The north winds blow and our first real cold front is here. Honestly it is welcomed with open arms after a hot, hot summer and fall season. Now a cold front for the Keys is not parka weather so don’t be thinking you are coming to the frozen tundra now. Low in the 70s and high in the low 80s is a cool down for us.

We are now entering our winter season of fishing here in the Keys. Here’s a rundown on what to expect:

Key West Flats Fishing: As the temperatures cool you can wave goodbye to the tarpon. They are going to become very scarce with the water temps plummeting. There may be some resident tarpon cruising around Key West harbor, but they are more apt to be swirling around a fish cleaning table at the A&B Marina or behind Turtle Kraals restaurant. Leave your tarpon fishing dreams behind for a little while, they will be back soon enough.

Permit are some of the hardiest fish on the flats. They are constantlly on the hunt for food and if the water is a little choppy it’s even easier to get near them on the flats without scaring them. Permit love crabs and shrimp so keep that in mind when you grab a few live baits to go fish with. Permit will hang around through the winter months. They may head out to deeper water if the flats temps drop too low, but don’t dispair, they usually return within a few days time.

Bonefish may take a vacation and head to deeper water too. They don’t like to tolerate water temps that are below 70 degrees. Islamorada and Key Largo will hold more bones in the winter months because of their protection from the mainland of Florida and the Everglades.

Key West Deep Sea Fishing: Ooh baby is this a good time to fish offshore! Things are just starting to heat up in our offshore waters. A cold front’s biggest benefit is it will push the bait supply farther south and the fish will follow. Expect to see more tuna, sailfish, and wahoo around the deep wrecks and just off the reef edge. Snapper and grouper will also spend more time in shallow water making it easier to anchor off the reef and chum for these deliciouos fish. Mutton snapper, yellowtail, mangrove snapper and grouper are just some of the fish you may encounter on an offshore fishing adventure.