This december has been extremely warm. The snook fishing has still been good along with redfish trout and pompano. Live whitebait fished near the mangroves under a popping cork has been the ticket. The nearshore action has also remained strong with bonita, triple tail and snapper still eager to bite. If the warm trend continues the fishing will remain strong. On a side note the docks at night have been loaded with tons of snook.
Fall fishing here in Naples is at its peak. There are plenty of snook and reds around as well as some very nice sea trout. A mix of whitebait and live shrimp fished under a popping cork have been very effective. Above is a nice trout Gene caught on an afternoon outing in the mangroves. Hope to fish with you soon!
Within the past few weeks the fall fishing pattern is really starting to develop. There have been loads of triple tail and bonita on the beaches. I’ve been running the crab trap buoy’s looking for triple tail while keeping an eye out for bonitas. The Bonita have been readily striking spoons, flies and D.O.A cals on jig heads, while the triple tail have preferred live shrimp. The nearshore mangrove snapper fishing is also beginning to heat up. My clients and I have been fishing live shrimp on a 2/0 circle hook chicken rig. The silver trout bite has also been ridiculous lately. A half day trip has been yielding upwards of 50 trout. A piece of shrimp on a jig head has been my preferred method but nothing seems to get turned down. Book Today to join the action!
Over my years as a guide, one of the most rewarding parts of my career is sparking someone’s interest in fishing, especially big game fishing. When I first meet Sandra, I was impressed by her eagerness to catch the biggest gamefish Naples, Florida had available (Tarpon) even though she only had one day of experience. Her skills at first were shaky at best and her adrenalin only amplified her mistakes. But, after Sandra boated a few tarpon she settled down, started taking my instructions (reel, reel, reel, reel, reel!) and quickly became an expert angler in just a few days. Sandra had an immediate interest in chasing something bigger down, so her quest began. Sandra set out and broke the IGFA Royal Billfish Slam in 48 days and 12 hours. This is no small feat as it requires so many factors to fall into place to accomplish. Sandra caught one or more of the following : Blue marlin Pacific, Blue marlin Atlantic, Black marlin, White marlin, Striped marlin, Spearfish, Sailfish Pacific, Sailfish Atlantic, Swordfish. I can’t help feeling a sense of pride for what Sandra has accomplished.
Congrats again!
I fished last week with Bob, Gary and Frank. We intended to fish for tarpon first thing in the morning but oddly found no action. i decided to take them for redfish instead as the action has been great. We fished a few outside points on a shoreline and found plenty of action. The guys wound up with a limit of redfish including Gary’s nice 27 incher above. Don’t miss the fall fishing action here in Naples.
I fished last week with a new client Patrick and his friend Ryan. We caught a good number of snook along with the nice little tarpon above. Looking forward to fishing with these guys again. The fishing gets great in Naples, Florida in the fall. Don’t miss out on the action!
II fished with Jim and his son Matthew for 2 days in Naples. We had great action on snook along with many jacks a nice seatrout and this nice tarpon pictured above.
The tarpon bite in Naples has been hot. The action has been great for both big tarpon off the beaches and small tarpon in the backcountry. Most of the fish have been taken on thread herring fished under a cork or sight casted in front of a school. The fish in the gulf have been 70+ pounds and the backwater fish have topped out at about 25 lbs. The key to hooking up right now has been fishing the right part of the tide. The tarpon fishing should become even stronger through May and June.
I fished last night with Paul, Dan and Jeff. We caught snook no problem but paul wanted a tarpon after trying a few spots. After trying a few tarpon hunts we dialed one in. After Paul’s first but not last tarpon he and his crew caught around 40 snook.
I fished with Nathan and Troy last week. We decided to head up towards the beaches of Sanibel Island to fish for tarpon. We were greeted that afternoon by calm seas and clean water. When we hit the tarpon grounds the fish were free jumping and rolling all over. I got us set up on our first drift expecting and immediate strike and NOTHING. The fish were all around the boat but not a bite. After about an hour and half we had our first hit. The fish was on for around 3 seconds. Bummer. Finally after the seas became sporty we hooked and landed our first and only tarpon of the day. Goes to show why tarpon are the most sought after fish in the gulf!