March winds have been keeping us hunkered down in the backcountry enjoying some of the calm quiet waters that it offers . The inshore fishing around the Naples in Marco Island areas can be somewhat tricky this time of year due to the inconsistency of our weather. There’s plenty of fish to be caught, you just have to understand that our gamefish are not balled up in these conditions, they tend to spread out and hunker down.
If you’re able to secure a live well full of bait, you can have an action packed day on the water. There has been a consistent snook, sea trout, jacks & snapper bite going on every day . It’s routine for me to pull up to an area throw about 50 baits in my Chum bat and let them loose to draw out any action. Once we see some activity on the surface, it’s time to settle in and get to work. We are just coming off full moon tides, so I’m finding most of my action to be the last few hours of the outgoing and the first few hours of the incoming. Looks like we have another small front approaching this week so look for directions to change back to Northwest for a day. This weekend looks outstanding. Hope everybody has a great Easter Sunday , you know where I’ll will be <*{{{{>< !!!!!!!
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March’s weather can be unpredictable but every week we get treated to a few slicked out days and hungry fish .
Naples and Marco island have been producing some great inshore fishing action. Snook & sea trout have been top on the hit list . The trout bite has been most productive around the passes, where there is a good steady current flow . We have been using live pilchards and a small split shot just above the hook to get our baits down in the strike zone . Once I find a few trout in an area , I can then zero in and pick them apart. I have been finding some snook out front on the beaches, but having most success in the creeks and middle bays. The key has been getting as much bait in the morning as possible, that way you are able to chum these areas. Chumming not only gets the fish in the feeding mode, but also keeps them around. There’s been some absolute monster jack crevalles around, so be ready as they hit hard and run even harder. If you get one of these big ones on , just remember to take your time, as they never come in eazy. We have some rainy weather coming this weekend, and the change in our winds, so look for that clean water & you will find the fish. C u on the water ! Capt. Tim Daugherty www.fishthesalt.com (239) 280-8138 Absolutely a killer week of inshore fishing in the Naples and Marco Island area . Finally we got a good stretch of weather with highs in the 80s. This warm weather brings gulf temperatures up and gets our game, fish active. We have been catching good numbers of snook and trout on the outside points where there is good current flow. We have been using live pilchards that I’ve been castnetting on the offshore rock piles. One really good tip and trick is if you notice these bats can sometimes out swim the fish you are targeting.
What I like to do on these bigger baits is get my scissors and trim their tails . This makes your bait slower and unable to dodge a hard strike . If our weather continues to be in the upper 80s, our gulf temperatures will remain in the upper 70s and this will bring on our first push of Tarpon just off our beaches. It’s getting close to that time of year where our fishery will be action packed with all gamefish on our target list . What a great time to get out and enjoy this great playground we have. C U on the water !!!!! Capt. Tim Daugherty www.fishthesalt.com (239) 280-8138 Despite the cool winter temps the inshore fishing has been heating up. This week in the Naples and Marco island areas we have been experiencing full moon low moring tides. These conditions will school up the fish if you know where to look . We have been concentrating on the deeper holes that have a steady rolling current. It’s a mixed bag of fish on these tides (snook , tarpon , sea trout , jacks , snapper ) all seem to congregate in the spots.
I have been catching live bait offshore and turning around & heading deep in the backcountry to fish. This week’s weather looks to be on point with highs in the upper 70s and light morning winds. What a great time of the year to be on the water enjoying this pristine playground . C u on the water! Capt. Tim Daugherty www.fishthesalt.com (239) 280-8138 What a great time to be on the water in South Florida . Cool sunny days have the inshore fishing lit up …We are in full season mode in the Naples and Marco island areas , lots of traffics on the roads and long weights at the restaurants but on the water it’s quiet and peaceful. On the colder days , just after the the cold fronts , is when the sea trout bite the best . I have been targeting them in the backcountry around the islands and points that have a steady current flow. Trout love to hold tight to the bottom and wait for a bait fish or shrimp to get washed by them . Artificials and live shrimp have been great in getting these winter fish to eat.
On the calm light wind days I have been able to ride offshore and catch live bait(pilchards). 3/8in 12ft net is just perfect in getting down to the bottom fast . If your able to score live bait bring them back to into the creeks and backcountry rivers as they have been holding some nice snook. 30lb fluorocarbon leaded attached to a 1/0 j hook is just a perfect match for any inshore condition. Cold fronts have been coming our way just about every week so no time for complaining yah just gotta get on the water and enjoy the change in temps . All week we will have perfect falling tides so get out and get it while the getting is good !!!! C u on the water !!!! Capt. Tim Daugherty www.fishthesalt.com (239) 280-8138 Finally got some consistent weather and this has the inshore bite turned back on! We’ve been treated to some east wind, which is always my favorite wind to see. In the Naples and Marco island areas the gulf lays down and the water gets really clear and fish tend to school back up. We are still catching some nice snook around some of the deeper structure with good current .. As I like to do most of the time, we are throwing live pilchards to get these bigger snook out of hiding . There’s been great Jack and snapper action in amongst the snook so be ready for anything.
