Inshore on the flats, speckled trout and redfish can be found stalking the shallows in the early morning hours when temperatures are still cool and low light offers them the advantage of stealth. This is the best opportunity for those explosive surface strikes everyone loves to experience when throwing top-water lures. Once the sun gets up a little, I switch to a slow suspending plug or some other type of soft plastic bait.
As the day heats up, I like to shift my focus to fish that reside in deeper water where the heat of the day has little effect on their feeding habits. Mangrove snappers, red snappers, gag groupers and black sea bass offer plenty of action for everyone and all make delicious table fare.
Strong outgoing tides are still getting the big bull reds fired up around the bridges as they patrol the surface looking for crabs. If the tide is not falling hard, use your electronics to spot the redfish down deep and drop either a heavy jig or Carolina-rigged live bait down to them. Keep in mind that they’re catch and release only at that size so handle them with care and release them healthy.
Just off the flats and in open water throughout the bays, you can still find pretty good numbers of Spanish mackerel. While I rarely target them specifically, I do catch quite a few as by catch when fishing near drop offs and points or when flatlining over deeper structure. Mackerel have incredibly sharp teeth so using a light wire leader when targeting them will definitely help your success rate.
On the beaches, it seems everyone is catching tarpon. Since silvers kings are only migrating through our area, you might have to cover significant distances to locate schools of fish. Try not to pressure them too much and take the time to get in line with their movement. Tarpon will scrutinize most offerings and will eat artificial, live and dead baits. If you catch a tarpon, do not remove it from the water; take your photos boat-side or jump in the water with your trophy for a truly unique perspective.
One final note on courtesy: Lots of anglers put much time and energy into getting set up on tarpon so, if you see a boat waiting for a line of fish to come by, be nice and give them some space. Tarpon are challenging enough as it is and we all need to share our patch of water.
If you have questions about what's biting, how to catch them or would like to book a trip of your own, then give me a call or shoot me an email. Tight lines!
