Yearly Archives: 2014

The Sailfish action has remained strong over the last week with the majority of our fish caught by sight casting to fish which are chasing schools of Ballyhoo along the shallow reef edge. There have also been plenty of Dolphin up in this shallow water as well. We haven’t done alot of bottom fishing lately as the top water action has been too good to pass up, although the patch reef areas have been very productive for Snapper Grouper and Cero. King Mackerel are beginning to show up in greater numbers and we’ve been catching some in the 25 pound class.

Fishing has picked up markedly since our last report. Finally a body of Sailfish has moved into our local waters and those who are interested in tangling with these acrobatic fighters can expect multiple encounters per day. Additionally, decent sized Blackfin Tuna have become more common. There are still Dolphin around including fish up to 20lbs which we have found chasing Ballyhoo on top of the reef. The patch reefs have also yielded excellent action from keeper size Grouper and Mutton Snapper in the 8 – 12 lb range. We have also had plenty of action from Yellowtail, Cero, Little Tunny, and Jacks including Horse Eyes, Yellow Jack and Jack Cravelle.

Large schools of Ballyhoo are congregating along the top of the reef edge as they do every year at this time. This attracts a host of gamefish who find the massed bait to be easy picking, including many species which are normally associated with deeper water such as Dolphin, Sailfish and Blackfin Tuna. The Dolphin in the following photo were both caught in 25-30 feet of water. Bottom dwellers such as Mutton Snapper and Grouper will also chase this bait on the surface. With our  tuna tower the SOUTHPAW is well designed to take advantage of this type of fishing.

The weather over the last several weeks has been glorious, featuring light breezes from the North and Northeast, low humidity, plenty of sunshine and tempuratures in the mid 70’s. No doubt the best weather in the whole country. Fishing wise it’s been a disappointment, and we are honest enough to admit it! We would expect good Sailfishing by now but it hasn’t happened yet, ditto for the Blackfin Tuna which remain scarce as well. Dolphin fishing has been hit or miss. The reef has been the most reliable area to produce action. Heavy chumming with live Pilchards has been producing action from Cero, Tunny, Yellowtail Snapper, Yellow Jacks and assorted other species.

We have performed a quick haulout for fresh bottom paint, new zincs, prop speed for the underwater gear and a coat of wax for the hull. Making 19 knots on the clean bottom. The weather is cooling down and the fish are biting. Dolphin remain offshore and there is plenty of action on the reef edge.

Huge schools of spawning Herring, Seals, Whales, all kinds of sea birds, and water temperatures of 57 degrees. Sounds like an area where you might encounter Giant Bluefin Tuna. It has been a great change of pace from the heat and humidity of Key West.

The dog days of summer find us dealing with day time temperatures in the nineties with very little breeze on most days. Water temperatures are hot and fishing is a bit of a challenge. Offshore, a few Dolphin remain but we are far past the peak of the season. Skip Jack Tuna, a few Blackfins and the occasional Billfish round out what’s available in the deep water. On the reef we have had a very steady bite of Grey or Mangrove Snapper for the last 6 weeks, that action is finally slowing down. On days with decent current; Yellowtail, Cero, Various Jack species, King Mackerel and a few Grouper are keeping rods bent.

The heat is oppressive but it’s cooler on the water than anywhere else you might be. So far the fishing is holding up pretty well. Plenty of Dolphin remain offshore, as always you just have to find what area they are holding in. Recently we have been finding huge patches of weed along the continental shelf which have been productive. Best recent catch was a Blue Marlin estimated at between 175-200 pounds. The fish was fought and released in 35 minutes on 30lb trolling tackle. Sailfish remain on the scene offshore as well, we’ve been averaging a Sail bite about every other day. In on the reef edge the Grey Snapper spawned on the recent full moon and we had several decent catches. Muttons, Yellowtail and jumbo sized little Tunny are also biting on the reef.

Summertime has arrived in the Key West area over the last ten days. Temperatures close to 90 degrees, light and variable breezes from the Southeast with isolated but intense thunder storms developing in the afternoon has become the normal weather pattern. Plenty of Dolphin remain in our offshore waters but the best of the season is now past and the quality of the fishing is more inconsistent. A few Sailfish continue to bite in depths from 120′ to 250′ just beyond the reef edge. Mixed in with the Sails have been plenty of Little Tunny, and the occasional full grown Blackfin Tuna. The reef edge is producing decent catches of Yellowtail and Mangrove Snapper along with a few Grouper.

Dolphin fishing remains strong which is to be expected this time of year. We have been experiencing unusually strong Gulf Stream current over the last 10 days or so, with blue water pushed in against a distinct color change just offshore of the reef. Many of our larger Dolphin have been caught in this relatively shallow water. In addition to quality Dolphin, there have been quite a few Sailfish bites along the color change as well. We had 3 Sail bites on a morning 1/2 day yesterday and 2 Sail bites the previous 3/4 day. We fished the Mutton Snapper spawn one night but the current was too strong, making it difficult to hold bottom. We caught 4 over 10 pounds and lost that many during the sunset bite.