With water temps still in the low to mid 60s the sea trout bite has been really consistent . We have been targeting them with 1/4oz-3/4oz jig heads with DOA paddle tails or gulps (3in) . If you’re a little more adventurous and don’t mind burning a little gas, you could always find a tripletail on the offshore stone crab bouys . Just got to get lucky out there, the more traps you look at , the more your odds of finding a big one goup. My favorite bait, for these are live shrimp or a pilchard with his tail cut off. Put the bait right in front of his face and you can watch him eat it and the fight is on.! With rising temps , look for this week fishing to continue to heat up ! Great time of the year to be out on the water ! C u out there !!’ Capt. Tim Daugherty www.fishthesalt.com (239) 280-8138 The winter fishery in South West Florida is in full effect. Cool mornings and low falling tides have been perfect for fishing the outside islands & bays for sea trout & redfish . The Naples and Marco island backcountry has also been where we have been having most success using artificials. My go to winter baits are 3/8oz stand up jig head with a DOA 3in paddle tail( brown , olive color) . This is a deadly combination for searching areas looking for fish staging up. What I like to do fan around an area or points trying to locate a few fish to where I can zero in on where the school is. The best presentation is to keep your rod tip up in that 11:00 positions and give it a good jump never dropping your rod tip too low as a lot of times the strike is on the fall. Due to the light winds, we are still seeing some live bait around the beaches.
Even though the water temps have been in the low 60s I am still catching snook , sea trout , redfish , snappers , grouper & jacks on the live baits . I am mainly concentrating deep in the backcountry fishing Creek mouths and shorelines that have an undercuts. Try to present your bait close to the structure, shut your bail and let it float naturally in the current waiting for a strike . What’s great about this type of fishing is you never know what you’re gonna get on any given cast? We are still seeing cold fronts just about every week so you just have to be patient as these fish are very sensitive to temp change. What a great time to be on the water enjoying some nice cool weather. Hope to see yah on the water !!! Capt. Tim Daugherty www.fishthesalt.com (239) 280-8138 Cooler temps are finally making there way down to south Florida so time to dial into the winter fishery . When our inshore water temps in the Naples and Marco island areas drop into the 60s it’s time to switch from live bait to jigs. Our game fish have already started to make there way into the creeks and deep backcountry where the darker colored water plus the darker bottom will warm up faster during these cooler days . I like to fish these low incoming tides, where I know fish will be piled up in the deeper holes and shore lines with current . I like A DOA 3in paddle tail paired up to a 1/4oz jig head lathered up with some pro cute shrimp sauce will surely get these chilly fish to come out and grab it.
Also another very productive way to winter fish is to catch you 6 or so lady fish and chunk them up into pieces and skip them up close to the bushes . It’s a waiting game but if there are fish in the area they will smell those chunks sitting on the bottom & come in for an easy meal. Look for these cold fronts to start coming our way just about every few weeks. In between these fronts , when our weather stabilizes is a great time to be on the water getting after it !!!!’ happy holidays!!! Capt. Tim Daugherty www.fishthesalt.com (239) 280-8138 Outstanding weather has settled into south Florida and it has the fishing on fire . The Naples and Marco island inshore fishing continues to produce a variety of inshore species. Snook are still at the top of our hit list . Now that the weather is cooler , I am concentrating on the creeks and bays & looking for current or slight drop offs on a shoreline .
Once I have found an area that has the “recipe”(an area that looks good ) I camp out for a few mins and chum heavy to see who’s home and who is hungry . If after 15min we get no action then it’s time to shuffle down to another spot and repeat process till we land on them . What’s been great is most of our game fish tend to hang out with eachother so you never know what you’re going to hook into on any given cast . The sea trout bite has been picking up as it usually does when the water temps drop . We are also finding some pompano mixed in while jigging for these trout & both are great fish to take home for the grill . With winter just around the corner, Look for cold fronts to start getting more frequent . All this means is gulf water temps will drop and we will start to change up our fishing tactics. Hope to see yahll on the water !!!!! Capt. Tim Daugherty www.fishthesalt.com (239) 280-8138 Finally had some stable weather in the Naples and Marco island area & this is always good for turning on the inshore fishing . Incoming morning tides have been pushing in some gin clear water and loads of small baitfish for our gamefish to feed on. Live bait has been everywhere but the bigger ones are on the offshore wrecks and rubble piles . I like a 12 ft 3/8in mesh on the deeper piles and inshore I use a 10ft 1/4in . You Have to match the size mesh to the baits you after or if you guess wrong and baits are too small then you will be picking bait out if your net for an hr. There have been redfish mixed in but they have been on the smaller side.
Lots of mangrove snappers in the back country, so if you’re looking for some tasty fish for the grill head to the creeks on the low tides and chum heavy. We have also been catching our share of sea trout on the low tides around the creek mouths. We’re not doing anything different but occasionally I will put a small split shot just above the hook to get the baits down right in front of them. Should be another great week of fishing ,sunny conditions and 80° temps . Get out and enjoy this great weather south Florida has to offer. See you on the water.!! Capt. Tim Daugherty www.fishthesalt.com (239) 280-8138 |
CAPT. TIM
The latest Naples inshore, backcountry and Gulf fishing report by Capt. Tim Daugherty. Archives
July 2024
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