Key West Fishing Reports
Updated fishing reports from the Lower Florida Keys & Key West
Archive for Key West Flats Fishing
October 28, 2007 at 1:20 pm · Filed under Key West Flats Fishing, Key West Deep Sea Fishing, Florida Fishing Weekly
KEY WEST – The end of October marks the beginning of a new fishing season in the Keys. The local radar already shows a strong line of storms dotted in red and yellow quickly approaching from the west. Could this possibly be our first cold front? I hope so.
The best sign of changing weather is when a local captain calls you out of the blue to give you a laundry list of fish species that he’s wrangled in on a half day morning charter.
Capt. Bennett Taylor on the Outer Limits couldn’t talk slow enough from his own excitement for the morning catch. Three sailfish, dolphin, tuna and wahoo all caught before 11 AM.
Taylor had been running to the east for his last few charters but noted the action was directly south of Key West just past Sand Key Light.
Generally the fishing becomes very active in our inshore waters and no boat has to go very far past 180- feet to find fish. Right now there is not a clear color change but that does not seem to matter.
Capt. Tom Ault on the Time Out reported an equally good catch this week. His anglers released 3 sailfish and caught 3 wahoo ranging from 18- to 35- pounds. Ault was fishing the waters off Sand Key to the end of the Boca Grande Bar.
“All the action has been in pretty close lately,” Ault said.
Ault was trolling both bare and skirted ballyhoo for these fish. He mentioned that two of the wahoo hit surface baits while one was hooked using the downrigger.
Much of our action for blackfin tuna will start to concentrate to the west of Key West on the Sub. This area will get populated by light tackle boats that anchor and throw handfuls of live bait to bring the blackfin tuna to a feeding frenzy. The larger boats like the Time Out and Outer Limits will often troll the area hoping to pick up a few tuna in between.
This area will start to be a hot spot in November and December.
The flats have had their fair share of good fishing too. Bonefish have been at the top of the list this week. There are plenty of good size schools available and the fish are plump, most weighing in around 7- to 8- pounds.
Scott Frost from Chicago, IL had a great day of fishing with Capt. Justin Rea out of Sugarloaf Key. Frost landed 7 bonefish using live shrimp.
Capt. Diego Cordova reported a great morning of fishing the flats in Marathon. Cordova’s anglers Phil and Donna Stevenson of Indiana hooked four permit and landed three. The couple also caught several other species including jacks and sharks.
Cordova has been fishing in the Keys since 1978. He operates his charter services from Marathon to Key West on his 21- foot Keyhopper skiff. For more information on Capt. Diego Cordova, visit his website at www.floridakeysflats.com or give him a call at 305-395-1228.
Another flats captain who is quickly becoming a bonefishing expert is Capt. John Smouse. Smouse operates the only flats skiff located at the A&B Marina. His charter service, Shadow Caster, has been busy this week due to the influx of visitors for our annual Halloween celebration.
Smouse has been targeting bonefish as well. He generally specializes in bait fishing for tarpon, bonefish and permit.
Smouse has been utilizing the incoming tide this week on the backcountry flats east of Key West.
“The biggest struggle is learning the tides and trying to follow them around to get a slam,” Smouse said.
The tides vary by close to an hour each day. Smouse says that in some areas around Key West the tide will flow out to the north, while in other areas it will flow south.
The early morning tarpon fishing is also thinning out. Although there will always be resident tarpon around the Key West Harbor area, the baby tarpon spots that many guides have memorized will be less populated as the fish move on.
For more information on fishing with Capt. John Smouse, contact him at 305-587-7669.
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October 5, 2007 at 1:05 pm · Filed under Key West Flats Fishing
KEY WEST – The change of seasons is coming soon here in the Lower Keys. We received a much needed sample of what cooler weather actually feels like this past weekend. It was a nice change from the stifling hot summer. The change in climate will also bring forth a whole new fishery in the near shore and offshore waters. Bait is already available along the south side of the islands.
