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.