Coldfront brings great Islamorada Fishing! 12/14/10

Islamorada Fishing Report – December 14, 2010

The Keys are alive and well!  It’s been a little chilly but staying productive!  This week we did a little fishing on both sides, Ocean and Backcountry.  The water has managed to stay warm despite the cold fronts, however this one we are getting today could cool things down quite a bit.  “That’s Right” has had some good catches both on the patches and some of the deeper fads and wrecks. The big Kings have started to move in, which we had good luck with on the live Speedo’s and cigar minnows. The Sailfish have begun to travel by us more frequently, which has allowed us better catches. Sardines dangling from the Kites and Ballyhoo out of the rigger have brought the most action. The Mutton Snappers did bite nicely for us this week.  We got a mixed bag with some small patch Muttons and a few up over the 15lb mark. The Yellowtails and Red Groupers have maintained their appetite and have provided great action. We did go Swordfishing on Saturday night but only found a Shark bite.  We had some tough conditions with the wind against the tide making it real tough to have a productive drift. The day bite has been better with several fish being caught in the 150lb range; real nice fish.

The Backcountry has been swarming with Redfish.   Capt. Clyde caught 80 on Friday and he said it was hands down the best he has ever seen with bites on every cast!! The northerly winds have sparked the Bonefish’s interest also.  Capt. Jeff fished on Wednesday and Friday for them and did real well as he had one fish that was close to 10lbs! He told me the live shrimp was the ticket.  The trout and the wide variety of other fish back in the Gulf have turned on and the bites are pretty steady. Both have also made mention of the Cudas on the deep flats have provided anglers with some awesome action on the light tackle.  These fish will range anywhere from 10 to 30lbs and will give you a run for your money.

Overall fishing has been productive and the outlook for the next couple of weeks is a good one!  These cold fronts should spark some interest from the deep water Groupers, as well as the Sailfish.  The reef edge will start to become more active and our conditions should continue to improve.  Let’s just hope we don’t get the cold we had last season!

Captain John Oughton
prettyworkcharters@gmail.com