Getting a jump on hunting for bait in the early morning will ensure it can be found easily. The more boats that get in shallow to cast net bait the more scattered it becomes. Look for pelicans diving in shallow water at a tell tale sign there is some bait in the area. Another area that has a good bait supply is the reef. Ballyhoo are reportedly everywhere and easily netted. Guides may net ballyhoo for use on a charter that day or they may brine the bait and bag it for use another day. Capt. Tony Murphy on the Key Limey was back at work this week after a short vacation “off the rock” we call Key West. He was welcomed by 30- knot winds while a tropical system blew over the Keys this weekend. The object of fishing in imperfect weather is to know a spot where you can hide from the wind. For Murphy this meant hugging the reef and utilizing a supply of live pilchards to entice some grouper and snapper to bite. A well full of pilchards goes a long way on the reef. Murphy got into some nice sized yellowtail snapper and had them eating on the surface. Although his anglers from Minnesota were new to light tackle fishing, they managed to land many of the snappers despite the bull sharks that were lurking near by. “We fed a lot of sharks,” Murphy said. Sharks can be almost annoying when fishing for reef fish such as snapper and grouper. Although the reef fish may try their hardest to swim fast, the angler needs to reel faster just to get the fish to the surface and out of the water. Murphy caught several species along the reef edge including snapper, grouper, mackerel and barracuda. He kept a few barracuda for use later in the day for the grand finale shark fishing. For more information on fishing with Capt. Tony Murphy, visit his website at www.keylimey.com. The offshore waters have become more active this week too. Dolphin are on their southern migration now and have made a nice show off Key West from 300- to 800- feet. Capt. Jim Sharpe of Sea Boots Outfitters reports some terrific dolphin fishing off Pelican Shoal out to 800- feet. Sharpe’s anglers have reeling in dolphin up to 20- pounds. “Some say this is the best dolphin fishing we’ve seen all year long,” Sharpe said. Sharpe also had several wahoo bite while he was trolling for dolphin. Unfortunately the wahoo chose to bite the rigs with mono line instead of the wire. They nearly had the wahoo to the boat and it chewed through the line. Sharpe says that we are on the verge of increased wahoo activity. These fish become more active before and after the full and new moon. Normally these fish like to eat a bait that is trolled deeper in the water column. This time the fish ate on the surface. The Mr. Z out of A&B Marina had some of the best days this week with a catch of dolphin, wahoo and sailfish. Capt. Craig Eubank hosted George Rameriz and his wife, Lisa of Orlando for a day of fishing off Key West. Rameriz landed two wahoo weighing in at 37- and 46- pounds. The couple also landed several dolphin in the 12- pound range. They were trolling bait south of the main ship channel in 400- feet of water. Visit Capt. Craig’s website at http://www.keywestfishtales.com for up to date reports and photos.
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October 5, 2007 at 12:52 pm · Filed under Key West Flats Fishing, Key West Deep Sea Fishing
The Lower Keys are finally starting to cool down a bit. Fishing both inshore and offshore has been active.
Inshore and flats fishing has been fabulous for bonefish. Plenty of bonefish in the 6- to 8- pound range are roaming the flats just ready to inhale a fly or live shrimp. The Marathon Bonefish Tournament in the latter part of September yielded 35 bonefish for one team that was guided by Capt. Albert Ponzoa of Marathon. Congrats!
Permit fishing will continue to get better this month and should remain strong through January or pending our first cold snap (hopefully not). Permit love live crabs and will eat one without even thinking if they are in a feeding mood. Fly fishing anglers also love October and November to hunt for permit. Winds tend to be lighter than in February and March when permit fishing is also at a peak.
Permit fishing with a fly rod can be challenging but don’t dispair. You may have read a lot about special permit fly patterns and think that is the secret but there is really more to it than that. Finding the right fish in the right mood makes all the difference in the world. Oh and an accurate cast will also help.
Tarpon fishing will start to diminish soon and be a spot to spot situation. Juvenile tarpon are mostly what we find in the backcountry this time of year. There are reportedly still some larger tarpon in the Key West Harbor area.
