The weather this week has not been cooperative for Stuart area fisherman, but those who suffered through this outrageous fortune fared well. The kingfish are around in decent numbers as well as a fair share of false albacores. The kingfish, mostly under 30 pounds, are hitting on live baits in 40 to 70 feet of water. Dolphin are scattered in 90 to 170 feet of water and are being taken on live bait or trolled ballyhoo. Lots of sailfish are being sighted north of the St. Lucie Inlet with most of the hookups on ballyhoo. The bottom fishing has been tough but still reports of bonito, snapper, triggerfish, black sea bass, and amberjack are being posted.

With the mullet run in full swing in the Indian River Lagoon, St. Lucie River and along the beaches the fishing is picking up nicely. On the inside, redfish, trout, and ladyfish are gorging themselves on finger mullet. Plenty of trout has been reported at just about any place you find schools of glass minnows.

Along the beach, there are plenty of bluefish, snook, tarpon, redfish, spanish mackerel, jacks, flounder, and ladyfish. With all the mullet in the Lagoon and St. Lucie river the redfish are active on the flats. 

Never satisfied; We are still looking for the next cold to bring down surface water temperatures to the sailfish's preferred range. Prime time for Stuart, Florida area sailfish starts about Mid October through April when there are a lot of fish concentrated in our area. On winter days with the wind out of the east it is not unusual to get 4-5 sail releases in a days.

Fishing has just been great offshore and inside and with fall just days away, the sailfish fishing will get hot. So, If you are coming down, give us a call.

Tip of the Week:

With the fall mullet run in full force, find the lures that best imitates a wounded mullet. The fish are keying on the bait schools and will attack anything that looks like an easy meal. It wasn't long ago that the fish were gorging on pinfish, but now it's mullet time! Match your lures to the bait and you will have better success out on the water.

Great weather and good fishing; Life is good. With the mullet run in full swing in the Indian River Lagoon, St. Lucie River and along the beaches the fishing is picking up nicely. The bottom bite has been good and likely to only get better. The kingfish have been around in decent numbers with some decent fish being caught as well as a fair share of false albacores. On the inside, redfish, trout, and ladyfish are gorging themselves on finger mullet. Along the beach, there are plenty of bluefish, snook, tarpon, redfish, spanish mackerel, jacks, flounder, and ladyfish. With all the mullet in the Lagoon and St. Lucie river the redfish are active on the flats, even with the high tides.  The bottom fishing has picked up this week for bonito, snapper, triggerfish, black sea bass, and amberjack.

We are still looking for the next cold front to bring a big push of mullet south along the beach. Then we will see action on the flats as the schools of finger mullet fill the river and bring in the predators.  It's a great opportunity to catch some big fish, so call me and let's get out on the water!

 

Prime time for Stuart, Florida area sailfish starts about Mid October through April when there are a lot of fish concentrated in our area. On winter days with the wind out of the east it is not unusual to get 4-5 sail releases in a days. This week, north of the St. Lucie Inlet, one boat reported a 5 for 7 sailfish day. During the late winter season be sure to present plenty of baits down deep, at least 60 feet or more down. It is a bit too cold for them on those days when the winds are blowing from the north.

Fishing has just been great offshore and inside and with fall just days away, the sail fishing will get hot. So, If you are coming down, give us a call.

The annual fall mullet run is in full swing in the St. Lucie River estuary. This triggers a predatory feeding frenzy and produces some of the best fishing of the year. On the inside, redfish, trout, and ladyfish are gorging themselves on finger mullet. The key to finding the tarpon, snook, jacks and many other species is finding the small mullet. Find them, and sport fish will be nearby. The predators will be cruising along the beaches or cornering bait around the St. Lucie Inlet and seawalls in the Indian River and around the bridges in the St. Lucie River. With all the mullet coming into the St. Lucie river, the snook are crashing bait and fishermen are everywhere. Redfish are still active on the flats.  Also, the bottom fishing has picked up this week for snapper, triggerfish, black sea bass, and amberjack.

The next cold front should bring a big push of mullet south along the beach, so look for action on the flats as the schools of finger mullet fill the river and bring in the predators.  It is a great opportunity to catch some big fish, so call me and let's get out on the water!

During the winter season, good sailfish fishing will be affected by the passage of cold fronts through our area. What these cold fronts do is jump start our winter fishing. This gives us good action as the winds associated with the fronts will kick up the seas and the fish just love the addition aeration in the water. Kite fishing becomes the most popular method for seeking sailfish action, although flat lines catch their fair share of sailfish. Kingfish and dolphin aren't very choosey and will hit baits on the kite, flat lines, down rigger, or bottom rod.

September brings a change in the air; You can feel it. A little dryer, a touch cooler in the morning, and the fish can feel it too. Typically sailfish can be seen in deeper waters offshore this month. Sometimes you will see them surrounding large schools of spanish sardines as they head south. As we near the winter time they will start showing up in large numbers along the edge of the Gulf Stream. Dolphin are starting their return trip south and should be fat and happy as they head our way. Look for small kingfish along the edge. Bottom fishing for Mutton Snapper should be good as well. It's beginning to happen. Call for availability.

Good dolphin fishing has finally arrived off the Stuart/Jupiter area. There are large numbers of fish in the schools and they can be found through a wide range of depths and distances offshore. The fish range in size from schoolies to fish into the 15 pound range. Remember that there is a 20 inch minimum from the lower jaw to the fork of the tail (LJFT) and a 10 fish per person limit.

There are still some nice snapper around the channel edges and docks. Around the bridges, the anglers have caught snapper, croakers and sheephead. The mackerel are still around the inlet, but not as frenzied as last week. We did see some bonito crashing bait out there today. The surf has been producing mostly whiting and some croakers and mackerel. We had a lot of fun out this week and will be out there again looking for the action around the St. Lucie river for big tarpon.

Speaking of time of year, be warned that as of August 1, 2009, Florida resident fishing in saltwater from land or from a structure fixed to the land will be required to have a Florida saltwater license.