Florida Keys backcountry fishing report July 15-31 2013

Posted on 7/25/2013

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Florida Keys backcountry fishing report July 15-31 2013

Hello everyone! The wet weather is finally gone for now and the fishing opportunities in the Florida Keys backcountry fishing charters are endless. Look for the shallow water fishing in the park to be excellent with Redfish patrolling mostly every shallow shoreline and island flat. Captain Lain Goodwin reports a great bite of Snook and Redfish while fishing the mainland shorelines in the Key Largo area, live pilchards and soft plastics have been working great for him. Captain Brian Gwilliam has been getting in to a great Tarpon, Snook and Redfish bite while fishing the shallow areas east of Flamingo, soft plastics rigged weedless have been his bait of choice. Look for the good Snook bite to continue in the Flamingo area with nice Redfish, Trout and a few Tarpon as well. Live Pinfish or Pilchards is the way to go but scented soft plastics like Berkley Gulps will get the job done. Fish some dead baits on the bottom around the deeper channels for the big Sharks in the area and the occasional Tarpon. Look for the Snapper and Trout bite to continue as you head west from the middle grounds towards First National bank. The Cape Sable area continues to produce great catches of Snook, Redfish and Tarpon.
Out on the Gulf Wrecks look for a variety of species, from Permit to Cobia, big Sharks and Goliath Groupers plus all the rod benders that frequent those areas. closer to the park boundaries the big Trout bite continues to be phenomenal with some nice Snappers as well. Bouncing jigs on the bottom has been the ticket while drifting.
Look for the Bonefish to be more active on the early and later parts of the day around Oceanside and bayside flats. Permit continue to patrol the deeper edges of flats and banks both ocean and bayside. With the calm conditions and our recent Lobster mini season the fish have been very spooky so stealth and a really long cast is very important. Don't forget the Bug spray when venturing to the Islamorada backcountry fishing since the bugs have been really bad out there. Enjoy the beautiful weather and take the family fishing.

Captain Juan Garcia