Reef fishing has been fairly active with plenty of yellowtail to be had. The best tactic is to find live pilchards if you can and use them as bait. Grouper should start moving up into more shallow water along the patch reefs and wrecks for the fall months.
Key West offshore fishing has improved. Big dolphin have been in close from 300- to 800- feet. Wahoo fishing has just started to improve. Look for more action from wahoo during the stronger moon phase. There have also been some sailfish available too. Look for blackfin tuna to show up soon. There have already been some around following bait balls.
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September 6, 2007 at 12:53 am · Filed under Key West Flats Fishing
September holds a lot of potential for anglers in the shallow water flats and offshore. We’ve been lucky so far with no major threats of a tropical system close to us. The height of hurricane season is September 10th.
Flats fishing for bonefish, permit and tarpon has been spectacular. The strong mid-day tides give the best opportunity to see permit feeding on the flats. Bonefish schools are strong and are producing fish in the 6- to 8- pound range with some double digit fish on occasion.
Tarpon are still a staple in the Lower Keys but they can come in big pushes with the tide or can be found feeding on dying baitfish on a falling tide in the backcountry. There are some bigger boys traveling the ocean but they seem to be a bit hard to feed.
Key West Offshore fishing has improved this week with plenty of good opportunities on the reef and farther offshore. West of Key West near the end of Boca Grande Bar the wahoo have been active on the deeper wrecks and below any type of debris the southerly winds have brought in.
Dolphin fishing is slow right now but there are still some nice fish being caught. Some captains that have ventured offshore towards the Wall have found schools of dolphin and have even hooked a few blue marlin in the process of fishing for other fish.
As we move into the fall season the water will start to cool and fishing will get more active.
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August 21, 2007 at 5:31 pm · Filed under Key West Flats Fishing, Key West Deep Sea Fishing
Hurricane Dean had already made it’s second landfall this morning on the Yucatan peninsula. I can’t imagine what those folks are going through with a category 5 storm but it had to have been bad. Here in the Keys we’ve got higher than normal winds which has made fishing tough for the offshore fleet especially.
Tarpon fishing is still strong as there are some larger fish swimming the ocean right now. Bonefish and permit are also ever present on the flats and with these stronger winds they are offered a little break in the water temperature.
Late August has advantages for fishing in the shallows. Great tides plus mostly calm weather. Expect to get plenty of opportunities to hook fish. Offshore fishing has slowed down considerably but a full day of offshore fishing is still producing some nice sized dolphin and the occasional wahoo under a vast weed line or floating debris.
As the week progresses the winds are expected to continue to subside and we can get back to summer as we know it, hot and humid.
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August 2, 2007 at 5:22 pm · Filed under Key West Flats Fishing, Key West Deep Sea Fishing, Florida Fishing Weekly
KEY WEST - The hot August heat will make fishing a challenge this month. The mid-day heat will keep many shallow water anglers on an early schedule so they can still get in some fishing before the water temperatures peak at close to 90 degrees.
A well kept secret about our tarpon fishery is that even in July there are still large tarpon to be fought off the Lower Keys. Although the size of the tarpon may vary greatly, there are still some big slobs that are easily estimated to weigh 80- to 100- pounds.
Just last week there were a few of these fish available west of Key West in the waters around the Marquesas.
Joe Taylor of Senaca, PA took advantage of the peaceful quiet of late July to chase tarpon, but also to just relax and enjoy the beauty of the Keys.
“Of the seven or eight times I’ve been down, this was the most relaxing,” Taylor said.
His day started early, around 5:30 AM. He met Capt. Justin Rea at the City Marina dock early to try and get out fishing before the onslaught of sport season lobster enthusiasts headed out.
The early morning tarpon fishing was exceptional. Taylor hooked several large tarpon that he fought hard until they popped off. Taylor also landed a few juvenile tarpon. The smaller tarpon are much more easily fought, landed and of course released.
As the sun gets higher it becomes easier to see bonefish and permit on the more shallow flats.
Taylor said he equally enjoyed the bonefishing experience because it was just him and the guide.
