October 27, 2006 at 9:51 pm · Filed under Key West Flats Fishing, Key West Deep Sea Fishing
We felt the first of our winter weather early in the week. Monday the high didn’t even reach 80 in some parts of the Keys. Regardless there have still been some fish caught on the flats, but it has slowed down for the moment.
Key West Fishing
Permit are the choice fish this time of year on the flats. There is a small window of opportunity this month and into November to get some big permit on the flats. Bonefishing remains good but if the water warms up it will get even better. For those anglers looking for tarpon, you may have to just wait a bit for some warmer weather. Juvenile tarpon will be around but may not be willing to eat.
Some of the other species that make a strong comeback to the flats in the fall after the water temps drop a bit are the barracuda. Fly rodders should take aim at this species for their acrobatic jumps and reel screaming ability. They are powerful fish. For beginning fly rodders it is a good species to get your line wet with. They will often crash a fly without hesitation and many times they take the fly right at the boat.
In addition to barracuda there are Crevalle jacks that can get up into the 20- pound range, blacktip sharks, mutton snapper, redfish, snook,ladyfish (sometimes called the poor man’s tarpon) and sea trout. All these species spend the winter in our area and give us lots of opportunities with a flyrod or with a conventional spinning rod.
Offshore fishing has equally changed but for the better. Sailfishing has been super this week. Sailfish do like a little rougher weather and our winds being 15- to 20- knots have made that possible. This is not the prime time for sailfish but it is certainly a good time to get down here if you want to hook one.
Reef fishing has been good too for yellowtail snapper, grouper and mutton snapper. Deeper wrecks will hold amberjack, wahoo, and blackfin tuna. We are getting into our prime time for blackfin tuna. It will last into January and then die off until April and May when the tuna can be found behind the shrimp boats in the Gulf of Mexico.
If you are getting away from the cold this winter, think about a saltwater fishing trip to the Keys.
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October 22, 2006 at 1:15 pm · Filed under Key West Flats Fishing
Key West has been so fortunate to have great weather and increasingly good fishing both inshore and offshore. Our flats fishing has been very good. There are plenty of nice schools of bonefish in both the backcountry of the Lower Keys and west of Key West in the Marquesas. My wife landed a nice 6- pound bonefish on fly this week. We also had the opportunity to wade for bonefish. Both of us had a few shots at cruising bonefish and I landed one about 5- pounds that was following behind a sting ray. Permit fishing has been exceptional. The population of these fish comes and goes with each day but we always have some good shots at them, particularly if the visability is good and skies are clear. I personally like to fish for them with a fly rod but they will tend to charge a live crab any time it is put within sight range of the fish. A fellow guide and his angler landed a 32- pound permit on fly just this week, so that goes to show there are some nice sized permit in the area. Permit and bonefish will remain on the flats as long as the weather does not turn too nasty or get too cold. The permit certainly has a better threshhold for cooler water but the bonefish will soon head for deeper water where the temperatures do not fluctuate as much. Winter fishing in the Keys is something to look forward to. The explosive take of a giant barracuda on a tube lure or on a fly is memorable. They are an easy target for anglers of all abilities. Jack Crevalle and sharks are also good targets in the winter months. They always offer a good target on fly for beginning anglers. Looking to get away this winter - come to the Florida Keys!
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October 22, 2006 at 1:08 pm · Filed under Key West Deep Sea Fishing
KEY WEST – The month of October serves as a turning point for our fishing. Cool fronts start to drop down near the Keys more frequently and the action offshore takes a turn for the better.
The offshore fishing has still been inconsistent for pelagic species but the good news is there have been reports of sailfish, dolphin and wahoo being caught off Key West.
Captain Jay Weed on the Lucky Charm out of the Historic Seaport in downtown Key West reported his anglers released two sailfish this week. The sailfish were estimated to be 25- and 35- pounds.
Generally the sailfish that are found in our waters during the fall and winter months are smaller than the fish we will encounter in the spring. Don’t underestimate these smaller sailfish though, they still provide plenty of entertainment when hooked.
Weed’s anglers also landed several small dolphin, a few tuna and bonito and a kingfish on the same morning trip.
“It’s been up and down,” Weed remarked about their luck with fishing this week. “You either find a few things floating or not, it’s hit or miss,” Weed added.
Weed has been fishing everywhere from the Wall, which is about 18 miles south of Key West, to the reef where he’s managed to pick up some bonito, bar jacks and kingfish. He had made the 18- mile trek but found that much of their better fishing was inside of Wall.
One of the other boats in the Lucky Fleet, the Lucky Strike which is owned and operated by Captain Keith Hebert has had similar luck. Hebert reportedly had a nice catch of smaller blackfin tuna, kingfish, bonito and dolphin.
You can reach Captain Jay Weed on the Lucky Charm at 305-304-0208 or visit him in Key West at the Historic Seaport behind Turtle Kraals restaurant.
Captain Tony Murphy on the Key Limey out of Murray Marina also had some luck with blackfin tuna this week. Murphy mentioned that he’d been fishing every day this week and was doing something different each day. Murphy had just returned from a fly fishing trip where his anglers were interested in catching sharks on fly. Earlier in the week he fished the reef for yellowtail snapper.
This time of the year can be tough for offshore fishing. Captains will try several methods of fishing and switch between them in order to show their anglers a good time and bend a rod.
For more information visit his website at www.keylimey.com.
The reef fishing has reportedly slacked off over the past few days. It had been a strong bet for yellowtail snapper and grouper. The warm water of the Gulfstream could be a contributor. The blue water off Western Dry Rocks is reportedly in very close.
Captain Chris Johnson of SeaSquared Charters out of Marathon has been spending some time in the Gulf this week trying to keep his anglers busy.
Angler Curt Kenney of Chicago, IL released several goliath groupers on light tackle gear while fishing with Johnson. Kenney and his cousin, Jack Weiler of Long Beach, CA also caught several nice mangrove snappers and gag grouper.
Although the offshore fishing has plenty of room for improvement, the flats are still providing good action at least during the early morning and evening hours.
The tides have been just right for wading during the early morning tide change in the backcountry off Sugarloaf Key. If you are not in search of rolling tarpon, a hard sand flat at the beginning of the incoming tide is the place to be.
October hopefully brings some cooler water to the flats. Any lower temperatures will inevitably bring more fish back on to the flats.
Some of the most exciting fishing can happen during this time of year. Large barracuda make their way back onto the flats in greater numbers. There are more sharks cruising the flats, stirring up the bottom in search of food. The crevalle jacks will often follow sharks and sting rays so be sure to take a cast or two near them with a floating plug or popper.
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