Good morning,
We received multiple offshore reports from the weekend. Sailfish are slowly making their way down the coast. I talked to several people who came across packs of sails and others who saw a few. It seems the best sailfish bite so far has been around 180′. There has been a decent dolphin bite lately with some fish up to thirty pounds. The small blackfin tunas are still being captured amongst the bonitas. Most have been in the 5-10 pound range with and occasional blackfin in the twenty pound class.
Inshore the redfish are still the most cooperative species. We have been catching redfish both North and South, some in schools and other single and paired fish. Trout fishing has been slow overall but some nice fish have been caught on South Indian River Drive. We have had decent snook fishing in the inlet, bridges, and turning basin, but I fear the worst for the small fish on the flats. It is my personal opinion that opening snook season back up was a horrible idea! Everyone used the larger fish in the inlet area as an indicator of the overall snook population. BAD IDEA. This time of year we usually catch anywhere from 5-30 small snook in the 16-26" range in the shallows a day. I have been fishing at least 3 days every week through the mullet run and have literally only caught a few juvenile snook all season. We are certain to see the after effects of the freeze in the next couple years, regardless of what all the geniuses in Tallahassee think. I guess my point is to handle these fish with care. Take the extra time to release out of slot fish, it is your responsibility as an angler.
Have a great day!
-Scott