Florida Keys Backcountry Fishing ReportDecember 12-18, 2012

Posted on 12/14/2012
| | More
Florida Keys backcountry fishing report Dec 12-18,2012
 
Great time of the year to be fishing in the Florida Keys. There are a lot of great things going on right now in the Everglades National Park and Gulf waters. The bite was phenomenal last weekend, Spanish Mackerel, Snappers, Cobia, Redfish, Tripletail and many more were all reported by anglers that ventured out in to gulf waters. Anchor up anywhere from nine mile bank west and start your chum slick and it won't take long before the swarm of Spanish Mackerel, Snappers and many other gulf residents make their way towards the slick. Out on bottom structure expect to get in to some decent Cobia, Goliath Grouper and all the other gulf species that make those wrecks their home. The Tripletail fishing has been phenomenal with plenty of nice fish hitting the docks throughout the week. Run the trap lines west of Sandy key for the best action, if one line is not producing move over to the next.
The Redfish bite throughout the park remains steady. The shallow areas east of Flamingo have been producing a great bite of Redfish with a couple of Snooks mixed in as well. Fish the deeper channels and runoffs in the Snake bite area as well as adjacent Island moats for a mixed bad of Reds, Trout and Snook. Farther west towards the middle grounds and Cape Sable area expect the bite to continue to produce great catches of Redfish, Trout, Snook and some Black Drum. Live Shrimp on a 1/4 oz jig bounced on the bottom will get anybody's attention. Scented artificial baits like Berkley Gulp Shrimp and
Jerk baits rigged weedless for the shallower areas will get the job done as well. The bait has been very easy to find, get your live well full of pilchards and use them to spice things up at your favorite fishing hole. Look for the birds to be diving on the bait early in the morning around the Oceanside shoreline throughout the keys.
Many of the guides that went on the hunt for Bonefish this past week reported plenty of shots at nice groups of fish. Fish the high outgoing tide around Oceanside flats for the best action. Look for mudding fish on the higher stages of the tide. As the water drops look for pushing and tailing fish. The Shrimp have been very nice size at the bait stores and make for choice bait when Bonefishing. Take advantage of the great fishing going on in the Florida Keys, get out on the water and enjoy the weekend.

Captain Juan Garcia