Bonefish are still being seen in good numbers in the backcountry waters from Big Pine to Key West, and also in select spots west of Key West to the Marquesas.
Bonefish most often enjoy live shrimp and they have the ability to hone in on the scent of shrimp from a great distance.
Even if anglers are fly fishing for bonefish, the fish in the Lower Keys tend to be very open to running right over and eating a fly. Their close cousins in the Upper Keys around Islamorada are sometimes not as easily fed.
August will still provide great opportunities on the flats to fish for bonefish and permit while tarpon will settle into their various holes along the backcountry mangrove islands. Sharks and barracuda are still ever present on the flats and should not be overlooked as a good quarry for anglers of any ability.
The offshore waters have been productive for juvenile dolphin this week. Dolphin must measure 20- inches to the fork to keep and according to several of the offshore captains there have been plenty of dolphin big enough to keep while they have also released a lot of fish too.
There have been some larger dolphin mixed in these schools but they seem to be educated and can at times be very difficult to hook.
Keep in mind that in large schools of juvenile dolphin there can always be a bigger fish lurking close by.
Capt. Tom Ault on the Time Out spent a morning fishing for dolphin with a father and son team from Ireland.
“They’ve never seen fish like this so it’s been a lot of fun,” Ault said.
Ault’s anglers had plenty of action in the waters 8- miles off Sand Key Light. They did hook a larger dolphin which hit one of the largest baits they had out, it jumped so violently that it eventually jumped itself free.
The main event of this fishing trip was the release of a 100- pound marlin.
“He finally saw a bait he liked and ate it,” Ault said.
After an hour of battling this fish on 30- pound test, his anglers from Ireland got a good look at a blue marlin as they released it.
For more information on fishing with Capt. Tom Ault please contact him at 305-304-2768.
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July 27, 2007 at 8:47 pm · Filed under Key West Flats Fishing
Summer has reared it’s ugly head here in the Lower Keys. It’s hot here but the fishing is still worth the trip.
The flats still boast some large tarpon but the early morning start is what is necessary to get the bite. We’re talking 5:30AM wakeup. Once the sun is up high enough it’s time to look for bonefish and permit. Permit fishing has been spectacular for this past week. The Del Brown Invitational Permit Tournament was held last week. A surprising 32 permit were released and one team leading the pack with 8 fish. Congrats to Doug Behrman of Tallahassee who was fishing with Captain Diego Rouylle of Little Torch Key.
Bonefishing has improved but the heat of the day still sends them to deeper water to cool off too. Wading conditions in the evening hours are perfect about every two weeks. The end of a falling tide or beginning of a rising tide is ideal.
September, October and November are great months for bonefish, baby tarpon and permit. It’s a less pressured fishery during the Fall months so take advantage of it if you can.
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June 6, 2007 at 2:21 pm · Filed under Key West Flats Fishing
For all of you worm crazed tarpon fisherman… a note about worms… yes, they emerged at Bahia Honda starting on Saturday night but there were not as many tarpon as anticipated. Sunday was not as active and Monday night it went crazy in Key West and there was a good chance of hooking a tarpon.
Look for another possible hatch around the new moon phase on June 14th.
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May 15, 2007 at 2:00 pm · Filed under Key West Flats Fishing
KEY WEST - Mid May holds a lot of potential for great fishing action in the Lower Keys. Nearly every fish in our versatile palette of species is available someplace. Whether it is in shallow water or deep, anglers can find their quarry here.
This week even the Key West area had a tinge of smoke in the air. Wafts of burning cinder came and went with our variable winds. Navigating during the early morning hours was more difficult with these smoky conditions and sight fishing was also more difficult.
Tarpon are still moving in and out of the Lower Keys in large numbers. Captain Mike Bartlett out of Garrison Bight Marina in Key West gave me a few precious hours on the bow of his skiff this week. Bartlett took me to a few ocean side flats in the Lakes Passage for a quick lesson in tarpon fishing.
I do not fish for tarpon all that much but know the basics on leading the fish and putting the bait or fly where it needs to be. On this particular day these fish were just not eating for me.
