Greetings fish fans. We have had our share of cold fronts lately but luckily we have enough fishing options to always find some fish. Fishing out of Key Largo or Islamorada, Florida Bay is the place that holds most of those options. The snook and redfish bite has slowed a bit due to water temperatures but the void has been quickly filled by sea trout, black drum, and spanish mackerel. This past week we were out in western Florida Bay, pretty close to the edge of the Gulf of Mexico. We anchored up in 10’ of water and put out a bag of chum. By the time I got the rods rigged with some light wire leader, we had quite a few fish behind the boat. It was time to get busy. Our terminal tackle consisted of a light swivel, about 18” of wire leader, and a ¼ chartreuse Capt. Hank Brown’s Hook Up Jig. To this we added a live shrimp and it was “game on”. We started out catching some big ladyfish and some blue runners, then the “macks” showed up. That was what we were looking for, spanish mackerel. After going through 14 dozen shrimp and all the Berkley Gulps I had in the boat, we tied on some red and white Capt. Hank Brown’s Bucktails. The bite never slowed and by the time it was ready to head back in, we had brought 70-80 fish to the boat, most of them being macks. We caught fish to around five pounds and although that might not sound too big, fighting these speedsters on light spinning gear is a rod bending drag screaming battle. As far as the technique is concerned, just cast your offering out in the chum slick and slowly reel and jig it back to the boat. Make sure you bring plenty of snacks with you. Catching macks will definitely make you work up an appetite!
Until next time, good tides and keep the Sun to your back. >
Capt. Kerry Wingo
Tails Up Fishing Charters
Key Largo, FL
www.tailsupfishing.com
305-394-1383
Key Largo Backcountry Report
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