Posted Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Offshore:
The 1st. Annual Islamorada Dolphin Tournament was held last weekend, and the results
will capture the Offshore scenario in an nutshell! The winning placement was the
weight of the largest three fish caught over the two day tournament. First place
boat was "Nuff Said" with three Dolphin weighing 72.6 pounds. Second was "Game
Hunter" with 65.5 pounds and third was "Cajun" with 65.4 pounds. The largest
Dolphin was caught on the "Cajun" @ 28.2 pounds. There were 57 anglers and 31 fish
weighed in.
Reefs:
Yellowtail Snapper fishing is still the mainstay of reef activity. Both Capt.
Robert on the "Restless Too" and Capt. Rob on the "Southern Comfort" hit the
Yellowtail pretty good this week, but the conditions were less than ideal. Both
Captains reported the current ran "up under the anchor line" making for difficult
"flatlining" of a Yellowtail bait. After boating enough Snapper to make for a good
catch, both captains opted to take a ride offshore (after the sun got up enough to
brighten the water) and found enough Dolphin to compliment the Snapper already in
the box.
Gulf and Bay:
The weather has been summer like and mostly windless with the rain coming usually
overnight, and this condition makes for a comfortable ride when fishing the open
waters of the Gulf. Gulf anglers have found surface water temperatures in the mid
to high eighties and some shallow water species can now be found in the cooler
depths of the Gulf. One example of this was proven by Captain Lou Brubaker. Lou
fished a wreck in 13 feet of water and found that is was loaded with large Sea
Trout. The anglers cast jigs and let them sink and sweep with the full moon tide
and the Trout gobbled the offerings up with reckless abandon! A school of Pompano
ignored any Shrimp offered, as they may be in spawning mode.
Flats, Backcountry and Flamingo:
Captain Dave Atkinson from Whale Harbor Marina has been putting his clients on
Bonefish every trip recently. On three trips this Week Capt. Dave released seven
Bones estimated weights were from 6 to 9 pounds. Tarpon action is still good. One
will not catch a Tarpon on every trip, but there are good numbers of fish present in
channels and along banks both bayside and Oceanside in the Islamorada area. Many
guides are "dead baiting" the Silver Kings, but many are opting to offer a live Blue
Crab with the chance of catching a Permit also. It is important to fish the Tarpon
in low light or preferably no light!