“Many times you learn through the course of the day what these fish are going to react to; strip fast, strip slow,” Bartlett said. “Putting the fly in front of the fish is what it’s all about,” he added.
Each day is different. The following afternoon Bartlett took his wife Sandy fishing and she put three tarpon in the air. Go figure.
Bonefish have really started to show up on the flats this week. Several guides have reported good numbers of bonefish in the backcountry near Marvin Key and the Barracuda Keys. Others have just been fishing west of Key West and have had similar luck in the shallows.
Targeting bonefish during tarpon season can yield many advantages. One is that you will most likely have plenty of spots to yourself. With tarpon fishing being the main attraction on the flats through June, bonefishing is a great option for anglers not wanting to get in the thick of boats to get their grip on a tarpon.
Another great option for self-guided anglers is to fish the shallows for bonefish and permit during the day and try tarpon at night under Bahia Honda Bridge or in Key West Harbor.
Night fishing for tarpon can be an absolute blast with a spinning outfit or fly rod. Conditions should be fairly calm. Calm enough to hear tarpon busting the surface of the water.
A sinking plug on light tackle is about the most fun you can have during a session of tarpon fishing at night. Bagley’s Finger Mullet or a Rebel Windcheater plug work great.
Captain Mike Bartlett offers night tarpon trips out of Key West. For more information contact him at 305-797-2452.
The offshore waters have produced a mixed bag of fish this week.
Captain Jake Perry on Mean Green out of Murray Marina reports some activity in close for schoolie dolphin. Although Perry had made the trek out 18 miles to the Wall, he found much of the action in closer to Sand Key and the reef.
Perry found some hearty blackfin tuna busting on a bait ball a few days ago and picked off three nice fish out of the school. Perry also reported working the reef edge for grouper. His anglers landed nine red grouper up to 20- pounds plus one black grouper and a king mackerel.
Captain Alex Canalejo on Showtime has spent his week inshore fishing for sailfish. Canalejo has been fishing the waters directly south of Key West and to the east near Pelican Shoal. He’s been using a kite for sailfish but says he’s had some great bites from blackfin tuna and has landed several in the 30- pound range.
May also marks the best time to fish for mutton snapper in the Florida Keys. Mutton Snapper spawn on the deeper sand bars outside the reef during the full moon in May and June.
Although these fish spawn during different times of the year throughout the Caribbean, now is the time to fish for them in the Lower Keys. Since mutton snapper are both nocturnal and diurnal feeders, it is not uncommon to catch good numbers of them during both the evening and daylight hours.
Canalejo predicts the mutton snapper fishing to be better on this next full moon on May 31st.
“It’s got to be good this next moon, or if the water is real dirty we’ll even catch them during the daytime,” Canalejo said.
For more information on fishing with Captain Alex Canalejo contact him at 305-797-5146.
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May 14, 2007 at 8:42 pm · Filed under Key West Flats Fishing, Key West Sport Fishing
Calm seas and smoke fill the skies over the Lower Keys. It’s hard to believe so many wildfires are burning throughout Florida. All we can do is hope for some rain in the forecast this week (which there is a 40% chance of here).
Offshore waters are producing some dolphin but many of the charter boats are heading way offshore to find the big boys. Wahoo and tuna are being caught west of Key West on some of the deeper structures while kingfish are around the reef.
May and June mark the spawn of mutton snapper in South Florida. The Keys are a great place to take advantage of this. Larger mutton snapper hug the outer bar to spawn and supposedly the best fishing is during the full moon. Many captains and guides swear it can be done day or night but sometimes the best action is just before and just after sunset.
Tarpon have made a big push into the Lower Keys from the Marquesas to Big Pine. They can be found cruising the outer edges of flats on the ocean, and there have been some spotted in the backcountry. Live crabs and pinfish will get you the bite and flies range from natural color toads to black and purple for early morning rolling fish.
Bonefishing has improved and there have been several nice schools of fish plus some pairs and singles spotted in the backcountry. Permit will start making their come back to the flats this month, there have been some nice fish taken on the flats this week already in the 16- pound range.
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