Eventually the wind will have to let down, at least that is what we are hoping happens. The previous week did give a few opportunities for the offshore guys but, most of the fishing was done nearshore and in the back bays. The one good part of having strong winds from the Easterly direction is our shorelines give us a buffer of calm water that can be several miles out.
The few trips that did get out between the blows did very well. The boats that got out in 160-180 feet caught every snapper we have, along with kingfish, and a few sailfish. Most of the boats chose to stay in the 75-100-foot range and they to did well on mangrove snappers, yellowtail snappers, and red grouper. Kingfish also finished up their trips when blue runners were flat lined off the back of the boats while anchored. Those out deep trolled up the sailfish and kingfish using primarily ballyhoo both skirted and naked.
The back bays gave lots of options for plenty of different species. Redfish, snook, black drum, pompano, and sheepshead took up most of this week’s fun. Paying attention to wind direction is becoming a critical part of planning a successful day on the water. Strong winds coming from the Northeast-East direction will slow down the incoming tides. This effect often will not allow the water to come into the bays, thus tides will be much lower than what is scheduled on your tide chart. Likewise, when the water starts going out, its going to go out faster. Pay attention to this over the next few months so you can plan your day out properly.
Finally, the nearshore bite continued to be good for tarpon in the 80-120lb class. These fish continue to follow the Threadfin herring that is moving South and they are hungry. Tarpon have been tight as 100 feet from shore all the way out to about 40 feet of water. Often, you’ll see them rolling in groups and even free jumping as the go after the baitfish. Cobia has been a productive quarry this week. Several cobia up to 50 inches were caught by anglers fishing around some of the local wrecks. Lastly, a few kingfish were caught in close this week by those trolling large plugs and spoons.
Tight lines, Capt. Greg Stamper
Snookstampcharters.com Fort Myers beach
239-313-1764
Cold front time
