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| September |
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| Fantastic
Fall |
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| The
Upper Keys made it through another mini season and opening
for the elusive spiny lobster. But, it seems as though the
lobster are winning the battle against the divers and bully-netters.
The talk of the town lately has been the slow start to this
year’s season. Some speculate that it was the early
season affects of the full moon and others think it’s
just going to be another slow seasons. I will keep you posted
on how the season progresses.
As far as fishing goes, the bite has been
good and will continue to improve as we move into September
and October. There are lots of mullet moving around in the
northern portions of Florida Bay. Keep a close eye out for
the large schools of mullet which are usually indicated by
patches of dirty water. You can find them moving along shorelines
as well as adjacent to backwater creeks. The game fish have
not been far away from all the schools of bait. This makes
for perfect timing to coincide with the opening of snook season
on September 1st.
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Snook
are true predators that thrive on ambushing any bait that
passes by their location. Don’t forget that there’s
a 27’-34’ slot limit with only one snook per person
in Monroe county and Everglades National Park. According to
recent studies by the The Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission,
anglers are releasing more slot size snook than in previous
years. Snook populations are rebounding so let’s help
preserve them for the future generations by doing our part.
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There
are still a number of small tarpon around the backcountry.
The best time to catch them along with the snook is at night.
For the live baiters out there it doesn’t get any easier
to find and net live mullet and pilchards. If you can’t
find either of them, drop a block of chum on any grass flat
and the pinfish will come right to the back of the boat. The
trout bite has remained steady with good numbers of fish in
the 15-20 inch range. You’ll find these fish hanging
with the mullet muds on the grass flats around flamingo. The
influx of mullet will also mean the return of some nice sized
jack cravelles to Florida bay. Although these fish don’t
have the best reputation, they pull harder than any fish that
swims. As usual, my tackle of choice is 10lb Spiderwire Stealth
on a medium action Fenwick rod. This set-up can handle most
fish that you will encounter this time of year in the bay.
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Offshore Report
This month’s offshore report is provided by Capt. George
Clark of Rodeo Charters. Offshore fishing has been a hit or
miss gamble if you are chasing mahi-mahi (dolphin). Now some
days are better than others with these highly migratory game
fish. It’s always hard to figure out which days will
produce the best results. The simple fact is you can’t
catch ‘em unless you go out and look for them. The upside
is that the weather has been very pleasant offshore. Most
of the action has been between 25 and 35 miles for the bigger
dolphin with smaller ones in closer. Traveling birds have
been the best target for those lucky enough to find them.
However, floating structure and debris has been equally productive.
To cover ground while searching for structure or birds, try
high speed trolling. MD turbo heads or bullet Frenzie lures
are great for this. Larger Dolphin will knock the tar out
of a fast moving lure. The tuna’s are out there too.
Black-fins and skipjacks are holding on the local humps and
deep wrecks. Fish these spots early or late for the best bites.
Down size your tackle and lures to accommodate these quick
moving tunas. Blue and white feathers or black and red schemes
will work best. Fish these rigs way back off the transom.
There has also been plenty of billfish sightings and catches
around schools of dolphin. Normally big dolphin tackle will
work on the smaller marlin. The most productive bait will
be a small black-fin or schoolie dolphin nose hooked. There
are still some wahoo around as well. Recently, some nice fish
have hit the dock, between 30 and 40 pounds. Troll rigged
ballyhoos on heavier lures in 300 to 500 feet for your best
shot at hooking one of these drag screamers. Make sure you
turn up the heat and troll at least 10 knots. The wahoo really
get excited at faster moving baits. You can contact Capt.
George Clark at www.rodeocharters.com
or (305)522-5530.
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Til’ next time, Tight Lines and Light Winds…….
Captain
Lain
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