing will be slow until canals return to more normal levels. Spillways with moving water should flush bait, and will be a good bet for snook and smaller tarpon. Offshore, large swells will make fishing tough and unpleasant for a few days.
Check back every Wednesday for a new report. –Tee Clarkson
South Florida Fishing Report 08/13/2008
Fishing has been similar to last week in Biscayne Bay according to Captain Rich Smith. The bonefish and Permit are in their largest numbers on the ocean side of Elliott Key, especially in the areas of Dynamite Dock and Airport Flat in Key Largo. Normal crab pattern flies have been working well on the permit if you are skilled enough to put it in front of them.
Flamingo provided decent fishing last week until the wind shifted to the West over the weekend. Snook and reds were being caught all over the front side flats and especially around Bradley Key and Snake Bight flats. Also, this time of year the Black Drum are running around the flats of Garfield and Rankin Bight in schools of 20-50. A live shrimp on a ¼ oz jig head will do the trick. Red and white flies with the hook tied weed less will catch them as well. The backcountry area of Whitewater Bay has remained very good for medium sized tarpon. The fresh water level has risen enough in Hell’s Bay that the weeds have started to grow once again. This is a really good sign because they will provide a habitat for little bait fish to live unexposed to predators. Rich predicts that in the next few weeks all the backwoods areas of Hells Bay, Pearl Bay, and Lane Bay will come alive once again.
Chris Hunter at Worldwide Sportsman in Miami reports that peacock bass have been biting well early and late in the day.
There are plenty of snook and tarpon on the beach as well as snapper on the adjacent jetties. Fishing should take off for snapper and snook with the upcoming full moon. Fishing seems to be best at night when there is less traffic.
Offshore, dolphin is hit or miss. Between Elbow and Fowley Rock is a good place to start looking. Some wahoo and marlin are still being caught in the straights of Florida.
Check back every Wednesday for a new report and make sure to listen to Chris Hunter on the Florida Sportsman radio show on 1080 AM Saturday mornings at 7am.
South Florida Fishing Report 08/06/2008
Peacock bass have been going off in the morning and evenings according to Chris Hunter at Worldwide Sportsman in Miami. The fish are deep, but catchable during the middle of the day. Topwater baits are working great both early and late.
Anglers are catching snook and tarpon in the cuts with the best action coming at night. Drifting a live crab is almost a sure thing for tarpon. Pompano and snook are making up most of the catch on the beaches.
Offshore, the snapper are going off with the new moon. Anglers are heading deep for marlin and wahoo out of the Keys. Dolphin fishing is good with an occasional stray kingfish in the mix.
Check back every Wednesday for a new report and make sure to listen to Chris Hunter on the Florida Sportsman radio show on 1080 AM Saturday mornings at 7.
Fish have been concentrating on the ocean side of Elliott Key or on the east side of Biscayne Bay in areas that have lots of ocean current moving through according to Captain Rich Smith. The reason for this is heavy rains over the past few months have been draining into the bay which has lowered the salinity content on the western side. The best way to spot this is looking at the clarity of the water. The majority of fish don’t like this fresh water so they head saltier grounds on the ocean side. Good numbers of Bonefish and Permit are working the flats during the first part of the incoming tides.
In the everglades, Snook and Redfish are still all over the Florida Bay area during the morning and evening hours. The middle of the day becomes a little tougher due to extremely warm water. Tarpon actually turn on during these hours. Over the last few weeks rich has been consistently finding big numbers of Tarpon in the 50 Pound range eagerly eating surface to sub-surface baits. The Rapala Sub-Walk and the Rapala Twitching rap have been the two most consistent baits for these acrobatic fish.
South Florida Fishing Report 07/31/2008
This week has been a great week to be out on the water according to Captain Rich Smith. Biscayne Bay has been great for Permit and Bonefish. Because of the calm weather there have been tailing fish just about all day long. Bonefish and tarpon are best to target first thing in the morning. Bonefish because the temperature is lower and Tarpon because the wind is generally the calmest it is going to be during the day. After catching a bone or two, Rich likes to switch gears to Permit. If you have ever wanted to catch a permit now is the best time all year to try!
The Everglades has been great for just about anything you would like to catch, including Tarpon, Tarpon, and more Tarpon. The bait of choice is the Rapala Twitch Rap in the Chartreuse color on 50 Pound Fluorocarbon. These fish can be found in just about any creek mouth on the west coast of Flamingo. Calm winds and hot temperatures bring these fish into a rolling frenzy.
Check back every week for a new report.
–Tee Clarkson
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