Happy Holidays

Report Date: December 1, 2013

We are now entering the winter months and the peak season for fishing in South Florida. From now thru May is when we start getting very busy. The cold fronts are moving in and the fishing is starting to heat up. The annual migratory pelagics are swimming by in big numbers, just three miles off the coast in our south florida waters.

This past month I was fortunate to do quite a few trips on the reef. Trolling has been the preferred method of fishing. We have been catching lots of blackfin tuna and mahi mahi this way. Most of the fish we have been catching are in 100-400 ft of water. When you can find a flock of birds the blackfins and skipjacks have been very active. We usually troll until we find a school. Once we find the school we throw live baits and top water lures which is a blast on light tackle.

On my daughter’s birthday which was Nov. 4 we went fishing on my brother’s boat the L and H out of Key Biscayne. The water was a bit sporty with seas up to six feet. The day started out trolling from Govt Cut to the south. My brother spotted a frigate bird on the water a few minutes into it. Shortly after he was yelling for us to get a bait. As soon as the bait hit the water we captured a nice 20lb cow dolphin. It was a great start to the day. We continued trolling south picking away at some nice skipjack and blackfin tunas. By the time we got to Key Biscayne a hard edge had formed from blue-green water. There was a nice swell on the water which made for some great tailing conditions. Within five minutes of following the edge my brother spotted a big white marlin cruising to the south. We baited the fish twice finally getting an intense bite right behind the boat. Due to some bad luck we missed the fish but it was an incredible sight to see. About an hour later on the same edge we spotted another marlin tailing on the surface. We threw another live bait at it but this time the fish raced up, crushed the bait, and faded off. White marlin are very rare to see in South Florida but were fortunate to encounter two in the same day. Approaching the end of the day with very little time left my daughter was able to capture a beautiful sailfish to end the day.

  Later in the month I had several kids trips. On these charters I try to find the kids action so they don’t get bored. On the children trips we go out with a well full of live pilchards and chum the shallow reefs. Spanish mackerel, blue runners, mutton snappers, and yellowtail snappers have been the ticket. It is a good learning experience because if you miss one or two bites you know it won’t be long till you get another strike.

  I was able to make one Bahama trip this month. We fished off Bimini. The target species were wahoo in the morning and bottom fish in the afternoon . The morning started off good with a nice 30lb wahoo right off the bat. After that our odds changed and we lost five fish in a row. When the bite slowed down we later targeted the bottom and had some very good action. Big yellow eye snappers, button snappers, vermillions, and amberjacks were good to us. On our last drop we hooked into something big. About thirty minutes later there was an enormous tiger shark to the boat. What a sight! We cut the hook out and sent her back on her way to fight another day.

  I am still hearing some good reports for sailfish, dolphin, and some big kingfish on the reef. The tarpon are also showing up in good numbers off the beach.

Whether it is quality or quantity you are looking for we can accommodate to your desires. Look forward to fishing with you and have a great holiday season!

 

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