Fishing this month has been very productive. Reds, trout, snook and 20lb jacks have been cruising the flats on the outside and the middle bays. The unseasonably warm water has been a factor and we are actually fishing like its April.

Redfish have been the target on the tides with many being taken by jigs and Gulps rigged with weedless presentations fishing the edges of flats and oyster bars.

Snook have been becoming more prevalent now. They maybe a bit confused with the warm water but again fishing like it is spring has been productive. We started using top waters last week and have connected with snook up to 25″ but I suspect the big girls will be on the points real soon.

Trout have been plentiful but seems to light up only during top of the high tide.

Now lets talk jacks. The big boys are starting to prowl the flats and edges out front. 20 and 30lb jacks have been exploding like concrete blocks dropped from the sky. If you can catch up to them with light tackle and a skitterwalk you are in for a 30 minute fight. Spectacular! When hooking up in shallow water the jacks only have one way to go and that is long runs.

So lets go fishing.  March is booking up but there are some choice dates left. Give me a call or send a request and get set up on the light tackle experience you been wanting to enjoy.

snookhookerfishing.com

Capt. John

Posted in Uncategorized

There have been a couple cold fronts come through the past week. Fishing in the backwater has been good on both sides of the front. Redfish have been prowling the shore line. Snook are still around despite it being winter. The water temp is still 69 and that is good.

Redfish have been biting jigs and shrimp under a popping cork. Gold spoons have also produced bites in the coves near moving water. Most have been just under slot or in the slot.

Sea trout are still plentiful. Jigs tipped with shrimp bounced right above the grass and hard bottom has produced slot trout and many just under.

Some large jacks are starting to show up and the other species such as sheepshead, black drum, and snappers have kept the anglers busy. Because of the winds running the trap lines for tripletail has been tough. Looking at the forecast we may get a chance late this week to try that.

Something I would like to touch on is the importance of getting kids involved in fishing. It is a great bonding tool for parents. I had Lilly out with her Mom Michelle. They had a great time and they are booking another trip during spring break. Lilly’s smile tells it all.

Posted in Uncategorized

TROUT:

Fishing the tides, not the clock is my philosophy and that has been paying off. Jigs tipped with shrimp and whole shrimp on a jig have been producing lots of sea trout on the right tides.

REDFISH:

The reds have started to fall into the winter pattern after the cold front last week. Fishing the mangrove shore line and oyster bars has produced decent size redfish in the slot. Again fishing the tides and not the clock has given clients their chance at wrangling with these fish on light tackle.

Low and slow on the retrieve has been the ticket using jigs and gulps.

SNOOK:

Well it is winter so the snook are around but best on those sunny days and on dark bottom flats. Low and slow retrieve using soft plastic jerk baits has enticed some good strikes.

Give me a call or send a request and I’ll tailor a trip for your around the tides.

Posted in Uncategorized

The first week of 2017 fishing south of Marco island in the Ten Thousand Islands is off to a great start. Snook, Redfish and even a few Tarpon have been cooperating readily to the daily offerings.

The back water is a magical place where life begins and the snook, redfish are plentiful. This week has been no exception with multiple releases. Redfish and snook along with sea trout, snappers, ladyfish and jacks have been feeding well. The action has been good and the water continues to be unseasonably warm so tarpon have showed themselves from time to time.

Slot and over slot redfish have been eager to bite when we have good tide movement. The offerings of jigs tipped with shrimp or a live shrimp on a popping cork has been very productive. Fishing the falling tide has been most productive. there is also a good bite during the flood tide, fishing the flats and edges of oyster bars with water flow. During the outgoing tide we hit the mangrove shore lines and have been connecting well with reds, snook and trout. We have had several slams this past week with 3 of the 4 main species being brought to the skiff.

There was little cool front that went through yesterday and it dropped the air temp a few degrees but the water temp remains higher than normal for this time of year. That is why  a few tarpon still lurking around.

January and February are starting to get booked up but there are a few days left with choice tides. So if you will be in the Naples, Marco Island area  give me a call or inquire by  email and we will discuss and create a trip to the Ten Thousand Islands for you. The fish are waiting.

The featured photo is an over slot redfish and a perfect release. The angler is Rob Laufenburg from NJ. Great job Rob!

FISH THE TIDES, NOT THE CLOCK……

Capt. John

Posted in Uncategorized

Trout have been biting good despite the warm water temps  south of Marco Island and in the Ten Thousand Islands. Fishing the upper half of the flood and the beginning of the out going has been the ticket. Jigs tipped with shrimp are producing the larger trout.

Here is my client Jack Lahrman with a nice trout caught on a jig. There are some predicted cold fronts coming so the should get the reds moving again.

Get your reservations in for the next three months as choice days are booking quickly. Call me or inquire on my site. I will tailor a trip for you.

Posted in Uncategorized

Its been a good week of fishing. Even though the water temps have moved back up to 76 Degrees in the back water the trout and other usual suspects were very eager. With these warm water temps the redfish have been very scattered. I think they are confused thinking its still summer. We have been using jigs and spoons for the reds and trout and bait fish and crab patterns on the fly.

This week end a cold front came and that should get all back on track. We have encountered a few nice snook and some large jacks have filled in the gaps. This is the time to book your trips especially for after the holidays while some choice dates with great tides are available.

Posted in Uncategorized

Its been good fishing the past couple of days with 3 or 4 nice redfish released each day and plenty of sea trout, snappers, jacks, snook and ladyfish to keep the action going all through the tide.

We have been using light tackle with St. Croix rods and Penn Battle II 2000 reels loaded with 10 lb braid and light leaders. We have caught reds on jigs tipped with shrimp and spoons. The fight on the light tackle with a red is exciting as they show their power. Fishing is good don’t miss out.

The classic SilverKing skiff is a stable platform and gets us back in the skinny water. It’s a more personalized and specialized experience for anglers.

Posted in Uncategorized

The fishing this week has really hit its stride into the winter pattern. I have been fishing the falling tide and the bite has been very good. Reds and trout are eagerly taking jigs tipped with shrimp and we have taken some redfish on gold spoons. We have been fishing the mangrove islands especially oyster points with the tide running outbound. There are also the usual suspects snappers, jacks and ladyfish that are keeping the action going the full tide. Now is the time to book your trip. Give me a call or drop me an email and I will let you know the best tides and times to fish for that day.

Posted in Uncategorized

Fishing has been a bit slow but help is on the way. The wind continued to drop out and the water cleared up to the point that we had a few shots at Reds and caught a few Jack in the 5-10 lb range. However, baits are starting their disappearing act and we’ll have to switch over to using shrimp. As the “Super Moon” wanes and temperatures drop, we’re poised for the Redfish and Trout bite to explode! Once this cold front can get water temps below 70 degrees, it’s game on for the rest of November and into December.

Book a trip and jump on board to take advantage of the Redfish and Trout bite. Give me a call and let’s burn up some drag washers!

Posted in Uncategorized

Today I decided for fish the late morning and early afternoon falling tide. The wind had backed off from the other day and the water in the last couple hours of the tide was cleaner. We released a bunch of small Snook that couldn’t lay off of our soft plastics and then we switched up to some Gulps with weedless rigs and caught a few small Reds and one nice slot Red. It looks like tomorrow may even be better and the bite is expected to improve throughout the rest of November. Water temp is still in mid to upper 70’s so the Snook and Reds aren’t getting sluggish yet.

There’s still room on the calendar to join me for a trip this month. Give me a call and let’s get you set up.

Posted in Uncategorized